Habits and narratives replay in different relationships across different areas of our lives. These recurring patterns can be destructive; like consuming too much sugar, or drinking too much. Other habits may have served us well when we were younger, such as self-sufficiency in the absence of good parental support. But the purpose of those habits have now expired. Being intentional about evaluating our habits is a good exercise.
Habits by nature aren't something we think about – rather we do them automatically from muscle memory. As we enter our seventh month of Covid-19, what new habits have you been building or old habits have you been intentional in breaking? Adapting new habits can be a challenging task. However, it is worth asking ourselves a set of questions to get us thinking.
Can you handle multiple competing demands? The demand on your mind from the old habits and the demands of new habits may be in competition. For example, old habit of too much Netflix might be in competition of a new habit of an hour walk… what might you do to balance these competing demands?
Adaptability can be a major differentiator of successful individuals. How do you feel about building habits that will support your success?
What actions are you taking in response to the desire to change a habit? Small steps are key here.
Have you gotten to the “why” behind old habits and developed a “why” for the new habit.
We are in challenging times, and times of opportunity to take a new look at how we are showing up in our lives. How can we bring empathy, curiosity and compassion to ourselves, to help build new habits? Lets all choose to challenge ourselves in this uncertain season.
- Dr. Jill Jay
