This episode & blog post is about habits and how small changes regarding your habits can lead to big wins for you. You may feel that habits are insignificant to create the life you want, but these little things called habits are what make a world of difference in your life. Habits have the power to transform who you are as an individual. They also have the power to impact your family, company or community for the better!
“Habits can help you achieve all of these things, but fundamentally they are not about having something. They are about becoming someone.”
– Atomic Habits by James Clear
For so many of us, we can feel like we’re on a never ending uphill climb. We’re being pulled in so many directions. Our families, professions and communities demand our time. This can often leave us feeling overwhelmed, overworked and underappreciated.
In this complex journey we call life, I like to remind myself that it’s not about the goals I achieve or the things I accomplish, but more so about the person I become along the way.
“Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become. No single instance will transform your beliefs, but as the votes build up, so does the evidence of your new identity. This is one reason why meaningful change does not require radical change. Small habits can make a meaningful difference by providing evidence of a new identity. And if a change is meaningful, it actually is big. That’s the paradox of making small improvements.” – Atomic Habits
The power of a single drop…repeated over and over, creates permanent and foundational change, on even the hardest of surfaces. If you think about it, a single drop of water feels harmless and ineffectual. But in numbers…conducted repetitiously, contains with it the power to lasting change.
This is similar to habits and the actions we take…even the little ones we think go unnoticed (at least on a conscious level). Creating a habit is easy. It’s part of the operating system that was given to us at birth. The challenge comes when we want to change these habits especially if they’re habits we don’t want and no longer serve us but are still part of our identity. Creating a new habit is really about making new decisions about how we operate and then making that same decision over and over again to the point that it becomes part of our identity.
“True behavior change is identity change. You might start a habit because of motivation, but the only reason you’ll stick with one is that it becomes a part of your identity.”
– Atomic Habits
As you go about your day, I encourage you to find time to observe your thoughts, emotions, and actions. Decide if the choices you’re making create the person you want to identify as and if that person is going to help you create the future you want.