The Power of Habit

We are all familiar with the concept of habit. From the time we are young, we are instructed to avoid or break the bad ones. We are told, “Sucking your thumb is a bad habit” or, “Don’t get in the bad habit of sleeping in too much in the summer”. With the flood of self-help information available to us today, “habit” has almost become a buzz word. Today I want to pull that idea of habits back down to earth a bit and share the positive impact that implementing just one new habit can have on your overall outlook.

There have been many periods in my life when I’ve felt like I couldn’t get a grip on anything, no matter how hard I tried. It’s that feeling that everything is happening all at once, at lightning speed, before I have time to digest any of it. Put simply, it was a feeling of lacking control. Of course, we can never have full control over our lives, no matter how much we may want it. But there are small changes we can make to ground ourselves amid this anxiety. That is where habit comes in.

If you know me well, you’ve probably heard me mention that I hate summer a few too many times. (If not, now you know!) It’s true—the heat and I don’t get along, and it makes me irritable in the same way that winter makes most people sad. As the temperatures started rising this year, I decided I needed to approach this season differently. If the weather was going to be hot and sweaty and force me to wear shorts, I could at least embrace the Vitamin D that it had to offer.

So, I decided to add a daily walk to my routine. I set out to implement this habit with the goal of increasing gratitude for the months that I was able to spend time outdoors, get some sun, and build a movement break into my to-do list. I started small and set the intention of taking a 15–20 minute walk. Notice that I say “intention” and not “goal”. We’ll come back to this later, but the distinction is very important. First, I want to share with you what I’ve noticed in the past two weeks since I have started my walks and encourage you to adopt a new habit for yourself.

A Feeling of Grounded-ness

I often spend my days working, entirely indoors. I have always struggled with taking breaks, because it feels more productive to just power through whatever task I’m working on. I’ve found that getting up and moving around out of the house re-centers my focus and allows me to concentrate better. Further, it serves as a reminder that life is not all just lists and work and stress.

A Sense of Independence and Accomplishment

This is the big one for me. My daily walk quickly became my thing. It is the non-negotiable time that I take for myself each day, and much-needed alone time. Especially if you live with any other people—parents, spouses, children, roommates—you’d be surprised how far 15 minutes of solitude can go regarding your personal peace, sense of self, and patience in your interactions with others.

General Increase in Confidence

It’s amazing what it can do for your confidence when you decide to do something and follow through. The smaller/more attainable the habit, the more likely you are to stick to it, and in turn feel proud of yourself. Celebrating little wins like this is an effective way to begin building yourself up, especially when you are feeling that loss of control and anxiety that I spoke about earlier. Through building a new habit you prove to yourself that you are capable of making changes in your life, and embracing that fact is the difference between staying stuck and creating a life that you can be proud of.

Increased Gratitude

Committing to a habit that involves both being in nature and physical activity has made me much more appreciative of things I’ve often taken for granted. It gives me a moment to pause and say, “I and grateful for nature” and, “I am grateful for what my body can do”. Increased gratitude has definitely had a positive effect on my mood. When we consciously remind ourselves of the good things, it is a bit easier to bear the bad ones—especially the little irritations that often make us bitter or derail our days.

I want to encourage you to choose a new habit of your own. It can be anything! Perhaps it’s something that will improve your health, or a hobby that you’ve wanted to pick back up. I have two top suggestions for doing this. First, start small. Again, the more accessible the habit, the greater chance of following through. Taking five minutes of intentional silence or stillness, reading one chapter of a book, working on that “just for fun” art project for ten minutes a day—it does not have to be a monumental task. No matter what you choose, you have the power to stick with it and reap the benefits. Second, and perhaps most importantly, frame it as an intention, not a goal. I attribute the fact that I have stuck with my habit so far to this distinction. Removing the language of goals from your mindset about this new habit removes the fear of failure. It removes that feeling of disappointment in yourself that you get when, for example, you vow to go to the gym every day and run out of time to do so. Be gentle with yourself here. Say to yourself, “I am setting the intention to do this each day, because it will enhance my life. I will hold myself accountable, but if it does not work out some days, that’s ok. I have not failed and can pick it up again tomorrow”. You can do anything that you set your mind to. So, I look forward to hearing what new habit you choose, and what it teaches you about yourself. Trust me, you will be pleasantly surprised.