Tiny Habits That Change Your Life

 Tiny Habits That Change Your Life

Getting Started with the Tiny Habits that Will Change Your Life

It’s hard to imagine sometimes that small things can have such a deep impact. But if you’ve ever doubted the impact of tiny actions then think about how erosion created the Grand Canyon. Over time, something as small as sand, water, and rock have created one of the most awesome of nature’s miracles.

So too will small habits affect your life in such a way as to create lasting and significant change. Read on and find some habits you can start immediately implementing that will begin reshaping you into the person that you’ve always been meant to be.

1. Get up on time. Starting the day with multiple hits of the snooze alarm sets a bad tone for the rest of the day. You obviously set the alarm with the intention of rising at that hour – why are you breaking that promise to yourself? By getting up on time, you’re putting a positive start on the day. Shouldn’t you give yourself the best odds of a good day as possible?
2. Eat healthily at every meal. It’s hard to feel energized when you’re slogging along on a diet filled with fats and sugars. When you put more healthy choices onto your plate, you will feel better. Your mind will be sharper, and you’ll be better energized to get through the day. Start small. Add a salad to your meal. Or replace dessert with that piece of fruit instead.
3. Exercise. Before you get caught up on thinking you need a lot of fancy equipment or huge time investment to feel good, think again. Start small. Try taking the stairs at work instead of the elevator.
4. Read more. Dedicating a half hour of every day to your mind means that you’re constantly sharpening your saw and exposing yourself to new ideas. Pick books that inspire you or encourage you to think.
5. Realize you’re an ‘idea’ person. Make a goal of writing down a few ideas every day. Some researchers suggest ten but even one new idea a day means that you’ve got source material to draw from when you’re looking for something with which to challenge yourself.
6. Become more mindful. Meditate. Even starting small has the positive impact of reducing stress, lowering your heart rate, and bringing a mind that’s running in a million directions at once back on track.
7. Think about your day. When you finish the day, reflect on your accomplishments. Focus on the things you’re proud of, on the things that made you smile.

None of these items should take very long – even 15 or 30 minutes a day on some of these is enough to create lasting change. What you’re going to find out very quickly is that by practicing these habits you’ll not only feel better, you’ll like the person that you’re becoming. That is building ‘you’ at your best. If a small change can do all that, then isn’t it time you got started?

Your Tiny Habits will Develop the Growth Mindset Habit

When deciding what new habit to pursue, it’s easy to look at all the things we shouldn’t do as a place to begin. We want to stop smoking or stress eating. We want to learn how to say ‘no’ or to quit spending so much time on social media.

Have you ever considered the flipside of all that by building a habit that’s positive? What if the habit you formed was one of growth and personal development?

Having a growth mindset positively impacts your life in multiple ways, so it’s a great healthy habit to build into your life. What are the benefits of developing a growth mindset?

1. You keep learning. Learning is important as you not only discover new ways to do things, but by making a practice of constantly learning, you develop new ways of thinking, and new ideas. Learning connects you with more of the world and helps you see things with a deeper significance than you ever thought possible. But more than that, people who stop learning very quickly stagnate. Studies have shown that the practice of learning new things when you are older helps ward off problems related to dementia. In short, learning is good for your brain!
2. You learn perseverance. As we learn new things, we adapt and change how we think. That gives us the ability to see other solutions to problems that would have frustrated us in the past. By challenging yourself to grow, you learn how to push through obstacles and find new paths.
3. You learn how to embrace challenges. Growth can be challenging. But by pushing yourself to grow, that means you’re also pushing yourself to look at challenges differently. An obstacle now becomes an opportunity to learn something new and to do things in a way you haven’t before.
4. You learn how to embrace failure. When you’re interested in growing as an individual, you start to see failure differently. Everything becomes a potential lesson in a way that you didn’t think would work.
5. You become more open to criticism. By being willing to grow, you start to see that the input of other people has significance. You see their words not so much as something negative, but something you can use to develop as a person and learn something about yourself. You might not always like the lesson, but that’s part of growing too.

By embracing personal growth, you find the best version of yourself. You’re able to become more than you ever thought possible, and then you turn that around by finding out that you can become more still. You’ll find that the furthest edges of yourself are far beyond what you thought you ever could be.

