There were two issues Marlin wanted to change in his life: his weight and his habit of procrastination. While browsing in a bookstore, he discovered Effective Learning’s audio self-help program ‘Achieve Your Ideal Weight’. “I’d used many motivational tapes in the past to help me lose weight, but this one actually worked.” He lost a staggering 70 pounds.
“I’d listen to the program in the car. It’s one hour long, and I really liked listening to Deirdre Griswold. And then I started making changes to my behavior. Instead of eating dinner in front of the TV, I started to eat at the table. I used to eat really fatty food, too. Now, I make better choices and have more self-control. I also go walking for 3 miles every day.”
Marlin also describes the importance of changing his self-image. “You need to see yourself as thin. In the past when I lost weight, I still thought of myself as fat so I always put the weight back on. Now, I’ve lost 70 pounds and I’m keeping it off because I’ve changed my habits. Part of it is visualizing myself as thin. It really did help me lose weight.”
Following his weight loss success, Marlin tackled his unhelpful procrastination habit. “I used to sleep in until 10 o’clock every morning. Now, I’m up at 6. And I always used to put things off and tell myself I’d do it tomorrow.” Using the Conquering Procrastination program, Marlin learned important tools to help him deal with this issue. “Each morning, I write a list of what needs to be done and I get it done.” When asked what helped him the most, he mentions breaking tasks down into 15 minute blocks rather than feeling overwhelmed with big projects. “I’d had trouble with procrastination for 50 years, so this really was a breakthrough for me.”
Marlin believes what makes Effective Learning’s programs different is the way they change your brain. “You learn better habits. It teaches you how to create better habits to achieve your goals.” He’s since purchased other programs from Effective Learning including Discovering and Developing Your Talents and Freedom From Insomnia. Now, Marlin is writing a book and completes 15-20 pages a day. “I highly recommend these programs. They are well-priced and they work.”
