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How to Build a Daily Writing Habit
By: Shailaja V
Tags: Self Improvement, Habit Building, Writing Tips, Writing Habit, Writing Life

How to Build a Daily Writing Habit

Photo by Christin Hume on Unsplash

Writing daily can seem impossible, especially in the current age.

But if we are to grow as writers, this is a skill we must all develop.

Here are a few tips I can share after 21 days of daily writing on Medium.

Set a fixed time to write everyday

Showing up to write is more important than how perfectly a piece turns out. Remember that a writing habit is designed to hone your higher order thinking skills, break free of your constraints and just get into the deep flow state.

When I show up at 6.30 AM every morning on Medium, I start writing reflexively. I don’t think about anything other than writing.

Write even when you don’t feel like it

This is crucial. If we only write when inspiration strikes, that’s going to be a very short writing life.

Show up everyday and write, even if the words don’t make sense on paper or the screen.

Do it the way you would do a workout: Work out every single day for 10 minutes, even if you feel horrid.

Tell me how you feel soon afterwards.

Routine trumps motivation every single time.

Write when the world is quiet

Of course I am referring to your private world or your home.

Write when the rest of the household is not stirring and you can give undivided attention to the task at hand.

Read books on the craft of writing

The way to truly dive into writing for its own sake is to read and read a lot.

For every writer, the book I recommend is ‘Writing Down the Bones’ by Natalie Goldberg. It’s the ideal Zen approach to writing while giving you practical tips on how to build a daily writing habit.

Don’t edit while you write

This is very crucial. You want to write a lot? Stop editing while you write. Don’t let anything come in the way of your writing flow.

After you’ve written (and sometimes even after you’ve published) the piece, go back and review it to see if you can edit it for clarity, flow and grammar.

Jot down ideas when they strike you

While writing itself is a creature of habit, ideas are not. The minute a good idea strikes you, jot it down on a notepad or a phone’s note taking app and sometimes, directly in a draft on Medium.

Start writing and then stop midway through a sentence

If you want to continue writing everyday, write part of a sentence of your next article and then leave it unfinished.

When you return to it the next day, your brain will pick up the thread and unravel the thought effectively. This is one tip among several that the great writer Ernest Hemingway recommended to upcoming writers.

Get comfortable writing into the void

Always assume that nobody is reading your writing. The possibility of an audience can work two ways and both can limit your writing.

You can have an adoring group of fans who wait for you to write daily; this can put a lot of pressure on you.

Or you could have stern critics who are ready to rip your piece to shreds; this can severely impede your writing process.

Write as if nobody is reading. Trust me; you’d be happier.
Healthy Habits Series: Creating a Schedule of Small Habits
By: Hacking Health
Tags: Behavior, Habit Building, Habits, Behavior Change, Wellness

“I have so many things I want to do in regards to self-care, but I don’t know where to start”. I hear this a lot, because people think that they have to do a ton of things that take up a lot of time in order to feel like they did self-care. Well guess what? Self-care isn’t as glamorous as Instagram says it is. A lot of self-care is little habits that work towards the bigger picture of your own personal care. It’s with these habits that you can create a rotating schedule. But HOW do I fit in anything else? The good news is, once you create the schedule, the actual habits are usually 5 minutes or less.

Think of things you should probably be doing or would like to do. For example, you say you should be flossing your teeth. You occasionally remember to actually do it. You want to do a face mask, but think about it as you’re pulling down the covers to go to bed. For me, I chose flossing, using a face mask, oil pulling, and dry brushing.

broadwaycosmeticdentist.com

Pick when you’re going to do them. If you chose flossing, you could add that to your nighttime routine and you could add oil pulling to your morning shower routine. My morning habits include dry brushing and oil pulling, while my night time habits include flossing and putting on a face mask.

Create a simple visual schedule. I created a simple daily schedule using Excel. Each of my habits is done 2-3 times a week. Some days only include one habit, while others include one habit in the morning and one at night.

Hang it up where you can see it. I placed mine right inside the door of my medicine cabinet in my bathroom. This way, when I open it to brush my teeth in the morning and at night, I have a visual prompt to tell me which other habit I should be engaging in.

If you feel like you need to change up your habits, just make a new schedule and adjust accordingly. I hope this provides you with some helpful tips to add in those small things you say you should be doing, but forget about pretty often.

inc.com

Thanks for reading about this week’s healthy habits series. Look out each Monday for the healthy habits series!