Easily Make Exercising Daily a Habit

We all know we’re supposed to stay active, but how many of us have struggled with making exercise a daily habit?

When we exercise throughout the week, we build our bodies, keeping our energy levels high, which makes for added productivity. But exercise is also good for us in other ways. Exercise helps you to sleep better and keeps you generally healthier as you age. Exercise not only keeps your body in top form but leads to better moods and overall mental health.

So how do you make exercise a daily habit? Follow these step-by-step instructions, and you’ll be on the road to building this healthy habit in no time!

1. Set time aside in your schedule. Being deliberate about when you exercise means that it’s more likely to happen, even when life is busy. Also, it trains your body that it’s time to move at a specific time each day. Before long, you’ll find yourself craving movement and the many benefits it offers.
2. Use your smartphone. Set a reminder on your phone for when it’s time to exercise, so you don’t forget.
3. Prepare yourself. Lay out your exercise clothes and gear the night before so you can’t use the excuse that you don’t have time to find everything. Keep your exercise bag right near the door and ready to go.
4. Just leave when ready. Is it time to go? Don’t overthink it. Just go whether you feel like it or not. Your body will click into gear once you get started.
5. Take baby steps. By starting small, you won’t overwhelm yourself, or worse, do damage to a body not ready for a heavy workout. You can always increase your time/reps later when you become fitter.
6. Keep it fun and interesting. Noting screams boredom more than the same routine day after day. Mix up what you’re doing – run a new route or try a new exercise machine at the gym. Adding new types of exercise also makes sure you are working all your different muscles too.
7. Take a break – occasionally. As you build your new healthy habit, you don’t want to skip days. Consistency is key. However, it’s good to have the occasional lighter exercise day when you’ve recently upped your game or when you are especially tired or sick.

Once you make exercise a daily habit, you’ll come to look forward to it. You won’t even think about it; you’ll just do it. With so much benefit, it’s obvious that keeping a daily exercise habit is essential to a happier and healthier you! And remember, your tiny habits that change your life are worth it!

Building Habits Slowly is the Foundation for Success

When I was in Law School (it wasn’t right for me, so I left at the end of my second year) in New York City, I found myself getting into some bad habits. I took the train to school and got off at the station that was closest to where I was going. I had a checkup and my doctor was not very happy with my numbers. I needed to change my ways. She said I needed to get more exercise and eat better.

I did some research on diets and found that adding more fiber to my diet was a great way to be more full and hence eat less. I started eating oatmeal frequently for breakfast and increased my intake of fruits and vegetables. I didn’t give up sweets altogether but scaled back on them significantly. But I didn’t do this all at once. I incorporated these diet changes over several weeks.

As for my exercise, I decided to start walking. Even here, I started out slowly. For about a week or two, I decided to get off at the train station that was a couple blocks away from the university (both to and from). As I got used to the pace, I started taking the train station two stops away. Since this took longer to walk, I had to increase my pace a bit in order to make sure I wasn’t late for my first class.

I continued this process of choosing train stops further away from school, until I was walking about three miles per day. I was also power walking because of the distance. Because I built this up slowly, it became a natural part of my routine and I found myself eager to walk.

In my next checkup, the doctor was amazed at my results and told me to keep doing what I was doing. My results weren’t just an improvement. She told me the results of my checkup were fantastic. These tiny habits that change your life were working well!

The point is not necessarily to go to college in New York City (unless you want to). It’s that I was able to build up good habits by doing so in a slow and steady manner. Had I tried to walk three miles in that first week, I don’t believe I would have been successful. By making small changes over the course of several months, it became a part of my life and something that I enjoyed doing.

Of course, during the times when there was bad weather, I did scale back my walking on those days. But it just made me more willing to get back to it the next day.

I’m bestselling USA Today and Wall Street Journal author Connie Ragen Green. My goal is to help at least a thousand people to reach six-figures and beyond with an online business for time freedom and passive income and to simplify your life by implementing tiny habits that change your life, and following your purpose. Come along with me, if you will and let us discover how we may further connect to achieve all of your dreams and goals. Perhaps my “Monthly Mentoring Program” is right for you.