Although habits and conscious living appear to be at odd with one another, it doesn’t imply that one must eliminate all habits in order to live consciously. For without habits, life will become unbearably tedious and laborious. Imagine having to will yourself everyday to brush your teeth or to take a shower. Some things are still best done on automatic.
But doing things out of habit doesn’t mean we do them without paying attention. In fact, we should carry out our habits, and our lives for that matter, mindfully. Take the earlier example of brushing. Though we may be driven to brush out of habit, we can still do it consciously by paying attention to the strokes, and making sure we don’t use excessive force and end up with a bloody mouth.
So, the keywords here are mindful habits. Good habits, of course, are what we want to cultivate. These are positive actions, usually small ones, that we do consistently. Though they may seem insignificant, the cumulative effect of all the little actions you take creates a synergy that can change the course of your life. Quoting a line by Brian Tracy,
“First, you shape your habits, and then your habits shape you.”
In this article, you’ll find a collection of small, but often overlooked good habits that can make a difference to our body, mind or soul. Let us begin:
At a Glance
- Habits that Uplift the Soul
- Habits that Boost Health
- Productivity Habits
- Accelerated Learning Habits
- Smart Money Habits
Habits that Uplift the Soul
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Save your sanity with meditation. It’s easy to get carried away and lost ourselves in the hustle and bustle in our lives. A daily meditation practice can help to steady our mind and pull ourselves back from the ocean of confusion. Give yourself a fifteen-minute respite each day at a regular time to practice this ancient art. For detailed instructions on how to meditate, click here. -
Give thanks always. Whether or not you’ve a religious belief, gratitude humbles the soul and prevents us from taking what we have for granted. The moment you open your eyes in the morning, give thanks for having a totally new day to begin with. As the day unfolds, give thanks for the help, no matter how small they may be, rendered by the people in your life. Give thanks even for the not so pleasant events that annoy you as they make you stronger and more resilient in their own special ways. And don’t forget to thank yourself for being who you truly are.
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Laugh, laugh and laugh some more. We can go around each day with a sulky face, or we can choose to ride the ups and downs in life with smiles and laughter. Finding it hard to laugh? Check out 6 Ways to Reduce Stress & Anxiety with Humor and if you’re someone who cries a lot, then learn how Dani chose laughter over tears at Positively Present.
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Bless someone each day. By blessing other people consciously, we don’t just increase ‘the level of peace, joy and happiness within the people‘ we come in contact with, we also bring peace to our very own soul. Find out how to put the power back into your blessings at Unwrap Your Mind by Patrick Stoeckmann.
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Write something everyday. We face setbacks, big and small, almost on a daily basis. They can take the forms of unfortunate events that caught us by surprise, or seemingly benign occurrences that trigger negative memories within us. We usually either bury the associated emotions inside us or deny their presence out right. But by not confronting how we feel about certain issues, we’re only creating more blockages within our body, mind and soul. Free writing is a simple and effective method to release our inner pressure vault and clear our emotional blockages. To get the most of free writing, write something everyday in a journal, regardless of how trivial something may appear to you. You may be surprised to find that minor things actually mean something to you as you know more about yourself through free writing.
Habits that Boost Health
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Floss daily. Flossing makes you live longer. Hard to believe but true. Apparently, poor oral hygiene is a breeding ground not just for periodontal diseases but also chronic diseases like heart attack and stroke. How to make sure that you don’t skip flossing? Do it before your regular brushing. -
Enhance self-healing with acupressure massage. Acupressure is a traditional Chinese healing technique that works on the same principles as acupuncture. But instead of using needles, we access our meridian points with our hands and fingers. By massaging certain parts of our body for only five minutes a day, we can improve our bodily functions as well as immune system using our bare hands only. Zu San Li and He Gu are two meridian points which are easy to locate and great for health maintenance.
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Walk 10,000 steps a day. The proliferation of modern conveniences and a largely sedentary lifestyle mean we don’t move our body quite enough. An easy way to become more active without trying too hard or hitting the gym is to walk more. Walking is one simple exercise that most of us can easily incorporate into our lives. We just need to get used to more walking and create more opportunities to walk. Take the stairs instead of the elevator, take a stroll in the park after every meal instead of slumping into the couch, alight one stop before your regular bus stop and walk the rest of the journey home, or park your car further away from your workplace so that you can do some walking meditation are only some of the ways. I’m sure you can think of even better ways to integrate walking seamlessly into your life situations. Why 10,000 steps? Study suggests that that is the optimal number of steps in a day to achieve a good workout. To keep track of your steps, use a pedometer and start counting your steps to good health.
