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Daily Drop

Habits are a double edged sword.

Habits are powerful. Daily habits compound, that can work to our benefit or be a negative force depending on the habits.

A simple habit like daily reading can make the massive changes in our lives. The reality of learning daily will compound over the years and shape us for the better.

On the contrast a bad habit like overeating or drug/alcohol addiction can be detrimental to our physical ands mental wellbeing and our goals.

So how do we optimize the good habits we perform and cut away the negative ones?

We start small. One at a time. The last thing we want to do is overwhelm ourselves by changing too much too quickly, especially if these habits are deeply ingrained over many years of repetition.

Habits create neural pathways in the brain making them easier to repeat and reach for, which is great for healthy habits like exercise and self education.

But when it comes to the bad habits, these neural pathways need to be rewired to more healthy natural patterns. It’s not easy to let go of bad habits and start new ones. But it’s what makes the difference between where we are now and where we want to be.

So for a new habit, start small, one day at a time, and just be consistent and eventually you wont even think of it, you’ll just be on your run or reading your book without having to force yourself. It will just be a habit.

For the bad habits you want to cut away also start small and do one at a time. So if you want to quit smoking just start with that bad habit for now, don’t uproot your whole life at once.

Change sticks when it’s sustainable and committed, not when it’s a whim. Think about how full the gyms get January first and by February they’re empty again.

So let’s work on mastering our habits, cutting away the destructive ones and implementing new productive habits long term. As we take inventory of our good and bad habits and begin to shape them, we will see positive results start to flow.

Now this isn’t an overnight process and often it actually gets harder before it gets easier as we’re going upstream against the force of our own cravings and urges.

Expect to feel a little worse before you feel better, it’s only natural and part of the process when you cut off artificial dopamine fixes from cheap highs like processed sugar and other dopamine rich activities.

So now youre prepared for the leap. Starting small with one habit you’d like to change, either implementing a new good habit or cutting out a bad one. There’s nothing to fear, only positive change. It may be challenging at first but making these changes will help us to grow into our best selves.

We can choose the pain of discipline or the pain of disappointment and regret. We can choose to sacrifice some comfort for our goals or we can choose the sacrifice our dreams and goals for some comfort.

The choice is yours.