Habits...
We all have them. Some habits serve us and some of them clearly don’t. The good news is we get to decide which habits we keep and which ones we choose to kick to the curb. There is a tremendous power that occurs within us when we create habits that foster health and well being within us i.e. healthy eating, moving our bodies on a consistent basis, staying out of the drama in life and embracing gratitude, love and happiness.
What is the purpose of a habit? A habit creates a way for us to automate our choices without continually thinking about them. A routine consistently performed for a period of time creates a habit and habits train our subconscious to create the experience we desire. It generally takes 21 days to establish a habit.
What habit(s) is currently a part of your life? How satisfied are you with the results this habit(s) is providing you? This is a great way to identify habits that aren’t serving us or helping us reach our goals and dreams.
Many years ago, I created a habit to begin my day in gratitude and purpose. I start by saying thank you as my feet hit the floor in the morning. When I swing my legs out of bed, as my left foot connects with the smooth hard wood, I say, “thank” then as my right foot follows I say, “you.” Doing this reminds me that every day is a gift called ‘the present’ and it is totally up to me how I experience it and what I do with my time that day. I decided to begin by being grateful and saying “Thank You”.
I continue on to open my day with coffee, reading a chapter from a book that inspires me, and then I write my intention, what I want to accomplish and how I want to feel, for the day. I also incorporate a spin on the bike at the gym or a run outside to hear the singing birds as they awaken.
Oh, please don’t be misled; it wasn’t always like this for me! Prior to this habit, I would lay in bed until the last possible second, then drag myself out and get ready to climb aboard the rat wheel at my job. I was choosing to put off my dream for another day. Which meant most days I was not starting from a place of gratitude for the amazing ‘present’ that I had instantly received by being able to put my feet on the floor.
Clearly this was a habit that wasn’t serving me and it began to creep into other parts of my life. The habit was procrastination. “I’ll get up in a few minutes.” “I’ll work on starting my business in a little while.” A little while turned into tomorrow, then tomorrow turns into next week, next month and then the ultimate…someday.
I woke up one day to the realization that someday was not a date, it was a dream killer! I was putting my life and my dreams on hold every moment I chose to put something off until later and that’s when I began a new morning routine. It took time to develop it into the amazing habit that it has become today, however I just kept at it and the more I honored my routine the more I enjoyed my entire day. Now, it’s just how I roll and I don’t even think about it.
This habit has been a foundational support to me as I decided to leave my corporate job and create a wildly successful business helping others in a profound way!
I’m curious, where is procrastination showing up in your life? What are you waiting for next week, tomorrow, or someday? What if you were to decide and choose today to be the day? Now is the time to create a new habit that will support you achieving your goals and desires! What routine would you like to start with? Keep at it, change can be challenging, however you are worth it! You have the ability to choose and create what your ‘present’ will be each and every day.
Enjoy,
Kris