Brianna Snyder, M.A., BCBA
#writingtap day 025 — How my trauma and aversion towards cellphone avoid me from getting phone addiction in advance
By: Velika Li
Tags: Writing, Healthy Living, Mental Health, Habit Building, Phone Addiction

It was the same reaction from the years back before. I was afraid of my phone I couldn’t use it, terrified of the notifications. So I turned off the notifications, made separate LINE account with the old one on the lite app version. I created the new secret account to keep in touch lightly with people I want to talk to. I also used WhatsApp, something I rarely used back then. All to avoid unnecessary notifications (people were already so active, believe me, on social media; they just couldn’t stop). It all went down to the point I turned off my activity status, you know, the online and read receipt thing. It was crazy thinking that others need to know whether you’re online and had read the messages or not. I still turned the those things off on every app. I didn’t need to know what happened either, I just checked voluntarily on few apps. It was easy ditching the phone for me, it brought me peace. I slowly drifted away from people; the standard of human interactions which was set unconsciously was actively knowing each other on social medias, whilst I was terrified for it.

It did me good though, finding phones repulsive had its benefits.

I was not dependent on my phone. I also spent time talking with my closest ones (through the new account I made) more than trying to impress people that don’t matter as much. It’s not like I didn’t consider them important, I had people with whom relationships’ I wanted to invest in. I respected genuine relationships, I talked when I met people and not checking my phone. Also, I learned to not give in the temptation of dopamine gratification of tapping the phone; I was not addicted to it so that I actually studied even better. I had better focus and had time for myself and things I liked: reading and studying. I actively participated in competitions, wrote better papers, did better presentations. I was more dedicated for things that mattered and respected them.

Though the reason for my love-hate relationship with cellphone was out of fear, I have already resolved it since. I don’t freak out about notifications anymore because I can just ignore it now. I went to therapy and applied the method on my aversion towards cellphone notifications. My activity status and read receipts are still inactive even now. For me, it is implausible to have everyone knows every time I go online and whether or not I have read their texts. Some people get false sense of control, causing misunderstandings. Another thing, I don’t feel like needing to share so much about my life on social media nor tapping excessively just to get the dopamine secretion on. It unintendedly serves me a great purpose, I am healthier in terms of phone screen time usage for texting excessively.
DO IT ANYWAY
By: Jilson K J
Tags: Habit Building, Motivation, Life Lessons, Running, Entrepreneurship

DO IT ANYWAY

MOTIVATION

DO IT ANYWAY

Are you a success conscious man ?

Do it then. The four major changes in your day to day life

Run

Run out the negativity

Run out the fatigue

Run out the pain

Run out the despair

And breath in hope

Breath in happiness

Breath in success

Read ….

Do you want to be more creative ,more productive and excel in your business ?

Then give some quality diet to your brain .Yes read

Read any way If you have not read an hour a day you have not lived your day.

Save 50% of your income

Fear full and anxious about tomorrow ?

What if I loose my job ?

What if the financial crisis come ?

fed up with the rat race ?

Want to pursue your passion but unable to resign your job and no source to meet your expenses ,Then save 50 % of your income Being rich is not by spending but saving and enjoying the financial freedom

Sign up for a new course…

Have you ever regretted that you could not complete that graduation ?

that MBA , that Law school ?that discontinued medical school ? Now the time sign up.

Unlock the potential of your brain acquire new skill ,enroll the new course and enhance your knowledge and its gonna be a new version of you. SUBSCRIBE:
Dealing with cues
By: Kumara Raghavendra
Tags: Self Improvement, Habit Building, Life Lessons

As humans, we deal with cues. When the clock strikes six in the evening, it is a cue to wrap up what we are doing at work and go home for the day. When someone finishes their part of the presentation, it is a cue for the next one to go up on stage and share their bit.

These are more overt cues.

However, there are 10x more subtle cues in our lives that shape our daily behaviours. When we receive a little nudge from Headspace in terms of a push notification, it is a cue for sitting down to meditate. When we come across pictures of a friend vacationing, it is a cue for us to sit down and make bookings for our own vacation that we’ve been planning.

Cues are essentially things that we come across that evoke certain actions, feelings or behaviours in us. While it is going against human nature to control how we react to every single cue that we come across throughout or day, we don’t have to completely let our fates be decided by the cues that show up in front of us.

Rather than live reactively, we can take control of positioning our cues to our benefit.

I personally undertake a cleansing ritual every now and then when I remove cues from my life that induce undesirable actions or feelings or behaviours — be it uninstalling apps or unfollowing some people on social media or listening to inspiring podcasts and reading informative books.

Placing running gear by the bed, so that we wake up and take the cue to go for a run, or to stock up on fruits and vegetables in the fridge so that we take the cue to eat healthy are some of the more popular things that people do to shape their cues.

Shaping our behaviours are hard when we do not control the cues. It is much more effective to go to the source and control the cues.
Habits
By: Erin Lanier
Tags: Habit Building

Photo by Neil Soni on Unsplash

Back at home, during high school, I had a few bad habits, ones that I tried repeatedly to get rid of but would always go back to. The one that I hated the most was biting my fingernails. Whenever I got bored or nervous, I would bite my fingernails. I tried my best to stop, doing things like keeping my hands busy or painting my fingernails, but even those wouldn’t work sometimes.

