Build Better Habits Series

Dear ,

Last week I sent you three tips that I learned from a habit-building workshop --- Today, I am adding additional three things that I picked up. Just in case you haven't read or digested the first three, I included them here so we have a sense of continuity. Have a great week ahead. Cheers!

1. Focus on the mindset and not the task ---- an example would be instead of focusing on exercise as a task, focus on convincing yourself that you are a person that exercises everyday --- the goal is to BE that person, OWN that identity and simply LIVE it.
2. Break it into Bits - it means breaking down the task into simple steps and focus on those steps as part of building up your habit. --- An example would be to make the task of walking 10,000 steps by taking a walk around the house or office each time you need a mental break from work.
3. Block out time - make sure that the habit you want to build up is built into your calendar. There should be a specific time and location allocated to the task and not just some bullet points on your to do list.
4. Make it Obvious - Ever hear of the phrase, 'Out of Sight, Out of Mind'? It means that you would eventually forget things (including people) that are no longer visible or present. The same principle applies to building habits. Make sure that things related to the habit you want to form is obvious and visible to you. --- An example would be if you want to build the habit of placing your house/car keys in the same place then place your keyholder in area where you often pass through.
5. Eliminate Obstructions - I wanted to read more books but oftentimes I'd find myself losing thirty minutes of my time mindlessly browsing through social media because I have my phone with me all the time. So I made it a point to leave my gadgets in a separate room whenever I read. Identify the things and individuals that distract you from executing on your chosen habit and make necessary changes to prevent it from happening again.
6. Partnering - There are certain necessities that are part of our daily routine. An example could be simply waking up and falling asleep. One tip I learned is that you could use these necessities as cues to form a habit. --- If you want to build the habit of drinking cold water in the morning, then partner it with waking up. If you want to build the habit of reading every day then it might be a good idea to read a page before you go to bed and sleep.

I hope these items were useful. I'll share some more tips next week. Thank you for joining me in this journey. Cheers!

Iks