How to maintain healthy habits and achieve your goals!
Jump to:
- Why is it hard to maintain healthy habits?
- Step 1 to maintain healthy habits: State your “why”
- How to write your, “why” statement
- Step 2: The Progress Principle
- Step 3: Create a vision board
- How to create a vision board
- Step 4: Practice Mel Robin’s 5-second rule
- Step 5: Practice Mel Robin’s 5-minute rule
- Step 6: Treat yo’self!
So, you’ve finally started to implement and maintain healthy habits I’ve taught you in my previous posts such as, meditating, practicing yoga, gratitude and visualization journaling, not hitting the snooze button in the morning, and practicing using anchor thoughts to hinder pesky limiting beliefs.
Then, one morning when your alarm goes off, you feel very heavy and exhausted. Without thinking twice about it, you hit the snooze button and go back to sleep.
You’ve earned it, right? One day won’t hurt.
After you wake up again a bit later, you feel even more exhausted than you did before. As you make breakfast and sit down to write in your visualization journal it hits you…
You don’t feel like doing this shit today.
In need of a day off, from your healthy routine, you plop your happy ass on the couch and turn on the TV. Motivation is nonexistent at this point and you’d rather say screw it and binge-watch your favorite TV show. The only thing is, that television doesn’t drown out your thoughts and the outside world as it normally does. This frustrates you because you know in your heart of hearts that watching reruns of your favorite show isn’t what will help you accomplish your goals or get you closer to living your dream life.
In this article, I’ll be teaching you a few actionable steps to implement in order to maintain healthy habits so that you can live the fulfilling, abundant life you were meant to live!
Why is it hard to maintain healthy habits?
It’s easy adopting positive habits, the challenging part is figuring out how to maintain healthy habits after the first week or so.
Our brains are hard-wired to reject change and stick with what feels familiar and safe. This dates back to our cave-dwelling days when we never drifted too far from our tribes in fear of being attacked by blood-thirsty wild animals or neighboring tribes. We didn’t change up our routine then or step out of our comfort zone because embracing our comfort zone is literally what kept us alive. This approach doesn’t work for us in the modern world, yet we still find ourselves tapping into our primal instincts.
Step 1: State your why, and remember it when you feel like slipping.
Why do you want to start implementing better habits or work towards your goal in the first place?
Stating your, “why” is a crucial part of pursuing a new goal. It’s what will keep your motivation aflame if it begins to smolder.
A few examples of, “why” statements:
• I want to lose weight by practicing micro exercise every day, so that I can feel comfortable in my own skin and radiate positive energy to attract amazing people and situations into my life.
• I want to learn to be more productive by developing time management skills so that I can make the best of my time and get more accomplished.
• I want to learn how to be more confident with being alone with myself by carving out, “me time” each week so that I don’t jump into toxic relationships out of sheer loneliness and desperation.
• I want to learn how to be a great public speaker by talking in front of small groups of people, working my way up to bigger audiences over time.
• I want to launch my own business by taking the necessary steps so that I can pursue my passions, work for myself and achieve financial freedom and independence.
• I want to learn how to conquer my fears by reading Marilynn’s article, “How to overcome fear; the ONLY time it’s okay to lie, cheat, and steal!”
Okay, that last example may not be very relevant, but I thought it was clever.
How to write your, “Why statement.”:
Creating a, “why statement” is very simple. Just be sure to make your statement actionable, very short, sweet, and to the point!
Also, be sure to put the statement up on your fridge or someplace like your bathroom mirror where you’ll see it often as a reminder to keep you motivated.
- I want to ___________ so that I can _____________.
- I want to learn how to ______________ by doing ________________ so that I can, ________________.
Notice how the second example is actionable, which is what you should be aiming for, but either example is fine to utilize.
Step 2: The progress principle
” We overestimate what we can achieve in one day, week, or month and underestimate what we can accomplish in a year.”
The progress principle is when you complete small, actionable tasks every day to help get you one step closer to your goals. Instead of trying to achieve everything in a very short period of time, break down each task into small, doable sections. I am one to get burnt out and overwhelmed fairly easily, so when I break down big projects into small tasks that I can complete over a month’s time. This makes me feel much less overwhelmed so that I don’t end up procrastinating or quitting my projects altogether.
For example, a few simple steps to follow to achieve your goals in a practical manner by using the progress principle:
- Write down two to four tasks to accomplish each day to get you one step closer to achieving your goals.
- Set a time limit to accomplish each task so that you manage your time more efficiently and will be more motivated to get things done.