Another bad habit I have is eating when I’m not hungry. This one wasn’t as bad at home because there wasn’t always snacks around the house that I could have, but I still found myself searching for candy or sweets whenever I felt like I had nothing to do. Sometimes, if I wanted to eat something but there was nothing around the house, I would actually go bake some brownies or cookies or something just to satisfy my cravings.

The absolute worst habit I have is playing on my phone, especially when I am feeling stressed about upcoming deadlines. Whether it is playing games or scrolling through social media, I can waste so much time on my phone, even when there is so much to do.

Since I have come to college, I have told myself that I needed to get rid of a few of my bad habits. I realized that the main cue for all the habits mentioned before is boredom. Back at home, I couldn’t exactly go out with friends very much, and there wasn’t that much to do around the house. Most of the time I was really just too lazy or tired to do something other than staying in my room. I was so tired from school (and the after school extracurricular activities) that instead of getting outside or doing something fun in the house or working on school work, I would sit on my phone and eat until it was too late at night to do much.

These are the main habits that I want to change, now that I am in college. So how do I do that? Listening to one of the podcasts for class gave me an idea. Some people were able to stop their bad habits by removing the usual cues that led to those habits. Some would replace those old habits with new habits, and came up with rewards to encourage those new habits (exercising, for example, could be rewarded with a piece of chocolate). That is my plan for college. Whenever I feel bored and feel like sitting in my dorm on my phone all day, I want to start going to Ramsey, or to Tate, or somewhere else on campus. If I start exercising, I plan to reward myself with candy or something similar.

Breaking old habits can be difficult, but it is often worth it.
Habits
By: Logan Reid
Tags: Habit Building

The creation of good habits is essential to the life of a good college student and a successful person. With good habits, a person can make their own life easier in that they don’t have to devote conscious thinking to the completion of their responsibilities. With the development of good habits a person can become better at their own time management and at holding their own selves accountable. The formation of good habits is essential for our daily prosperity.

In our discussion there was talk about how our daily lives consist nearly halfway of habits that we have previously formed. This is really an odd concept to think about because we as people often like to think of ourselves as always making conscious decisions regarding ourselves. The thought that we may be predisposed to certain acts or thoughts based on previously formed notions can be a scary thing.

Another one of the topics discussed was the statistic that many people were able to more effectively quit smoking when they first started their attempt in a location that was unfamiliar to them. This is relatable to my current scenario in that I am entering a new atmosphere with the potential to form new habits. My goal here is to form productive habits in my new potential. I hope to form effective studying habits that will allow me to reach my full potential in regard to my college career. I am prone to my fair share of bad habits some of which are rooted in my academic study habits. These in particular are among the ones I hope to change in my new beginning.

Habit forming is a very important aspect of our lives and one that we are continuously changing and working with. As we delve into new areas of our lives we become more responsible for the control of production of new habits. It is my hope that college allows me to further my ability in habitual learning.
Ebooks download Rewire: Change Your Brain to Break Bad Habits, Overcome Addictions, Conquer Self-Destructive Behavior
Tags: Habit Building

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The bestselling author of Undoing Depression offers a brain-based guide to permanently ending bad habits Richard O Connor s bestselling book Undoing Depression has become a touchstone in the field, helping thousands of therapists and patients overcome depressive patterns. In Rewire, O Connor expands those ideas, showing how we actually have two brains a conscious deliberate self and an automatic self that makes most of our decisions and how we can train the latter to ignore distractions, withstand temptations, and interrupt reflexive, self-sabotaging responses. Rewire gives readers a road map to overcoming the most common self-destructive habits, including procrastination, excessive worrying, internet addiction, overeating, risk-taking, and self-medication, among others.
Practice happiness To boost your Success
By: Ahtisham Ullah
Tags: Habit Building

Actually I am going to share my own experience I have a friend which was out-spoken I many time fought with him from saying others bad in their fronts and I was really worried about his habit and I some time told him to change his attitude but he fly over me and asked me to adopt this habit I asked him the reason for this thinking, he told to hurt other by saying truth but do not calm them by telling them a lie his these word changed my thinking point immediately he said me it’s okay to be bad in front not to be bad at the back I just looked into my past I did ever practice that thing he also asked me people liked them who are sincere to them show you sincerity on face not on back this happened 2 month ago and after this I am trying every day to adopt this habit and almost every day I am using this concept and now almost I have achieved 55% of this for this during travelling I think about this if I say this to that person what will be his reaction now I am fear about happening that will occur not telling him the truth on the face and my this feelings show that I am on the way and in 2 or 3 weeks I will completely adopt this habit in my daily life talks and think it’s a great addition in me as abilities can be improved they are not statics they are dynamic.
The Fastest Way To Turn Your Life Around.
Tags: Life, Habit Building, Motivation, Work, 500 Words

Two years ago, at the end of 2017, I was a college dropout. I am a college dropout.

