In Start early, leverage habit I suggested that if you plan to get back to the gym after the new year, now is the time to start seeing images of yourself working out. Dressing up your avatar is a perfect, fun, and very easy way to do that.
An avatar is a little picture that represents you in certain online environments. For example, I made an avatar for the Yahoo! account I use for email and chat. Sometimes an avatar is made from a photo, but more often it’s a cartoon image that is constructed from various body parts and costumes you select.
Usually it’s very easy to make changes to your avatar – for example you might change its hair color, the shirt it’s wearing, or the background it’s standing in front of. Check out the stuff you can do to your Yahoo! avatar at avatars.yahoo.com. Lots of other sites have avatar programs, as well.
Playing with your avatar can be a really fun and safe way to experiment with new identities or remind yourself of future realities. For example, back when I was working on my RV ad campaign I parked a motorhome behind my avatar and dressed “myself” in camping clothes for several months.
TBYB! is always looking for methods to deliver our messages that will be automatic; that is, they occur frequently in the normal course of doing things you would do anyway without requiring any additional action or thought on your part. Dressing up your avatar can be a great way to accomplish that automation. Now that I have all mine all suited up and at the gym I see “myself” working out every time I check my email!
