Habit Hack #1: Recognize That Most of Your Life Is Governed By Habits
As we approach New Year’s resolution season, I’m sharing five hacks that might help you create and stick with new habits in 2022. Below is habit hack number one…
Habit Hack #1: Recognize That Most of Your Life is Governed By Habits
We imagine that habits include activities such as eating well, drinking alcohol, and exercising. In reality, most of our lives are consumed by our habits. Despite only comprising 2% of our weight, our brain can consume up to 20% of our energy. Habits are shortcuts that our brains use to save energy. Rather than re-litigating every decision, our brains go on autopilot and default to habits. Habits are about more than just diet and exercise. Habits govern most of our waking lives. Here are a few habits your brain creates:
Food - When do you eat? What is your routine at the grocery store? What do you choose to eat more or less of (sugar, vegetables, etc.)?
Drink - How much alcohol, caffeine, water, or soda do you drink? When do you reach for a drink? What do you want to drink or not drink?
Exercise - How often do you exercise? What type of exercise is easier for you to schedule? When? How frequently? What keeps you from your optimal exercise routine?
Sleep - What is your nighttime ritual? Are you going to bed and waking up at the same time most days? How much sleep are you getting? Are you tired during the day?
Mindfulness - How do you reflect? Are you meditating or journaling? When is the ideal time to reflect for you? How often are you connecting with your breath during the day?
Goals - Do you have clear goals for the year, quarter, month, day? How often do you assess them or write them out? Do you keep a journal? Do you have a mentor, friend, or coach to hold you accountable?
Technology - How often do you unlock your phone? How much time do you spend on social media and email? What apps do you immediately go to when you unlock your phone? How could your phone better serve you? How is it harming you?
Growth and learning - What and how often are you reading? What do you want to learn? Where do you want to improve? Do you want to take courses or learn a language? Are there podcasts or videos you want to watch? Are you writing?
Calendar - How proactive are you about blocking your time? Are you good at saying "no" to activities that don't serve you? What big chunks of time can you block before your schedule fills up? How are you using your calendar to support your life?
Relationships - With whom do you spend your life? Who gives you energy? Who drains your energy? How are you showing up in your most important relationships?
Mindset - What is the nature of your self talk? Are you content with what you have or always looking for what you don't have? Are you jealous, comparing yourself with others? Do you beat yourself up? Are you grateful?
When looked at in the aggregate, habits comprise most of our daily activities, thought processes, and actions. The insidious things about many of our worst habits is that we don’t even realize we have them. Do you think about unlocking your phone 120 times per day (the average for iPhone users under 30) as a habit? Or what about constantly comparing yourself to your roommate or your sister? Or what about your habits of thought? Do you consider your thought pattern, “I’ll be happy when…” as a habit? These thoughts and actions are all habits. They are repetitive patterns that govern our lives.
Writing down the habits you want to have for each of these categories will create awareness and intention, and is the first step toward creating great habits. And because habits govern such a large portion of our lives, writing them down is the first step toward creating the life you want to live.
This is part one in my five-part series on habits. Read the next post here.