Saying it like that makes it sound more glamorous than it is. Really, I was put on academic probation — I just chose to dropout before they kicked me out.

Six months later I started a habit that transformed my life from the ground up. I developed it while making $10/hour guarding a parking lot in the most dangerous city in East Texas.

But that’s getting ahead of myself. This story actually started yesterday.

I was backing up all of my photos from Google Photos to Apple Photos. It was a long and tedious process. I’m not finished.

Since I don’t use Google Photos anymore, it was my first time seeing a lot of these photos in years. Me with my friends from high school, my first girlfriend, my graduation, my childhood home.

A museum of my life.

And it got me thinking, about how drastically my life has changed, and where exactly that change occurred. I’m starting to get to that “adult” age where you look back and see the critical points in your life, where everything could’ve gone differently. The job offer you didn’t refuse, the move you weren’t sure about, that girl you couldn’t walk away from.

Looking at these photos, listening to old recordings of myself, I was able to see exactly where everything changed.

One year ago I was saving up every dollar I made for something big. The biggest decision of my life so far. I was moving to a new city, one I had never been to before, without telling anyone I was leaving.

I didn’t know why I was doing it. It was just an idea, a gut feeling.

I got the idea in that parking lot, through writing. Writing about how I ended up there, why I really dropped out, why I went from being in the top of my high school class to wearing baggy cargo shorts and a manbun. Writing about how unhappy I was, how I wished things were different.

And then I started to write about what “different,” actually meant. At that point, I really didn’t know. I had a lot to complain about, but nothing to strive for. Why was I here? I have 60 years left (if I’m lucky) — what am I going to do with that time?

If I had everything I ever wanted, if I could do anything without failing, if I didn’t care what anyone else thought, what would I do? Who would I become? Where would I go?

The answer was anywhere that wasn’t East Texas.

Another six months after that, I woke up in a sleeping bag, in the back of my car, in a parking lot, in a city I had never been to before, without anyone realizing I had left. It took two weeks before the concerned phone calls started coming in.

That’s also when the photos on my phone started to look a little different. The inflection point.

You can buy a pen and a notebook for less than $2.00. Or you can start typing on your phone for free.

Stop wishing. Start writing.
From Me to You
By: Frank Moody
Tags: Time, Self Love, Habit Building, Habits, Kindness

Photo by Kate Macate on Unsplash

Hey You,

I hope you’re doing great, flourishing and not just existing

and the world you live in is better than that in which I exist in.

Cos otherwise there might be no point in my existence

Might as well take this mask off, get this COVID in my system;

-I’m kidding.

You see, lately I have been obsessed with you

Pondering questions that only you could have the answers to.

Like did we find love or stop looking?

Are we making the world a better place or just cruising?

Did Marvel Phase 4 do better than its predecessors?

Did humans finally get forgiveness from Mother nature?

Are we happy? Are we kind? Are we the best we can be?

Cos I’m one for three and hoping you’re doing better than me

But even with it’s audacity,

hope is not a strategy.

So head’s up

Here is everything I’m doing to give you the leg up.

I’m being healthy

I’m lifting, sprinting, mindful what I’m eating

fasting, stretching and often introspecting.

I’m detoxifying

and there’s no denying that it’s hard

but I’ll do it so you have no hate in your heart

and have that blissful peace of mind,

the kind that can’t be bought.

I’m being wealthy

I’m learning from the greats,

reading few hours a day,

choosing learning over play

I’m saving,

Investing, keeping pennies away

So whatever your interests,

You’ll have money, knowledge and trust.

I’m being kind simply because that is it’s own reward

I’m doing this cos everything I do will impact you,

although I don’t really know you.

I only know your past

and that the possibilities of who you become are vast.

But I will try each day to be the best I can be

to give you the chance to be the best that you can be.

Love Always

You from 2020.
Reclaiming powerful habits
By: Melody Mukami
Tags: Lifestyle, Habit Building, Habits, Atomic Habit, Reclaiming Your Power

I have been stuck in the same habits for a whole year. Correction: my inconsistency has caused me to repeat the same systems over and over again. I was going through my emails and found a book someone had recommended to me in August 2020, a year ago. The title of the book: Atomic Habits. When I finally got to reading it, it felt like I was being called out on what I had been doing all year. Prior to the pandemic, I had systems set in place. My life revolved around school, social gatherings and family. The pandemic robbed me of the first two, and significantly reduced my interaction with the latter. As a result, I developed severely bad habits. Instead of getting up early to start on my tasks I now spend, at times, entire days in bed. I rarely have full meals and when I do, I order out. My bank statements show multiple payments to eateries and fast food restaurants. I have found myself slowly loathing who I am becoming.

