Habits

For me, habits are a powerful tool to achieve long term goals. There are many books on habits and how to develop, change or remove them.

They are a great way to bring your self to things you know are good for you in the long run, but not that exiting or fun to do. This can result in a lack of motivation to keep them up.

To overcome this, I try to keep the thing as short and easy as possible. Another trick is to do it on a fixed point in the day, for example, first thing in the morning. This helped me a lot with meditation and stretching.

An example, if you want to start meditation, it’s hard to do it for an hour right from the start. But if you just meditate for 5 to 10 minutes every day, it is a less daunting task. Then the habit is established, the time can be increased without as much risk of not doing it. An other advantage is to see the habit fits you. Not every practice, as good as it might seam on paper, is for everyone.

I wanted to start stretching for a while now, but I couldn’t get myself to it. I thought of it then I was working or just wasn’t in the mood. Furthermore, I tried to establish the habit before going to bed, but I usually forgot until I was almost asleep and couldn’t be bothered to stand up again. Then I scheduled it after meditation right in the morning, the habit stuck and I do it almost every day.

Not every habit is as timing reliant. It depends on the fun and how immediate the benefits are, at least for me. Meditation and stretching don’t have the immediate response as working out or reading. Which is why I can schedule my workouts and reading more flexible and still get them done.

In conclusion: If you know you want it but don’t get around to it, try to make it a habit. Start small and schedule them right. There are good books like: “Atomic Habits - James Clear” that go much deeper in this topic. Check them out if you want to know more.