Smash borrowed habits and get productive on your terms
You can start with this one: STOP listening other people recipes OR borrowing habits!
Yes, I meant that!
Any good habit that you can grow AND PRACTICE EVERY DAY will be a life changer.
Committing to borrowed habits that are hard to implement will be a failure. So stop committing to habits that don’t fit your lifestyle and instead start with something more doable.
I never ever trusted the “do your bed in the morning” — SORRY, not me! or “wake up at 5 am” — SORRY, my body does not agree. These are not my habits, these are borrowed habits, and my body and mind just do not work this way.
If you’re trying to implement all the traditional productivity hacks you will end up trapped in the fast lane to exhaustion and burnout. But people often tend to forget telling you that.
Chances are that you will try, fail, and get discouraged.
So forget about it!
Find your own daily habit and start with that one.
- If dancing makes you happy, then dance every day.
- If walking clears your mind, then walk every day.
- If journaling gives you clarity, then journal every day.
- If exercising gives you strength, then exercise every day.
Which one you love the most?
Doing ONE TINY POSITIVE THING EVERY SINGLE DAY will shift your mindset and boost your mood so much that… you will see your focus and productivity change too.
Here’s my story:
Last year I gave up on sugar for one week (during a fun 7-day sugar-free challenge with friends!), so for the full 7 days I have had my morning coffee black. I was not happy with it at first, but to make the moment enjoyable, I started planning my day and writing inside my friendly navigator while drinking my black coffee. In 3 days, this turned out to be an enjoyable action, and it soon became a habit: my daily 15 minutes of planning and coffee time.
The results:
>> 3 weeks later while I was still practicing it daily, I felt the desire to test some new good actions like:
- keep my PC shut down the entire time when I am enjoying my daily 15 minutes of planning and coffee.
- mute my phone in the morning — to avoid distractions
>> 2 months later all these habits have grown into bigger, brave habits:
- leaving my business mobile phone AT WORK to prevent checking my emails in my free time (evenings and weekends)
- daily accountability talks with my partner
- working in pockets of time (15–45 minute) — helped me realize so much!
- leaving my office at 6pm (previously I was leaving at 8pm)
So you see …. I let it flow.
It all started with giving up sugar, and brought me a lot more.
And I am not done yet.
My body is ready to embrace new habits soon.
I feel more productive than ever, and I still don’t wake up at 5 am, I don’t do my bed, or I don’t meditate (However my mind is NOW ready to try meditation!)
So, how do you choose to start your way to productivity?
Comment below or jump inside the Plan it naked [and make it!] Facebook Group and tell me about it.
Hi! I’m Raluca Comanescu, the designer of the Tailor-Made Navigator that guides creatives and entrepreneurs to 10K+ Monthly Profit with every 15 minutes of Daily Planning. This No-Brainer Planning system keeps you on track and guides you towards your goals. Get laser-focused on your Big Picture and make tedious details work for you, not against you. Optimize results with tailor-made templates that fit your lifestyle.
Originally published at thefeathers.ink.
Originally published at medium.com