- Next to each goal, write out the actionable steps you need to take to complete these goals.
If you follow the progress principle, you’ll reach your goals in no time! No need to stress about getting everything done in one day. Remember… Slow and steady wins the race!
Step 3: Create a vision board
Another tool to implement is creating a vision board. A vision board is a collage containing photos pertaining to your biggest goals and wildest dreams. Vision boards are wonderful visual reminders of what you’re working towards and serve as inspiration.
Vision boards also play a significant role in the power of visualization. Visualization is an incredibly powerful manifestation technique that goes hand-in-hand with the law of attraction that I will be talking about in the very near future on my page. Before you know it, you’ll have manifested all of the photos on your board!
Not gonna lie, I was skeptical about the idea of a vision board at first. How the hell could a collage of photos manifest my desires? The mind is such a powerful tool that responds to two things:
- Words
- Images
Our subconscious mind sees these images and words even if we aren’t staring directly at them, which is why it’s so important to keep a vision board someplace where you’d be able to easily spot it each day. It was so bizarre that the photos on my board started to appear in my life in different ways. This is how I know that it works!
How to create a vision board
It’s great to keep visual reminders of your goals and ambitions in visible places you’ll look at often. This will help keep you motivated and attract what you want in life.
Creating a vision board is very simple. You can use tools such as Canva for free, or look up templates to buy from small business owners at affordable prices. It feels wonderful to buy from small business owners who are following their passions.
Bonus: you’re also helping YOUR dreams become a reality by creating this vision board for inspiration and manifestation purposes. Win, win!
After creating your vision board you can put it in places like:
• The background or screensaver on your phone or computer
• On your fridge
• Your bathroom mirror
Remember! It’s very important to keep visual reminders of goals available for times you may slip into a funk.
Step 4: Practice Mel Robin’s, “5-second rule.”
Do you ever find yourself talking yourself out of doing something important that you know needs to be done? A fantastic tip I learned from Mel Robins, the most booked female motivational speaker in the U.S., is something called, “the 5 second rule.” If you are a procrastinator, like me, then this tool will be a godsend for you!
Whenever you have something important to do, count down from five…”5,4,3,2,1″ and DO the damn thing! Don’t even give yourself time to think about all the things you would rather be doing, or why it will be okay to skip it and wait till tomorrow.
Our brains love to stick with what is comfortable and familiar. If you have been hardwired to put things off until. “later” or “til tomorrow” then chances are it will be a bit difficult to break this vicious cycle of habits. The 5 second rule makes breaking this unhealthy habit much easier because you don’t even have time to think of all the reasons you don’t want to be doing what you need to get done.
Whenever you have something important to do that you don’t feel like doing, make sure you do it first and get it out of the way. Let me know how the 5-second rule does or doesn’t work for you in the comments below!
Step 5: Practice the “five-MINUTE rule!”
Another tip I recently learned from Mel Robbins, is something called “the 5-minute rule.” Many of us are aware that when you procrastinate, it provides you with a very temporary feeling of relief from avoiding work. This temporary relief from procrastination is followed by crippling anxiety because you know you should be getting work done.
Should you ever find yourself feeling distracted and wanting to procrastinate, STOP!
Realize this is simply a reaction to stress and address whatever it is that’s making you feel this way. Then, sit down and work for at least 5 minutes on an important task. Chances are you’ll work for much longer than this. The best part about practicing the five-minute rule is that you’ll feel a sense of pride and accomplishment after completing some work, which will motivate you to complete even more work! This way, you’ll reach your goals in no time!
Step 6: Treat yo’self!
Have you completed any important tasks that you didn’t feel like doing today? Then, treat yo’self by watching an episode of your favorite show or maybe having a healthy treat. Or, better yet have a small unhealthy treat! Why the hell not?! You earned it! It’s okay to indulge and reward yourself after you’ve accomplished a task big or small. Just be sure not to overdo it is all! Moderation is key.
I feel that rewarding yourself for a job well done is a very vital step in maintaining healthy habits. It’s something to look forward to and to possibly give you the extra motivation you need to get certain things done. For me, personally, that feeling of having accomplished something that I need to get done is one of the BEST feelings ever!
I get a high that I don’t wanna come down from when I complete tasks that get me one step closer to achieving my goals! I hope these steps help you achieve a healthier, more productive lifestyle as well!
There you have it, folks! If you’ve read this far, then you now have the tools to implement to maintain healthy habits! Feel free to let me know how these tips work or haven’t worked for you. Now, get out there and show the world what you’re made of!