“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence
then is not an act but a habit.”
Aristotle
Habits. There are both “good” and “bad” habits. “Good” habits are
things that make us feel better about ourselves (mood follows action).
Good habits are what we want to build on. Habits and routines take
our emotions out of the decision-making process. We just do it. Like
getting up and going for a run early in the morning. Habits that are
“bad” for us, like drinking, not eating well, are difficult to break or
get out of that routine. Perhaps because these “bad” habits trigger
an emotional response, or the unconscious brain which we just
cannot fight. Impossible. I want. I need. All the alibis or stories we tell
ourselves. Rationalization. Confirmation bias. Hit the pause button,
take the emotion, pleasure aspect out of the equation. Recognize the
cue and change the response. Change the emotion. Feeling, desire,
short term thinking. Refocus. Try a different response. Better yet, try
to create an environment that fosters good habits and eliminate the
environment that tempts us to indulge in unhealthy habits. Think long
term, not quick fix emotional response. Pause. Divert. Go long term.
Get out of the short-term moment. Good habits will build themselves,
bit by bit, brick by brick, and become second nature, like when we
learn to drive a car, stick shift it just happens. So too will unhealthy
habits, so be careful.
“Discipline is choosing between what you
want now, and what you want most.”
Abraham Lincoln
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