Contemplation ("getting ready")

People are beginning to recognize that their behavior is problematic, and start to look at the pros and cons of their continued actions.

While they are usually now more aware of the pros of changing, their cons are about equal to their Pros.

This ambivalence about changing can cause them to keep putting off taking action.

People here learn about the kind of person they could be if they changed their behavior and learn more from people who behave in healthy ways.

Others can influence and help effectively at this stage by encouraging them to work at reducing the cons of changing their behavior.