Habits are the micro decisions that make up our days without us even realizing it. Our behaviors and habits are a direct correlation from our environments. Environments shape who we are and the habits we form, whether it be good or bad. Have you ever noticed that sometimes you just do things without even thinking about it? You’re not alone, everyone does this, and these actions shape our daily lives. The cool thing about this is that we can shape these habits into any way we want in order to make our lives and time as optimized as possible. It all comes down to your environment and the conscious effort you put into making good habits into something that you just do no matter what with little thought.
Your environment
The environment in which you spend the most amount of time will have the biggest impact on your life overall. This is definitively true as it pertains to the people you spend the most time with. You will likely develop attitudes, beliefs, and yes habits directly from those around you. This is why the first step to forming positive habits is to surround yourself with people that you wish to emulate. This may require you to deviate from your current surroundings, as hard as that may seem at first, and find people more in line with the values you want to instill in yourself. In my personal life, I spent a lot of time at college and was surrounded by people who I didn’t share many values with. I was really depressed due to my environment so much so that I felt trapped and frustrated every day. I am thankful that my girlfriend was there and was able to make my time much more enjoyable due to the radiation of positive energy and constant encouragement she injected into my life. I did enjoy the people I lived with, however I just felt as though I was not learning from and networking with people with similar interests and aspirations as myself. My environment was a detriment to my growth and success as a businessperson. With the support of those around me such as my family and girlfriend, I decided to leave the college environment and focus full-time on my passion, real estate, at home. Since this decision, I have made countless connections, learned tons of new things, and have come close to closing a couple of deals (currently still being worked on). Because of that environment shift, I was able to increase my motivation and create productive habits that better lead me to achieving my goals. Every single day, I analyze a certain amount of deals, I make a certain amount of phone calls, and I have a very regimented schedule so I am able to creep closer and closer to my goals every day. If it weren’t for my environment, it would have been impossible to be on the path I am now on. Think about how this applies to your own life. Are you in an environment or situation that is holding you back? Are you hanging around like-minded people who can help you reach your goals? If not, make a plan to change this right away, as this is the most crucial element to forming good habits and creating a better life for yourself.
Your Effort
The next most important thing after your environment is the effort you want to put in to forming a habit. Some habits are much harder and require a lot more time and effort to form than others. As most things in life, these habits are usually the most beneficial for you, and you should pursue this discomfort to the best of your ability. In order to form new habits, you have to want to do so otherwise it will never happen. Take for example the classic New Year’s gym resolution. So many people say they will commit to exercise, they go for a week in January, and then they never go back. They then try to justify this decision to themselves with something like, “I don’t have time”. People do this because they don’t want to be fit, they would simply like to be fit and therefore are not willing to take the necessary steps to achieving the fitness they say they’re after. People also always try to find easier solutions to the problems everyone knows the answer to. Going back to the gym example, everyone knows how to lose weight! Go to the gym and eat healthy. Yet, why do so many people try and search for answers on how they can achieve weight loss online and look for different solutions? It is because they don’t really want that weight loss and they aren’t willing to put in the effort to make that change.
In order to instill a habit into your life, you need to want to do it no matter how big or small. I recommend compiling small habits together to form one larger habit or goal. This will trick your mind into thinking the much larger habit is more achievable than it had initially seemed. For example, if you were trying to lose weight, you could break down habits into very minute details and implement the changes little by little. For two weeks, you can focus on eating a healthy breakfast and going to the gym once a week. Then, for another two weeks after, you can start focusing on eating a better lunch and going to the gym twice a week. This is just an example, but you can see how what I like to call “habit creep” can have a massive effect over time. After a few months, this individual could be going to the gym 5 days a week without even thinking about it as well as eating much healthier meals. Will it only take a few months to reach your goals? Probably not. However, the consistent habits you form will certainly guide you towards reaching your goals over time!
Habits I’ve been able to form and you can too!
I myself have implemented several habits in my life. I go to the gym 5 days a week without ever thinking anything of it. I just wake up and go no questions asked. This has been programmed in my mind for 8 years and I will always have this behavior as part of my life. Recently, I have begun to try and get away from my phone a little bit more and have implemented small changes to reach this bigger habit. For the last month almost, I do not touch my phone in the morning until after the gym. I wake up, eat breakfast, write 5 things I am grateful for, go to the gym, shower, and then check my phone. This habit has allowed me much more time to think and collect my thoughts for the upcoming day. It is quite relaxing and liberating to leave your house without your phone and do something you enjoy. This habit has got my head spinning about other ways I can add small habits into my life to achieve the greater one of less phone usage in my life. This is a simple formula that everyone can follow. It starts with your environment and drive. When both of these factors are aligned in positivity, you will better be able to form new habits and reach bigger goals!