11.11pm

‘Ringgggggg ‘ , rings my phone alarm.

‘Reminder : Gratitude notes before bedtime.’

This is the newest addition in my daily to-do list or as I would like to call it, a daily ritual!

Have you been struggling with cultivating a new habit? 

Relax dear! You do not need to be hard on yourself!!

Wherever you are, whether you have given up an existing activity, or have been inconsistent or have not been able to adapt the new activities you have been wanting to..the fact that you are reading this article says for itself that you want to start and feel good about yourself, but just need some motivation! So just pause and smile, I am here to help ☺.

UNDERSTANDING OUR ROOT CAUSE

First, let’s understand that we, humans, are wired to move towards pleasure and away from pain. So if there is anything that seems painful or difficult, there is surely going to be resistance. For example, for someone getting up early in the morning may seem painful or dieting may seem difficult or making business plans may seem tough.

Secondly start observing your words around particular tasks. Your words have more power subsconsciously than you know!

For example , Do you say, 

“I need to go to the gym” or 

 “I need to invest more time in business planning.” or

“I need to earn a thousand grand!.” 

The words, “I need to..” create an impression of a sense of lack  and they come from a space of fear, anxiety and discontentment, whereas motivation comes from excitement !!

So quickly replace your “I need to..” with ” I WANT TO..” or ” I am excited to..”

Let it come from your heart. Let that urge come from within your true inner self!

EMBRACE CHANGE!

Embrace the fact that any kind of new practice is going to invite change and might not be comfortable to start with.  Give yourself the permission to learn something new, explore and make mistakes. Make it easy for the new habit to stay around .

Whatever new habit you decide, whether it is to journal or meditate everyday or focusing on fitness, JUST BEGIN!!

Do it for 2 minutes or  5 mins or 10mins but JUST START! 

Don’t underestimate the power of your decison! You are ONE DECISION AWAY from a life you want to carve! 

Set up reminders or sticky notes or put up a picture of your task or goal as wallpaper or screensaver on your phone.

Remember you will not get that desired figure in a day. Sincere effort and consistency are your best friends on any new journey you embark upon. All days are not going to be easy peasy and a bed of roses. 

Give it time while enjoying every bit in the process.  

MAKE GOALS THAT ARE EASILY ATTAINABLE:

Break the activity into smaller bits, start with baby steps and smaller achievable goals. Losing a kg seems like a cakewalk than losing 10kgs of weight.This helps build up the momentum, keeps you feeling motivated and the activity at hand seems easy and enjoyable in the process.

When I wanted to get into my daily yoga practise, I started with basic stretches for 10 minutes  to begin with. Slowly I moved to 20, then 30 and then 45 minutes. I looked for youtube videos of those time slots and just started. 

MAKE IT EASY & EXCITING!!

Reduce the opportunity to give in to excuses or postponing of your actiivty.

For example If you want to start working out, buy a new pair of shoes or clothing or gym bag.

Join a gym close to your house, so you dont make an excuse about distance and traffic. 

If you want to start journaling, buy yourself a new dairy and a nice pen.

Be your own cheerleader and create the vibe that keeps you excited!!

CELEBRATE LITTLE VICTORIES!

You can set weekly rewards for yourself. Be thankful to yourself for your daily effort. Feel gratitude and that sense of accomplishment each day. If you miss a day for whatever reason,do not be hard on yourself . You can deprive yourself of that weeks’ reward at the most. It is absolutely okay to start again. Remember to be kind to yourself. Beating yourself up will only lead to more demotivation and self shaming, which we don’t want!

And AFFIRM happily…

“IT IS EASY FOR ME TO CULTIVATE ENRICHING NEW HABITS IN MY LIFE!”

Gratitude Journaling

Mindfulness

Willingness !