Tackling the Magic Fix Mentality

Your clients want a magic fix...Here's how to tackle that.

She sat across from me, arms crossed, expression flat.

"Just tell me what to eat and I'll do it," she said.

No hesitation. No curiosity. Just a direct, no-nonsense request for me to hand her the answers.

I nodded. I’d seen this before. The Fix Me mentality. The belief that if someone just gave them the perfect meal plan, the perfect strategy, then this time—unlike all the other times—they’d finally be able to stick to it.

So I asked, “What’s worked for you in the past?”

She shrugged. “Nothing.”

Alright, plan B.

“What hasn’t worked?” I asked.

That’s when the floodgates opened.

The diet she tried because her friend swore by it… but she hated every meal.The macro tracking that made her feel anxious and obsessed.The elimination plan that left her exhausted and cranky.

One by one, she listed the times she had tried to follow someone else’s rules. And one by one, she realized that none of them stuck.

Not because she wasn’t “disciplined enough.” Not because she wasn’t “doing it right.” But because none of those approaches were hers.

When asked "What do you think would have made them work?" it got her thinking of what she needed, what she preferred...

So I asked, “If you could build your own way of eating—one that you actually enjoy and would work for you—what would it look like?”

She hesitated. For the first time, she was being asked what she wanted, not what she thought she should want.

At first, her answers were small: “I know I need more energy in the afternoons, so maybe I should have a snack instead of just pushing through.” “I don’t like eating a big breakfast, but I feel better when I have something light instead of fasting till noon.” “I don’t actually mind cooking, I just hate planning. Maybe I can prep a few staples ahead of time.”

And little by little, we built from there.

Over the next few sessions, she stopped looking for a premade plan and we started creating her own, together.

She discovered that she wasn’t actually struggling with willpower—she just needed a structure that worked for her.

And you know what happened?

She started sticking to it. Not because I told her what to do, but because she figured it out for herself, with my guidance.

The Takeaway: Your Clients Already Have the Answers (They Just Don’t Know It Yet). They just need some guidance.

Every dietitian has had this client—the one who walks in wanting to be spoon-fed every answer, believing that if we just tell them exactly what to do, everything will click into place.

But that’s not how behavior change works.

People don’t change because of rules. They change because they feel a sense of ownership over their choices.

So if you have a client like this, try this:

Ask what hasn’t worked—Get them to reflect on why following other people’s plans failed.What would have made those attempts work—Gets them thinking of what they need and prefer.Ask what small changes would feel good—Instead of focusing on rules, help them notice what actually works for them.Let them be the expert—Instead of dictating, guide them toward their own solutions.

You don’t need to hand them a meal plan—you need to guide them as they write their own (provide suggestions, yes, with permission - but not rules). Your role isn’t to dictate every step but to help them feel comfortable with trial and correction, embrace flexibility, and build confidence in figuring out what truly works for them.

And when they do? That’s when the real magic happens.

Keep guiding, keep empowering, and keep reminding your clients that they already have the answers—they just need a little help uncovering them.

Here’s to more trial and correction, more flexibility, and fewer one-size-fits-all meal plans!