Are you eager to improve your productivity? Gain more satisfaction from everyday tasks? Want to reach goals, realize dreams and live out aspirations? This book will help you acquire daily habits that will help you do these things and more.
Your habits also relate to why youll put up with unpleasant tasks at work (youre in the habit of just saying yes and it would take more effort to negotiate) or settle for boring instead of seeking adventure. Were creatures of habit, and the many daily habits we have become accustomed to are the very fabric of our lives.
Each of the habits presented in this book is completely doable. Establishing the new habit will not be difficult. Your goal is to focus on the new practice until it replaces your old habits. Thats the beauty of daily habits: they are small enough to be easy, yet the end result of establishing that new habit is exponential in scope. For optimal results, I suggest you read the entire book through once, and then tackle this book in one of the following ways: Commit to establishing new habits in just one area of your life, concentrating on one segment of the book until you feel you have made adequate progress Choose one habit at a time until youve got that one habit down, and then add a new habit to your repertoire after that Choose your favorite habits out of the 77 habits suggested, and tackle them one by one until youve established all your favorite new habits
Whatever way you choose to approach this challenge, I encourage you to take the
time to enjoy the process. Improving your life is fun. It involves dreaming and assessing, growing and changing. How do I know? Im certainly not perfect. In fact, Im still working on establishing some of the habits listed here in this book. But I do know this: every positive habit I establish is one more step in the right direction, and I can feel the positive impact on my life over all. My wish for you is a similar experience as you enrich your life through the development of positive habits.
Perhaps youre one of those rare birds who performs well under stress, but most of us flounder. Coming to work late or barely on time puts you at risk for:
A computer that wont start up right away, making you late A parking complication or other unforeseen troubles with transportation Realizing you didnt finish that report that is due first thing in the morning
If you always arrive early, you will build in a cushion that will protect you from undue stress. Its the best way to arrive at work calm, positive, relaxed and guiltfree. To establish this habit, you will need to actually leave your house fifteen minutes earlier than you usually do. By doing this, youll improve your performance and protect your mental health, all the while bolstering your reputation around the office.
Its close to impossible to know what your work situation will be five years from now, even if youre in a stable field, and knowing someone who knows someone is the best way to get a new job or line up a new client. A recent CNN report tells us only 15-20 percent of available jobs are advertised. That means somewhere between 80-85 percent of jobs are being filled by personal relationships. How do establish a habit of networking? First off, always bring business cards with you wherever you go, and hand them out freely. Be sure to keep up with contacts from time to time, connecting on social networks like LinkedIn so you have a way to get back in touch later on.
your desk and enjoy a meal where youre not engaged in work activities. Better yet, walk to a nearby lunch destination. Even if you just walk two blocks to a local restaurant and walk back again, this will help you manage work stress. Moving your body, getting outside in the sun, and getting out of the office all works together to relieve stress and rejuvenate your spirit.
By incorporating an invigorating practice into your afternoon routine, you will be more productive and enthusiastic at a time of day when you might otherwise be sleepy and unmotivated.
Project specifications and deadlines Any discussion of pay rates, raises or bonuses Expectations expressed in meetings Customer or client issues Problems with coworkers
Get everything in writing. You can do this by documenting through an email or notes on your computer. If you are documenting sensitive information, password protect your document so coworkers cant possibly get access to it without your permission. Then, if someone later remembers a bonus discussion differently than you do, you can check that email or note to yourself and bring the documentation to the table for discussion.
Your company may not be ready to hold laughter yoga sessions, but you can lighten the mood during meetings and improve overall morale by getting in touch with your internal stand up comedian. Crack a joke when appropriate, and let it rip with a couple close coworkers over lunch. A good laugh will help you work better and live better.
Those who work best as a group should schedule important tasks to be tackled with coworkers. That may mean you have to alter your schedule or talk to your manager. Maybe you want to come into work an hour early or stay after everyone else leaves at night. Maybe youll want to ask if you can work from home one day a week or collaborate with coworkers on specific projects. Find your sweet spot, and then make sure youre tackling the most important tasks in the best way and time.
goals (like I want to lose twenty pounds.) Become a person who refuses to accept a vague goal as a real goal. Instead, force yourself to think through the details and to get specific. Write down those specific goals and keep them somewhere you can see them every day.
make an agreement with a friend who will just as committed to your success as you are. Once you get your support system set up, establish a habit of checking in with your accountability system daily. That may mean posting a quick report online as to whether or not you took a scheduled step towards your goal or talking to your support friend. Daily accountability will help you succeed.
Make a chart or spreadsheet of these mini goals and then mark off how well you fulfill your commitments each day. If you get in the habit of tracking your progress, you will find success is that much easier to achieve.
Once youve determined what your goal is, you need to find someone or something to follow. That someone could be an expert in the field, an excellent training book, a training class or an idol who will inspire you. If you try to reinvent the wheel by yourself, youll end up making mistakes or hitting roadblocks you could have avoided. Find a book, online program or mentor and craft your plan to success off that example. This will also help you believe it can be done after all, youre just following in the footsteps of someone who has already succeeded!
Ask yourself what would really matter to you, and then use that as motivation to force you to meet your goal.
Develop the habit of asking for time to think it over before committing. You can use the line, Let me check my calendar and get back to you. Then make yourself wait at least 24 hours before responding to requests. You may find that your sister finds someone else to watch her kids and a bunch of your coworkers decline the happy hour invitation, making it more acceptable for you to also say no. Your work out buddy may be fine doing the race with or without you, and your daughter might get invited to someone elses house freeing you up even more.