But thank God for the book, for according to James Clear, I am not beyond salvation. I am simply not patient enough to allow the small changes I am making daily to reflect in my life in the long run.

If you had started feeling stuck like me, I have good news for you. That all you need to do is show up every day 1% better than you were yesterday. Slow progress is better than no progress.

I, for one, wanted to wait until I finished reading the book to write a little something about being a better you. You think I should have waited, don’t you? Well so did I, 5 minutes ago. But I am always certain that, given my new distasteful habit of postponing, if I don’t write this now, I probably will never get to it. And I’d rather come edit this in a week’s time when I’m done with the book than deal with the regret of having put off writing altogether.

I feel so much better, truly. In the book, James also talks about settting your systems. And that to me translates to living as the person you want to be every single day. And by just writing this I feel like my systems are falling back into place. In 2019, I was serious about my articles. I’d publish some on WordPress. I even got a page two feature in our local newspaper!(https://nairobinews.nation.co.ke/life/beijing-through-the-eyes-of-kenyan-student) So what happened to that girl? She simply stopped showing up as who she wanted to be. She is now trying to take control of her systems again.You could too.

I’ll probably stop here and engage again when I have more to share. But in the meantime, you could read the book, and implement the lessons in your life.
Clear the Runway to Let Your Art Take Off!
By: Annamieka Hopps Davidson
Tags: Habit Building, Creativity, Mentoring Programs

Do you ever have plans to create art, but you find that you have to take care of other matters first? You may find yourself saying:

I just need to eat first

Let me just check my email/Facebook/Instagram first

I better pay some bills before I get deep into artmaking

Oh! I need to call so-and-so back. I’ll do that first.

I better walk the dog first

Sometimes, you may find that you’ve run out of time to do your artmaking thanks to all of these other tasks!

I think it helps to clear the runway of any possible “speed bumps” so you can quickly take off into your art practice. What can you do that will allow you to fly into your studio and get working with no friction or delays?

First, you may want to spend time identifying your speed bumps. For example, if you find yourself losing precious time while selecting a reference photo, create a practice whereby you can easily print photos for reference and then put them in a specific storage location. Choose your reference photo the day before your artmaking session, so that decision is made and won’t slow you down.

That brings up a great idea: Create an assignment for your artmaking session ahead of time. Don’t go into your studio and poke around, wondering what to make (if this is a typical speed bump for you). Select your task ahead of time and write it down. You may want to write a list of the steps, too. This way, you’ll be guided and kept on track as you work through the project.

Try using “mis en place,” as chefs do — lay out all of your materials ahead of time, so you can fly into your studio and begin with velocity!

What about other speed bumps? Clearly our mobile devices are speed bumps for all of us. What’s your plan to avoid getting sucked into your email or social media? Are you willing to turn off your phone’s volume beginning a half-hour before your art time?

Some speed bumps are important things for us to do, such as bills, paperwork, phone calls, and home/life management. I suggest that you move these speed bumps off the runway in either direction: to a specified time that is either before or after your artmaking time. Set an appointment with yourself to do these admin tasks, and keep your appointment! During that time, do nothing else but power through your tasks and responsibilities. I wake up at 4am some workday mornings to get my admin tasks behind me!

By being more intentional about your time and adopting a belief that your artmaking time is sacred and important, you will be able to fly down the runway and fly into your artmaking flow!
5 simple ways to make your skin healthy.
By: Ayushi Giri
Tags: Skincare, Lifestyle, Beauty Tips, Habit Building, Healthy Lifestyle

Doable without using any beauty product.

Whenever it comes to taking care of our skin and body we usually rely on expensive market products and expect them to do wonders on our skin. But the harsh truth is that it’s not mandatory that they will work just fine on our skin. So what else we can do to treat our skin and make it healthy without spending much money. Here we are going to discuss 5 easy to do ways to improve your skin at home.

Drinking a lot of water

When it comes to taking this advice seriously people usually make fun of this amazing habit and do not believe in its amazing after effects . From my personal experience of skincare i have realized how much affect proper hydration has on our skin as well on our body . It’s been more than two years of my good intake of water journey and it has improved my skin a lot. We have heard about the 3 to 4 litres of water consumption theory but many people find it hard to switch to that level. No worries all you have do to is to start with 1 litre per day and slowly take that to the average amount. It can surely do wonders.

Changing your pillow case every 10 to 15 days

I have seen very few people doing this in their lifestyle. The reason behind doing this is avoid impurities to get in contact with our skin every night. By using the same pillow cover for months we allow the dirt and impurities to enter our skin which causes many problems. Use a clean pillow case and change it twice or thrice every month to see the results.

Using two different towels for face and hands.