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Add omega-3 fats to your diet. Omega-3 fatty acids help our body to produce substances that prevent chronic inflammation, a condition that can lead to heart disease and cancer. Get your anti-inflammatory fats from omega-3-rich foods like wild salmon at least twice a week, or supplement your diet with high quality contamination-free fish-oil capsules.
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Get free, all-natural vitamin D. A lack of vitamin D has been known to cause weak bones and bone-related diseases such as osteoporosis and osteomalacia. Some studies also linked vitamin D deficiency with increased susceptibility to several chronic diseases such as cancer, hypertension and diabetes. To get your free dose of vitamin D, get out in the sun for fifteen minutes each day. But beware that excessive ultra-violet exposure can also cause skin cancer. So avoid the sun’s rays between 10 am to 4 pm when they are at their strongest and limit each direct exposure to no more than fifteen minutes. Be smart and enjoy the sun!
Productivity Habits
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Two-minute task killer. Made popular by David Allen in his book Getting Things Done, this effective habit says that if a task on hand can be done in two minutes or less, you should do it right away even if it’s of low priority. In the words of Allen, “it takes longer to store and track any item than to deal with it the first time it’s in your head.” Simple but powerful idea, isn’t it? -
Set your own deadline for each task. Want to differentiate yourself from your peers? Like to have more time at work to do some self-directed learning? Then aim to complete those tasks given to you in double-quick time. The secret to completing tasks quickly is to set your own deadline for each task and stick to it firmly.
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Eat the right food. You may be surprised to find this listed under productivity habits. But the food that we put into our mouth everyday has a direct impact on our energy levels, which in turn affect our productivity. We are well-aware that the food we eat requires processing by our digestive system before the nutrients can be absorbed. This digestion process takes considerable amount of energy from our body and that’s why we usually feel lethargic or sleepy right after a meal. To minimize a huge dip in productivity, therefore, it’s advisable to eat foods that are easier to digest, and limit the amount of foods per meal. A diet comprising largely of fruits and vegetables, and only a small amount of meat, if at all, is the easiest on our stomach. As a common Chinese saying goes, one should always fill up only seventy percent of the stomach, it’s also important not to overeat. Because more foods means more time and energy to digest and eliminate.
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Go through your goals. An undirected mind is like a traveler without a map. To make sure that you’re always moving in the direction of your goals, it is important to remind yourself of where you want to go. A daily reminder of your short-term as well as long-term goals in the morning are a good way to direct your energies and focus for the rest of the day.
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Can I do this better or faster? By posing this seemingly simple question to yourself everyday, you jolt yourself out of your comfort zone and prevent getting stuck in conditioned thinking.
Accelerated Learning Habits
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What new word you learned today? Whether or not you are learning a new language, an ever-increasing database of vocabulary is always handy. Not only will it enrich the way you express yourself, it can also help you to score some brownie points with your bosses, colleagues and friends. All major dictionary websites, like Cambridge, Dictionary.com and Merriam-Webster, have something called Word of the Day feature which highlights a different word each day. You can even add them to your iGoogle or My Yahoo page so that everything you need (e.g. news and blog feeds) is in a single mash-up page. For the more ambitious, you can also pick up vocabulary builders from amazon. -
Read outside your job scope 30 minutes a day. Other than the required reading we do at work, most people hardly had time to read outside of work. But to keep our mind creative, it’s crucial to be exposed to new materials, concepts and ideas constantly, whether online or offline. Contrary to what you may think, you don’t need to invest a huge amount of time in reading. You only need thirty minutes to an hour each day to read at your own pace. This is much more sustainable than doing sporadic reading marathons as you’re less likely to burn out and you’re also more likely to reap the rewards out of life-long reading.
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Watch less TV. No time for exercising, reading or spending quality time with your loved ones? Try cutting time spent in front of the TV. If you watch two hours of TV program each night, try slashing it by half. You’ll instantly get one additional hour per day to use on reading as well as brisk walking.
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Learn as you travel. Commuting time is one of the best time to catch up on reading. But if you drive, or have difficult reading in a rocky bus, try audio books. Many books are now available in print as well as audio which you can easily tune in to wherever you are. Most media players can also play audio at a faster rate than the default without sacrificing comprehension, greatly shortening the time you need to finish a book.