Why? Making a psychological separation between your bedroom (where you sleep) and activity rooms (kitchen, TV room, office) will help you associate your bedroom with sleeping. This will help you leave your anxieties from work and bill-related worries in the office, electronic stimulation in the TV room and stress of household chores in the kitchen. Many people find that making this distinction frees them up for much sounder sleep.
wonders, as does the infamous warm milk. Some people can handle caffeine even right before bed, but most people need to stop drinking caffeine around four in the afternoon if they want to sleep soundly. That means you need to avoid coffee, hot chocolate, and even decaffeinated green or black tea they still contain traces of caffeine. Go for herbal teas instead.
After youve dumped out your concerns, youll want to relax for that last remaining hour, doing something that distracts you from anxiety and helps you settle into a content feeling of everything will be okay.
Set a timer, shut your eyes, sit in a comfortable position and surrender your worries to a higher being. Even if youre not religious, ten minutes of meditation (repeating a mantra or focusing on your breathing) will help you relax enough to sleep soundly.
The combination of cool room temperature and snuggly, heavy blankets on you will make you feel warm, cozy and secure the perfect combination for a perfect night of sleep.
If youve tried all of the habits mentioned above and still cant sleep, youll want to try taking melatonin, a natural supplement that your body already produces. Melatonin works in conjunction with light exposure. Our body produces melatonin each night after the sun sets, signaling to our body that its time to rest. Many over the counter sleep aids are simply decongestants repackaged, and most of them leave you groggy the next morning. You can take three to five milligrams of melatonin right before bed and still feel great in the morning. Melatonin is non-habit-forming, but its a fine habit to establish if you need help falling asleep but dont want to be foggy-headed the next morning.
We learn best when we teach others. Thats why study groups can be so effective, if used correctly. Instead of using your study group just to get assignments done, ask a study partner to quiz you on material, forcing you to verbally summarize what youve learned. Find a person who is doing poorly in the class and become an informal tutor. If you cant find someone to instruct, tell your partner or roommate all about things youve learned in class. Dont just repeat the stuff you already know well. Choose information youre having trouble digesting and make yourself explain it to someone while eating dinner or walking the dog. This will ensure youve really made sense of the material youve been learning.
or green. The color may trigger that visual memory, helping you to access the information.
Go for peppermint, which acts as a mental stimulant and can help you feel clear and focused.
Find a quiet spot, set a timer, close your eyes and then focus on nothing but your breathing. Breath in as deeply as is comfortable, hold your breath until you feel slight discomfort, and then exhale slowly until you feel complete release. Repeat this until your timer goes off, refusing to worry about anything, but instead focusing on how good it feels to simply breathe.
least get your heart rate up for a full five minutes. Try jumping rope, jumping jacks, running up and down the stairs in your house, squats or push ups and sit ups. If that is too much, try exiting the subway one exit sooner than necessary and walking the extra five minutes to work or parking in the furthest away parking spot at work and getting in a brisk walk. Follow up by moving your body a second time over your lunch break. Walk to lunch, spend part of your lunch break exercising, or even run errands over your break. By getting your heart rate up and your blood pumping, youre keeping your body in healthy calorie-burning mode. Youll also keep your heart and lungs from getting sluggish and will prevent the formation of blood clots, which can happen if you sit for long periods of time without moving.
Commit to eating a serving of raw vegetables every day at ten in the morning. Eat a couple stalks of celery, a handful of baby carrots or a sliced cucumber. Youll feel full and healthy, and you wont be tempted to eat a high sugar granola bar or brownie. Vegetables are super low in calories, so youll get your nutrition and sense of fullness while keeping calorie intake low.
butter from your recipes. We use butter and cream in recipes because of the fabulous flavor, right? Spices add a great deal of flavor without clogging your arteries or making you gain weight. In fact, several different spices will help you keep your blood sugar stable (cinnamon), improve your digestion (ginger) and improve your immunity (turmeric.) Instead of making your favorite cream-based or butter-based dish, look up a spicy dish instead. Learn how to combine spices to create flavors you love. When out at a restaurant, look for meals seasoned with spice rubs and then grilled or baked and avoid any dish that uses cream or butter.
less likely to skip exercise. Better yet, set a goal (for example, sign up for a triathlon or a running race) and then find a training program that will get you ready for the event. You can easily find couch-to-5K apps for your smart phone or training programs online. Use these guides to help you plan out what you should be doing each day, and then schedule your exercise into your weekly plan. Youll be more likely to exercise and to meet your fitness goals.
If you struggle with cravings often, you may wish to read up on the physiology of cravings to learn what specific nutrients your body is craving when you want specific foods. This can help you make healthy choices.
with you. Instead of meeting a friend for drinks, meet to play tennis or go for a walk. If you love the mall, the two of you can window shop while chatting. If you like the great outdoors, walk in the neighborhood or go hiking. If youre both athletic, meet to jog or bike while you catch up. When you replace sedentary social activities (especially parties or meeting out for coffee or lunch) with exercise (even mild exercise), youll expend calories instead of rack them up. Your time exercising will pass quickly because youll be focused on talking to your friend instead of just getting through the fitness class or workout routine.
Increase your metabolism Help you let go of stress Infuse you with a healthy amount of vitamin D, which works to strengthen your immune system and help you feel positive Improve your self esteem Help you slim down
Walking is one of the healthiest habits you can cultivate. While strenuous exercise is beneficial, you will avoid injury and recover better from intense exercise if you warm up, cool down and make time for recovery all through walking sessions. You can even accomplish things while walking. Talk into a dictation machine, catch up with a friend (on the phone or in person), visit with neighbors, plan out your week, work through emotional duress walking is gentle enough that you can do more than just exercise.
S.J. Scott
Sources Quoted
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