Creating Good Habits isn’t Easy
I told myself that this past week would be a week of self-discipline. After work I would get home, eat dinner, relax and then work on my website for an hour. After working on my website I would then do yoga and meditate. After yoga and meditation I could slow down and do a little reading before bed.
All these great plans went accordingly on Monday night, but on Tuesday night they all fell apart. I got stuck at work longer than I wanted and then I had to come home and make dinner for my wife and myself. We watched a little TV and I got hooked. I could have recorded it, but I didn’t want to. I watched the end of the show then cleaned the dishes with my wife. By then I was tired and didn’t want to face the computer.
I actually asked myself, “How are you going to get ahead if you don’t push past your comfort zone?â€
I answered myself, “I’ll definitely do it tomorrow no matter how I’m feeling.â€
On Wednesday I never worked on my web site, or practiced my yoga and meditation or even read a little before bed. I had one good day of a new habit. One day isn’t going to change my habits. I have to stick to my original plan, but with a few alterations.
Thursday I sat down at my computer with the best intentions, but I ended up surfing the web for an hour then I got tired and went to bed.
Friday was a mess, but I knew what was going to happen, so I forgave myself and vowed for a better week with a few alterations and a sprinkle of mental flexibility. Instead of pushing myself to work an hour at the computer I should have given myself a break and told myself a half hour would be good considering my time limits. That way I wouldn’t have broken from the new routine that I wanted to create. This week I will sit down and do a little website work even if it’s only for fifteen minutes, because what usually happens is I end up spending more time at the computer than I had planned, which is good if I have trouble getting motivated. When I tell myself to sit for just fifteen minutes I usually work for a half hour. Then I could do my Yoga for just ten minutes and that would be okay.
A shortened habit is better than giving up on something that you know will help you in the long run.