Using the same towel for our face and for our hands is one of the biggest mistake people make in their skin routine. It’s very important to realize the difference between our face skin and hand skin . Our face skin is much more delicate and sensitive as compared to other parts that’s why require separate care . Also the material of towel should be good to get amazing effects. Do not rub your skin after washing just try to soak the water calmly with a soft good quality towel.

Eating healthy food and avoiding junk food.

Seems like the toughest part of good skin care journey but has maximum good effects on skin. Do not try to leave everything at once . Start eating healthy first then try to make balance between healthy and junk . Use the 80 -20 rule for consuming food . 80% should goes to healthy and remaining portion goes to food you like eating. Make this a habit and it will surely have a wonderful effect on your skin.

Treat your skin like your friend.

Let’s take an example of your friend being in trouble . Your first reaction would be to solve her problem by giving a long term advice right . Exactly like that whenever their is a problem with your skin like an uninvited guest pimple or an expected tan do not try to treat it with short term solutions . It will make it worse . Always look for natural organic solution without being in hurry. Treat it with care and it will reduce the chances of future skin related problems.
Power of Habit- Charles Duhigg
By: Mrityunjay M. Borah
Tags: Books, Self Improvement, Habit Building, Reading, Book Review

Book Review- 001

tl;dr: Written in a crisp and engaging way, Power of Habit is a good book, not just for self help but to gain a proper insight into how habits are formed in our daily lives, how they work, what they can land us in (you can use habit as an excuse to get away with murder; reason 101 to read the book) and how we can control and direct them through simple but persistent and logical practice.

Review:

Self help books are generally not my go-to genre; leaving them midway or after 40ish pages has more likely been the trend. I have had my reasons- author shouting through the book that you can change the world, always think positive, exercise and so on and so forth. After that group, there comes another group of authors (read: author) who uses fancy terms and millennial lingo for the sake of being cool and asks us to stop giving a f*ck about the world (we really have no idea what that asterisk is for).

However this book is based on facts, it doesn’t start with the overenthusiastic “YOU HAVE BEEN DOING IT ALL WRONG, FORM GOOD HABITS FROM NOW ON AND YOU CAN PROBABLY LEARN TO PLAY THE GUITAR IN 2 HOURS” or any lunatic sad story of a hypothetical person per se. Charles Duhigg guides you through a scientific and logical process about how habits form and he explains it in a simple and lucid manner. I did feel that the process gets over-explained in the book and stretches a bit too far. However in the end, I realised that it is quite essential to know the different fields and real life examples to understand the simplicity behind the so called complex notion.

Written in a crisp and engaging way, Power of Habit is a good book, not just for self help but to gain a proper insight into how habits are formed in our daily lives, how they work, what they can land us in (you can use habit as an excuse to get away with murder; reason 101 to read the book) and how we can control and direct them through simple but persistent and logical practice.
Self-reflection and retrospection
By: Paula Rerimoi
Tags: Habit Building

One word to describe the past few days, THOUGHTFUL. This week has come with a new set of challenges and sometimes you are tempted to let it all go and give up. Heads up! This is going to be Short but sweet 😊 so please follow through.

Based on last week’s article, I outlined that it is important to stay committed to the cause no matter what. Be resilient and dare yourself to do the hard things. But as we go through our day to day lives do we ever sit down and reflect how the day has been? Do you ever count the small wins you have had in between the week or what matters to you are only the big wins? We have all set out to live our lives, and evidently, life is not easy, in fact, it can be a pain in the ass but what gives you the motivation to keep pushing? Appreciate your tiny wins.

I have never been the person to sit down and write a whole journal entry about how my day has been. In my journey this week in the ALX program, I have been learning about self-reflection and journaling. In my opinion, I've come to learn and appreciate that reflection and journaling allows one to “catch” themselves doing a habit and in turn, they can correct themselves. I decided to give it a try and it makes me appreciate the small wins and I am more self-aware.

Personally, I'm the kind of individual who sticks to the mantra GO BIG or GO HOME. I’m happy that I am undergoing a transformative process where I get to now journal the small wins I have and then build habits one step at a time.

“What unexpected event happened today?”

“How did you react to it?”

“What is the impact it had on you?”

“what would you do differently?”

The simple questions above easily trigger your thoughts on different situations and help you reflect on your actions.
How to help kids destroy their test anxiety
Tags: Mental Health, Habit Building, Anxiety, Education Reform, High School

Nearly 40% of students say they have anxiety around the SAT. And it’s no surprise — they’re told that the test is going to determine their entire futures and it’s unlike any test they’ve ever taken before.

Credit: Nickelodeon

But it doesn’t have to be this way. Let me tell you a story.

I went to a public high school in South Carolina. We were known for two things: a terrible football team and tons of National Merit Semifinalists. The secret to both? Practice. (Or, in the case of our football team, lack of practice.)

