They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks but we believe that with a good attitude and a whole lot of discipline you can form new habits that will help to change your life not only in the short term but for the long haul!
As minimal as it may seem, your daily habits truly do have an impact on leading a successful life no matter what your definition of success is. Whether your goal is to run your own company or to simply just be happy, cultivating good, mindful habits will help you to achieve the life you’ve always dreamed of.
Like all good things, developing these life changing habits will take some time. It reportedly takes about 60 days for new behavior to become automatic which means a lot of self-motivation and dedication is required on your end to help make them stick!
As Artistole once said “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit.” To help give you some direction we’ve listed some good quality habits that you can start putting into action for a more productive, happier life!
Create A Morning Routine
Nothing helps to set the tone more for your day than by establishing a morning ritual. Your morning routine can consist of anything from meditating for 10-20 minutes, enjoying a healthy breakfast, exercising, taking a shower first thing or even reading the newspaper. The point is to make time to do whatever it is that helps to wake you up and feel supercharged for the day ahead! By creating your morning routine, you’re eliminating stress and mental fatigue by starting your day with structure instead of rushing out the door and making up for lost time throughout the day.
Exercise
In a bad mood? Exercise. Looking to build endurance? Exercise. Just want to improve physical health overall? Exercise. There are SO many benefits to exercising that it should be a no brainer that this is one habit you definitely need to form in order to change your life forever! Aside from the physical aspects of it, working out daily (whether it be for 10 minutes or an hour) boosts your mood thanks to the production of endorphins as well as enhances your energy levels, creativity and cognitive skills!
Read
It’s time to stimulate those beautiful brains babes! Reading books are not only a form of entertainment but they’re a great way to feed your creativity, develop new ideas, find motivation and more importantly gain knowledge. Reading before bedtime also has a calming effect that can help you to sleep better which we all know is important for being able to function the next day!
Learn To Single-Task
Sure, getting multiple things done at once may seem like an accomplishment but it can actually lower efficiency, limit focus, impair cognitive control and make it difficult for your brain to filter out irrelevant information. To be more productive, it’s suggested you tackle tasks one at a time by order of importance. You should always get the most important/difficult tasks out of the way first that way you don’t have them hanging over your head throughout the day. By “eating the frog” and getting the hardest tasks out of the way first thing, you not only acquire the feeling of satisfaction but it will also leave you time to focus on other activities that may be on your to-do list.
Social Media Detox
We love scrolling just as much as the next person but the reality is, constantly rotating between social media apps is no good for you! Research shows that the more time you spend on social media, the more likely you are to develop depression which is a scary thought! We’re living in a digital world so it’s hard not to be glued to technology but that doesn’t mean you can’t cut back on it. To help reduce stress and the mental clutter of everything going on in the social media world, make it a habit to switch off your phone, laptop and all other technology for a few hours every day. Take the time to reconnect with the world around you and watch how your mood and productivity improves!
Practice Self-Care
Believe it or not, taking some YOU time could be the most essential habit to leading a happier , successful life. If you don’t take care of yourself there’s no way you can even think about being able to achieve what it takes to accomplish your goals. Set aside a moment each day to practice a little self-care; this can be listening to music, taking a long bubble bath, going to the spa, catching up with friends or preparing a nice meal. Taking the time to check in with yourself daily will do wonders for your mood and overall mental health!
Visualization
Visualizing the life you’d like to live may not seem like it’d be that helpful with changing your life but you’d be surprised to know that it can actually help to maximize your results. By setting aside just a few minutes to visualize what you’d like to accomplish that day or even 5 years from then, you’re building the belief in your dreams and inspiring yourself to actually put the work in to manifest everything you’ve ever imagined. It’s not as simple as you picture it and boom! you’re a millionaire, it’s about visualizing it enough to be able to motivate yourself to take the action towards getting it!
To help you develop these habits, try using a 60 day calendar to help hold you accountable each and everyday-place it where you can see it and check off each day as you go!