I feel that everything in life is a habit, and our brain simply takes old habits that are stored deep inside and activates them whenever we need to do something.
I have gained that theory because of the similar patterns that happen to me, even though I have never actively pushed myself to do those things.
Whenever I feel bored or need to vent my anger, I think of eating something just to calm down and take a break from the problem at hand. I know that it is a nasty habit to have, but even after controlling myself and going out of that pattern for a year, I still sometimes think in that way.
I have also known people who used to smoke because of certain emotions or even a certain action, that craving to smoke gets reignited the hardest when you feel the same emotion or have done the action again. It is as if the brain never forgot about the craving and actively asks for you to start the bad habit again.
This is a very interesting finding for me because now I understand clearer than ever, that no matter how long time passes and what happens in life, the negative habits will chase us, but also the positive habits will not disappear because of loss of motivation. If negative habits are sticky, the positive ones as well.
Life of habits
So my main question has been thinking about how we can abuse the fact that we are what our habits are and how I can program myself to be more productive, happier and more successful through positive habits.
In my thinking is that if I do something so overwhelmingly positive for 30 days straight and develop a habit of doing things a certain way, that should transit to my life automatically through the power of habits.
The next time I think about procrastination, I want to be able to do a mini exercise routine instead of staring down Instagram. The next time I get a craving to order a take away I meal prep for the week ahead. The next time I feel an urge to play games, I instead put on Udemy or Skillshare's lessons to study.
If who I am and what I achieve is solely a result of habits that I do, isn’t trying to develop and do the best habits, the best way to make our lives better?
The main thing is defining the right habits because goals and certain outcomes can be achieved in many different ways. Which one is better and which one should be programmed into my brain as a habit is still a question that needs to be explored.
I know one thing for certain, the more you program the habit into your brain, the harder it would be to get rid of it in the future. It is never too late, and it does matter when you break a bad habit or start a new one.
Start now. Get perfect later.
Klim Y
Click to tweet!