We had a teacher who made it his mission to make the SAT feel just like any other test. He taught at both our middle and high school, and after every test he’d give us a section of a PSAT for homework. By the time I got to junior year, I think I must have seen 20 complete PSATs. The PSAT and SAT themselves felt like any other test because I’d seen it all before — it felt normal.

I thought about Dr. B’s strategy a lot as a tutor. Forcing students to cram for the SAT in prep classes and tutoring sessions wasn’t just bad for learning. It made the SAT into something exceptional. Something to be feared. We weren’t just not helping with students test anxiety. We were helping create it.

At Everydae, we believe that part of ensuring student success on the SAT is making it a normal part of life, not something to be feared. Instead of making our students show up for a cram-course, we help them conquer the test in just 10 minutes a day in the months leading up to the exam.

And by including information about college and career readiness beyond the SAT, we help our students put their studies in context and connect what they’re studying to why they’re studying it.

We’re changing the way the world thinks about standardized tests. Want to join us?
100 days to overcome depression, chronic pain from Marfan syndrome and financial troubles — Day 46 of 100
By: Marfan Girl
Tags: Habit Building, Depression, Exercise

100 days to overcome depression, chronic pain from Marfan syndrome and financial troubles — Day 46 of 100 Marfan girl Jan 17, 2020·2 min read

Day 46, Friday

A 12-days gap since the last story. What happened? First, I grew complacent. Then I went abroad for a business trip (three days) and it shattered all the good new habits while making me exhausted.

At the hotel, I read in bed. At the hotel, I didn’t go for my morning run. At the hotel, I didn’t stretch. At the hotel, I didn’t meditate.

When I came home, I was so exhausted that I just managed to go to work on Friday. The weekend was spent reading or watching youtube.

I still felt good as regards my mood.

Come Monday, it was hard to get out of bed (after reading in bed) and my mood dipped.

The good thing about this week is that I managed to go to work every day. To deliver at work every day, among which a long day that finished at 07:00 pm.

The better thing is that I held to my commitment made to a recruiter to send my updated cv.

The bad thing is that I started reading in bed again, using one full zolpidem to make me fall asleep (too late), that I read in bed until it was nearly too late to go to work, that I didn’t exercise, that I didn’t meditate. That I was using reading again as a way to escape reality rather than a way to relax in downtime.

The good/not so good thing is that my pain level is still low, though I need to use more tramadol than I wished to achieve the result (because of not stretching anymore after exercising and not going to the kine owing to my finances).

The better thing about this week is that I recognised my mood swing was temporary and did not let myself become engulfed into a downward spiral.

This is the consequence of the meditation that I did until then, trying to bring some mindfulness even into that lowered mood state.

Yesterday, I was finally able to change my actions in the evening: I partially walked back home. I stop reading earlier on (still too late at 22:00 pm). I did 10 minutes of meditation before going to bed.

The result? This morning I woke up at 05:00, fatigue somewhat abated. I got up as soon as I woke up. I did my visualisation, 20 minutes of meditation and the task that I had given myself to improve my situation and feel more in control of my life (my personal account), which is done. Journaled… and am no ready to go out for a 20-minute morning run/stretching before facing the last day of the week at work.
Read to Rise
By: Parth Sawhney
Tags: Business, Personal Development, Success, Habit Building, Reading

Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash

We are all surrounded by books, yet very few of us actually invest their time and energy in reading them. Of course, I’m not talking about the trashy beach reads, but the books in which people from all different walks of life have provided their wisdom to us so that we can use that inspiration and instruction to create a better life for ourselves.

There are stories of people who have gone from rags to riches, from grueling struggle and failure to success, and have taken the time to write about their own experiences and share the lessons they have learned. And no matter where we go in today’s day and age, it’s easy for us to access this wealth of knowledge, and use it to course-correct, avoid mistakes and rearrange and realign our lives.

If you’ve been neglecting books that have the potential to change your life, then it’s time to let go of your excuses and start reading today, even if it’s just one page a day.

As Jim Rohn writes, “There is very little difference between someone who cannot read and someone who will not read. The result of either is ignorance. Reading is essential for those who seek to rise above the ordinary. We must not permit anything to stand between us and the book that could change our lives.”

A few pages read every day by virtue of the Compound Effect, will help you access and implement a wealth of valuable and positive information in a short period of time.

If we want to become a better version of ourselves and elevate our life, then we have to avoid ignorance at all costs. Instead, we must feed our mind and work towards developing a philosophy that grounds us and guides us as we design a life of meaning and purpose for ourselves.

