Good evening all, its my pleasure to share with us some practical insights on the power of positive habits, so we could add up to what we already have in our journey of lifelong learning...
My passion is inspiring minds for consistent and sustainable learning, and this would be impossible without the formation of positive habits..
I'll try as much to be lucid with words to enhance comprehension...
Experience often speak the loudest.
Habits are never developed without a clear understanding of how they help us build our lives...
Just as you bath everyday, brush your hair, dress up, and feel really good about yourself and yet seem not to notice those efforts you put in daily on yourself because they have been practiced over time and occurs almost automatically... why is that so?
Hear me out great minds...
Therein lies the power of habits, when they are formed they become automatic and make even the hardest activities seem easy, but you've got to pay the first price by personal discipline and will power to first form them, but eventually they form you and that's the good news...
Habit is practice long pursued that overtime becomes the man himself. They are so powerful that they are stronger than mere desires...
Just as the great Albert este in remarked, we are what we repeatedly do, excellence therefore is not an act but a habit.
This implies that the secret of our progress, success and achievements in life is anchored to our daily habits and ultimately those habits determine our future. So it's crucial to understand that you cannot be tomorrow what you did not do today...
One of the greatest benefit of positive habits is their ability to change our mindset overtime and facilitate consistency
Our goals in life therefore as growing young minds, should be focused on the development of positive habits for every crucial facets of our lives such as health, finance ,relationship, Meaningful work and self discovery.
The rewards for developing positive habits in life are priceless.
While I was yet in school I worked hard to develop some of these positive habits especially on time management, because I realised earlier that it is the key factor for personal organisation and productivity. So from my 200L till now, i barely live a day unplanned, currently a lot of improvements have followed that decision.
But the secret here is plan the next day on paper, Wether you succeed in following through on your plan or not, just ensure you plan write it down, at first your goal will be consistency and overtime it will focus on productivity...
Time management is one habit I would recommend any young minds ready for the top to first embrace, reason because it sets the pace for all other habits that might be employed in the future. ..
Today I can't go without a wrists watch, because I think it's the first step to keep myself on guard against time wasting, as a sage rightly said, a man who dares to waste an hour of time has not discovered the value of life. I hold this quote in very high regards...
It is crucial to understand that Wisdom of life simply involves elimination of non essentials, so doing your best to eliminate every negative habits around you by replacing them with practical positive habits will be an excellent bargain....
A very good news about habits, is that all habits are learned, we were not born with any, they are learned as a result of practice and repetition.
You can immediately learn any positive habit you consider necessary and admirable..
By simply employing your will power and self discipline, you can shape your personality and character in almost anyway you desire..
It's also crucial to note that just as your good habits are responsible for most of your success and hapines today, your bad habits are also responsible for most of your problems and frustrations you might be going through.
It's a fact of life that positive habits are hard to form, but easy to live with, while bad habits are easy to form but very difficult to live with. On both occasions you develop either positive or negative habits ultimately as a result of your choices, decisions and behaviour overtime.
Understanding deeply that the beginning of every habit is like an invincible thread, but every time we repeat the act we strengthen the strand and add to it another filament until it becomes a great cable that binds us irrevocably in thoughts and acts... on this quote by a sage lies the mystery of habits formation.
The rewards for striving to develop positive habits in our daily endeavours are tremendous, it will birth, excellence, consistency, self worth, discipline, self awareness and personal pride, you begin to value and appreciate your self more than ever before...
Having drawn those insights, what then are practical steps to a new habit?
Am rounding off, let's proceed.
Step 1. You must make a firm decision.
Making a firm decision and following through is the practical first step to any habit you may desire.
Step 2. Never allow an exception to your new habit pattern especially during the formative stages (1-21days). Don't make excuses, guard your decision jealousy, don't let yourself of the hook. Eg. If you decide to get up by 4am each morning, discipline yourself to follow through until it becomes automatic.
Step 3.Tell close friends to keep you accountable.
When people keep you accountable you work harder.
Step 4. Always visualize yourself acting as if you already have the new habit you desire, the more you do this, the faster it registers in your subconscious mind, making work easier.
Step 5. Create an affirmation that you can repeat often to yourself daily in line with the new habit you desire eg. "Every day I wake up by 4am and I like it" repeat this words b4 you sleep.
Step 6. Resolve to persist in your new behaviour until it is automatic and easy that you actually feel uncomfortable when you do not do what you have decided to do. Also, always bear in mind that persistence may be a bitter plant, but it has sweet fruits, it takes time to succeed because success is merely the natural reward of taking time to do anything well.
Step 7. Always reward yourself for practicing your new behaviour as you progress. Each time you do you reaffirm and reinforce the behaviour.
Three major hindrance to positive habits are;
- Lack of definite purpose.
- Procrastination.
- Laziness.
Wow! Great minds, I draw my conclusion with that. And I certainly trust this helps at least in one way.
Together we are all in this journey and I never said it was easy, I only whispered just never ever give up in your quest to keep learning and growing. Lets Keep winning.
