Changing Habits: The Simplest And Most Effective Way To Change Your Life
One of the most effective ways to shape your future is to identify and examine the habits that you routinely engage in. Many of us gloss over the small choices that we make on a daily basis, focusing only on the big events. However, it's the small choices that make up the building blocks of your life that have the greatest impact on your happiness and overall success.
Before we dive into the content of this blog, I invite you to ask yourself the following questions:
Are you proud of who you are today and the life that you have built for yourself?
Do you feel physically vibrant, confident in your body and satisfied with your overall health, fitness level and general wellbeing?
Do the relationships in your life fill your heart with joy and gratitude?
Do your daily activities—both personally and professionally—light you up?
If you answered yes to any or all of these, it's likely you already—consciously or unconsciously—have built your life around healthy habits.
If, however, any of these questions left you feeling less than fully satisfied, I encourage you to take a closer look at the choices you’re making on a daily basis and how you can alter them, even subtly, to assure that you are living an Inspired Life.
The fastest and most effective way to improve your wellbeing and design your future—to move toward living a truly Inspired Life—is by changing habits.
Habit Assessment Is The First Step Toward Changing Habits
In his New York Times bestselling book, Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones, author, journalist and entrepreneur James Clear explains that we all have habits, whether we’re conscious of them or not. As an assessment exercise, Clear encourages readers to review everything that they routinely do in a day—their daily habits—and rate activities, behaviors and even thoughts as positive, negative or neutral.
As a new mother who has basically been in quarantine since the pandemic began with my husband and baby girl, I recently decided to take inventory of my current morning and evening habitual routines.
Pre-baby, I had a lavish two-hour morning routine that consisted of yoga, meditation, prayer, journaling and reading a book over my morning beverage (always in that order) before getting dressed and ready for the day. At night, I would tidy up the house, hydrate, use recovery aids, such as self-massage or a foam roller, meditate again and complete the day with my personal hygiene routine before getting into bed.
Having a newborn in the house changed everything. Initially, I let things flow organically. However, as the months progressed, I noticed my mental and physical health were declining. It was time to CHOOSE a different routine of habits that fed my soul while also supporting my current life situation.
I chose to look specifically at my morning and evening schedules as they are generally the easiest to anticipate and control. I have learned over the years that dialing in a routine at the start and end of each day are the best ways to make sustainable changes and begin building better habits. Morning and evening routines are also particularly compatible with “habit stacking,” a technique I use regularly with clients.
As the term suggests, habit stacking consists of “stacking” a series of healthy habits on top of one another, allowing one to seamlessly trigger the next. Habit stacking your morning and evening routines allows for the introduction and automation of a large number of positive habits swiftly and efficiently.
When I sat down and took stock of my current routine, the first thing I noticed was a LACK of consistency. This was a red flag and the first thing I planned to address.
I then asked myself what was working and took note. At the top of the list of what was working was going on a morning swim, which is a non-negotiable for me and an important part of my self-care routine. If you’re struggling to get you self-care needs met, I encourage you to read last month’s blog, Healthy Relationships Start With SELF: Self-Care Strategies Designed to Get Your Needs Met During Trying Times, which offers insights, tips and journal prompts that can help you feel more resourced and mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually vibrant.
This exercise also revealed that activities, such as playing with my daughter, walking outside and taking a bath, were not only benefiting me, but also had a positive impact on my entire family.
Then, I took stock of what wasn’t working. These included both actions and choices that were creating problems, such as waiting until 11am to eat breakfast. It also included activities and choices that were missing entirely, yet I knew would help support moving my life in a positive direction. For example, I hadn’t taken the time to meditate or journal consistently since the baby was born.
Finally, I humbly asked myself what I could weave together to create an impactful plan for myself and my family. I acknowledged that my daughter’s ever-evolving needs take precedence and that skillfully weaving her routine in with my own would give me a better chance at getting my needs met consistently. It was also clear that her short attention span requires a change of location many times throughout the day. Unlike in the past, I wouldn’t be able to stack 10 different habits together within the same location. I realized that while it may take longer to accomplish the same number of tasks, my current life situation would be best suited by breaking my habits into smaller clusters.
Practically speaking this meant that I played with my daughter first thing in the morning in her room while I did yoga, reviewed flashcards with her in the kitchen while I ate my own breakfast, strategized my work day during her first feed and pushed through my most pressing work assignment during her first nap. Implementing this at first took perseverance, however, over time it became habitual, which is the goal.
JOURNAL PROMPT:
Dedicate some time to thoughtfully go through what you consider a routine day and make a list of everything that you normally do from the time you wake up and get out of bed until you climb under the covers again all those hours later. If going through your entire day feels too overwhelming, start by detailing your morning habits, evening habits or both.
Next, after each habit, rate it as neutral, positive or negative. For support in this process, download James Clear’s Atomic Habits worksheet here.
Finally, reflect on your list, taking notes on what habits you’d like to remove, what habits you’d like to improve or build on and what habits you’d like to add into your daily life. Consider your specific circumstances and ask yourself how you can work with them, rather than fight against them. And, of course, if you need some help with the process, consider hiring a coach like me to support you in creating change, working toward your potential and living a life that truly lights you up.
Embrace The New
Spring is thankfully right around the corner, and I know that many people want to spring into the warm weather feeling better in their bodies. With new life emerging, spring is a natural time to embrace the new, including a new, happier and healthier you.
If you feel inspired to establish healthy habits, up your fitness level and increase the personal confidence, resilience and dedication needed to reach new heights, I encourage you to check out Jump Start, Inspired Living’s holistic 8-week health, habits and fitness program. In addition to receiving a comprehensive assessment and customized fitness plan, Jump Start also includes weekly lessons covering the latest wisdom in key areas of health and performance, such as nutrition, hydration, recovery, sleep hygiene, time management, goal setting, accountability, habit hacking and overall self-care. Join us in this innovative program designed to help you jump start your fitness and commit to a lifetime of personal vitality and optimal health.
It is possible to create a life that lights you up! If you’re struggling with time management, changing habits or need help identifying or refining your vision, working with a coach or committing to a daily program can help. You can develop the mindset and skills needed to transform what is not serving you, create meaningful and sustainable change and live your most Inspired Life.
Blessings,
Katie