We all have habits…some good, some bad. Some we are proud of and others we would never admit. This week, I started to get back into an old habit that I have missed (yes, I said missed) dearly and have also begun a new habit as well. Or at least, I am planning on it becoming habit. In case you were wondering, both are good and good for me. But habits don’t happen overnight or by themselves. Habits are never born that way — we create them. Some fall into their life because of complacency or lack of effort. We feel that it is either easier to do something or not do something, but most of us at one time or another pick the easy way. It is more difficult to change your life by changing what you do in your life. People are amazed when I tell them that I get up at 4:30am 5 days a week to run about 5 miles each day. To be fair — sometimes I just walk. Sometimes, I do both. To me, it seems normal and something that I just LOVE to do. It is different now than when it started, but I still love it. Believe me, it did not begin as a habit and never did I think it would change my life the way it has. But making small changes to our lives have a tendency to alter who we are, what we believe, what we do. Starting something new because you have never done it before or restarting something that you used to do can be hard and you are not sure how to “jump-start” the process or when is even the right time to start. I planned out my daily activities so much that I would make an excuse as to why starting on a Wednesday just wasn’t possible — my routine was to begin on Monday so I would make an excuse to give me a way out for 5 more days. Then, I would look back at those 5 days and began to accept that I missed out on starting something 5 days sooner — usually with a heavy sigh and a deep breath. Ever done that? Maybe you just did. Been there, done it. Do something different today and then commit to doing it every day and stay with it. It has been said that you have to do something for 28 days for it to become a habit. Can you honestly say that you can’t do something for 28 days if it will change your life? Because after those 28 days, you will again look back and wonder how you ever lived your life before without it. I know. It becomes who you are and it takes work to be the best you can be. “Don’t be upset at the results you didn’t get when you didn’t do anything to change those results.” – Anon. Who do you want to be? Where do you want to go? Start something new or get back into doing what you used to do and then your habits change. And then you change right along with them.
Michelle Homme 2013 ©