As Rohn beautifully puts it, “The habit of reading is a major stepping-stone in the development of a sound philosophical foundation. And in my opinion, it is one of the fundamentals required for the attainment of success and happiness.”
Create Good Habits
By: R. A. Ingram
Tags: Minimalism, Stoicism, Habit Building, Journal, Unjrnl

Create Good Habits

People and their patterns have largely remained the same for thousands of years. We are creatures of compulsion and the best way to get over simply acting on our desires is to build good habits.

Motivation is good but it isn’t useful.

Positive habit forming is critical to a happy life characterized by consistency. Habits do an amazing job of replacing motivation. Motivation is all about our desire for a certain outcome; it’s driven by passion and emotion. Habits, on the other hand, are driven by duty, routine, and obligation.

We have all had days when we don’t feel like working, exercising, or making healthy food choices. However, when you develop these tasks into habits, they become a part of your routine, and you can do them even when you don’t feel emotionally compelled or motivated to do them.

Habits are flexible, predispositions are not.

Habits are easy to change, which can’t be said about temperament and predisposition. Even if you don’t like drinking water, if you make it a habit to only drink water with 2 of your 3 meals a day, it simply becomes a part of your routine.

Goals can lead to failure.

Habits are are harder to fail at than goals. Goals are nothing more than a complex system of habits working towards a singular outcome. Take for example getting in shape, you must build quite a few habits to accomplish this goal:

Eating healthier meals

Drinking more water

Waking up earlier to exercise

Doing cardio

Doing laundry frequently (work out clothes stink)

Cutting out certain foods from your diet

Getting higher quality rest

This isn’t a comprehensive list and already you can see how many small habits it takes to accomplish the goal of getting in shape. What is easier is to focus on 1 — 3 of those habits a week and try to get consistent with them. Once those few habits become second nature, you can add in another until all the “getting-in-shape” habits are part of a routine that isn’t driven by motivation and emotion.

Pair reflection with habit forming.

The UNJRNL system mixes the ideas of building habits and the practice of journaling to help people improve their lives. The philosophy of stoicism puts primacy on the practice of daily journaling as a means to self improvement. This practice has lasted the test of time because we as humans haven’t changed for thousands of years, we still require consistency, reflection, and routine to be successful.
Become a SpaceTime Gardener to Cultivate Flow
By: Michael Rapadas
Tags: Habit Building, Flow, Focus, Distraction, Productivity

Distractions fuck with your flow unless you manage them. The underlying issue is that we allow distractions into our precious “focus spacetime”. Little by little, we unknowingly develop terrible habits for cultivating regular flow states. Flow states feel amazing and lead us to do wonderful things, so let’s design a life that generates more of those experiences.

What prevents focus?

Distractions, duh. A distraction is anything that pulls your focus away from where it needs to be. They can be external (notifications on your phone) or internal (unresolved arguments, responsibilities). The goal is to actively eliminate them.

Respect Your Focus SpaceTime

You need to be accountable for your space and time when you’re getting things done. This is priceless, sacred focus spacetime. You’re in charge of generating it each time you do any work. It’s not going to happen on its own. You have to be the guardian and gardener that makes this possible.

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

Gardening Focus SpaceTime 101

Schedule a time block with a specific location (it’s called spacetime…) Maintain a distraction checklist. These are things we know our attention is vulnerable to. It helps build awareness for distractions. Before starting a time block, take a few minutes to clear all potential distractions from your environment. This needs to be done religiously. Make it a habit. When working, unaccounted distractions will come up. Add them to the list. (Your list should be growing over time. Distractions are everywhere after all) Each time you recognize a distraction, that’s a win. You’re actively gardening your spacetime.

Embrace your new role as a SpaceTime gardener. Tend to it daily and often. Soon enough, you’ll regularly generate flow state out of nothing.
How to break bad habits | Everything you need to know
By: Moinul Karim Labib
Tags: Habit Building, Bad Habits, Habits For Success, Atomic Habit

Every habit we have in our daily life consists of four stages:

Cue — The initiating factor in the habit. There is always something that initiates your routine in the first place, e.g., boredom, which creates the craving for entertainment.

— The initiating factor in the habit. There is always something that initiates your routine in the first place, e.g., boredom, which creates the craving for entertainment. Craving: The urge you feel after the cue, the inner reason to perform the habit. e.g., you do not crave turning on the TV; you desire entertainment.

The urge you feel after the cue, the inner reason to perform the habit. e.g., you do not crave turning on the TV; you desire entertainment. Routine: This is the pattern of the habit. When the cue is triggered, you perform the routine, e.g., turning on the TV.

This is the pattern of the habit. When the cue is triggered, you perform the routine, e.g., turning on the TV. Reward: It is the mental or physical satisfaction you get after performing the routine, e.g., stress relief & entertainment after watching TV.

90% of the actions that we do in our daily life is nothing but the repetition of habits. Each habit undergoes these four stages.

Now that you know how a habit is formed, let us see how to break bad habits and vanish them forever.