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Buy yourself a new experience each month. If your financial health permits, get into the habit of buying a fresh experience every month. It can be an art performance, a new book, or even a trip to somewhere you’ve never been. The stimulation that new experiences bring will trigger new ideas as well as positive memories that last many times longer than the duration of individual experiences. But why emphasize buying? Because when you buy with your money, the desire to reap more than what you’ve spent is always stronger than getting something for free. This desire is the motivation that pushes you to absorb or learn as much as you can, and it’s not a force to be underestimated. Besides, many premium experiences involve some money, though they’re not necessarily prohibitive. If you still can’t cross that buying hurdle, look at it this way: Don’t see buying of experiences as an expenditure; see it as a form of investment in yourself.
Smart Money Habits
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Build a healthy bank account. Every month when you get paid, take ten to fifteen percent of from your check and put it into a saving account. Increase the percentage if you can afford to. Call it a retirement fund, emergency account or peace-of-mind account, it’s something which you won’t be touching until you’ve enough to retire or when a real emergency crops up. Besides using it for retirement purposes, this account also gives you the added assurance that if you were to lose your job today, you’ll have enough money to pay the mortgage and the bills. -
Save an extra five bucks a day. In addition to the money which you’re stashing away each month, drop at least five bucks from your pocket into a piggy bank every time you leave for work. Place the hungry piggy near the door so that you’ll never miss it. At the end of each month, you’ll have at least $150 which you can deposit in the bank, use it for a family outing, give yourself a treat, or roll it over for a few months so that you’ve enough to get yourself a new laptop or cell phone. What? You don’t have a piggy at home? Here are some well-made ones from amazon. Some even comes with separate compartments, labeled with: save, spending, donate and invest! This is what I call smart design!
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Set a monthly budget. Draw up a budget that is aligned with your money goals and make sure that your spending doesn’t exceed it. Say you want to save fifty percent of your monthly income, then that clearly leaves you with the remaining to spend on as opposed to a no-holds-barred expenditure. With a clear budget in mind, you’ll be less likely to overspend and more likely to live within your means.
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Cut your debt every month. If you’ve a debt to service, make repayment of the debt a top priority over costly recreational or non-essential spending like an overseas vacation or a coveted gadget upgrade. Never ever miss an installment. And while you’re still repaying a debt, resist the urge to get into new debts. If you must, calculate your risks and ability to pay back beforehand.
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Buy big ticket items only during sales. You can often get deep discounts and save a significant amount of money during discount seasons such as the period before Thanksgiving and Christmas. The amount you save can even fund for your next trip overseas! Besides big ticket items, stuff that you consume or use regularly can also be bought cheaply in bulk during sales, such as the Super Sale now happening at Life Extension which sells high-quality supplements. Stock up today!
Habits are like Seeds
Don’t be tempted to put all the good practices in place right away. It takes as long as two months before a good habit becomes automatic, and trying to take on more than one will likely set you up for failure.
Take it slow. Cultivating a habit is like planting a seed. It isn’t something which you can hasten and rush through. Choose a few good ‘seeds’ that fit into your life plan and nurture them one at a time. After two months, when the new seed has grown into a sturdy young plant, proceed to the next one. In that way, you’ll be ensured of a slow, but steady and constant stream of success.
I wish you all the best!
i liked the quote:“First, you shape your habits, and then your habits shape you.”Its true that we should change some of our habits to improve our life but its not like that we should completely change our life.But a small change in a habit could make a noticeable difference in your life.Great post!I will look forward for more such post.Enjoy.
Yes, I like that quote too. And thanks for your encouragement!
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Thanks, those are great habits!
For a simple approach to tracking habits and setting goals and being more productive, you may want to check out http://www.GoalsOnTrack.com, a very nicely built web app designed for tracking goals and todo lists, and supports time tracking too. It’s clear, focused, easy to navigate, worth a try.
Thanks so much for mentioning my post in your post. This is an excellent article filled with lots of great ideas.
You’re most welcome, Dani. You’ve written a great article that should be read by more people.
Wee Peng,
I enjoy your blog, and appreciate the help you offered when I was first starting mine last year. I was recently awarded the Sunshine Award for positive blogging, and it suggests I pass it on. You are one of my picks: http://insanelyserene.wordpress.com/2010/02/13/the-sunshine-award/
Hi Linda,
Thank you so much for the award. I feel very honored to be in your list. This award couldn’t come at a better time (today is St Valentine’s Day and the first day of Chinese Lunar New Year). I hope to continue bringing more sunshine, joy and peace to other people through The Conscious Life. I also look forward to more inspiration and interactions with bloggers like you who make blogs personal yet meaningful to the lives of many.