Photography by Pigsy Ginx (@suetxxuan) from Unsplash
We must admit that fostering habits don't usually bear the best fruit.
We all have it. Those little sets of actions or mindsets sneakily creep up on us and create habits that usher us from progress instead of towards it— and what's tricky is it's an essential part of the journey of finding what's best for us. The challenge: knowing what exactly those are and how to move forward in a better direction.
Let's see what those habits look like and what it does to your progress. See the whole breakdown here:
Focusing only on the bigger picture.
Photography by Soroush golpoor (@soroushgolpoor)
Looks like: "That seems like too big of a goal for me anyway."
While we admit that the big picture has always given us a source of motivation, we might be too attracted to it that we end up bundling our goals into vague ones. Our best example is trying to live a healthier lifestyle. While that's a great starting point, it often leaves too much space to interpret and misinterpret. There might be opportunities to let others define what healthy looks like to us. Instead, we can try this: what does living a healthier lifestyle look like for us? Is it at least one healthy meal a day, engaging in healthy movement, or drinking at least three glasses of water in the morning? Let's try to write it down. Start small, but start specific.
The power lies in breaking down the bigger picture into smaller, actionable ones that give us a clearer idea of what our goal looks like on a small scale and what each has to do with the bigger one.
Trusting the process, but not yourself.
Photography by Elia Pellegrini (@eliapelle) from Unsplash
Sounds like: "How much more of this am I supposed to take?"
Trust the process has been a mantra we always believed in. It's the firm belief that every journey will have its ups and downs—we have to believe it will all be worth it when we look back at how far we came. Take that already great belief higher: trusting the process and yourself. The "process" we trust should be the pull, but we are also allowed to push.
How often do we tell ourselves to trust the process to the point that we feel like we've been treading on and just allowing the process to take over? Allow yourself to reflect on the process. Ask questions. Be curious. Why are these steps in the process necessary? If there was a better, easier way— what is it, and how do we get there? Are there moments in this process that I'm genuinely enjoying aside from the reward? Is the process reaping the moments of delight that allow you to feel good (not dreadful?)
When you ask yourself these questions, trust in your ability to change what you can and what you're willing to. Believing we can get to have a say sometimes in the journey life takes us and that we have the power to make the necessary changes makes progress even more worthwhile.
Feeling limited as you go further along the journey.
Photography by Aron Yigin (@aronyigin) from Unsplash
Sounds like: "It's way too late."
For the one or two resolutions we may have lost along the way— a friendly reminder that we are allowed to start or start over no matter how far along our year— or journey has taken us. Resolutions are top of mind for us here, but this principle lies in our way of looking at life.
Try to think of the shows and movies we consume. We see it when people ask if someone is 'too old for that.' With sweeping remarks like these, we start to plant the seed that there's a time limit on enjoying certain parts of life. While natural, physical manifestations could lead this to be a fact, we sneakily program ourselves into believing that everything is either too early or too late to start. We see going older as a looking deadline, and it limits us from doing things that would have still been beneficial no matter how far along we are. Our advice for maximum growth, no matter where we are on our journey? Do that hobby you've wanted to try, and keep trying until you find what's right for you. Start that skin habit. Make mistakes. Allow yourself to fall in love with life at any point in your journey.
Your journey to progress will include finding your groove— the right mix of habits to help you as you work towards your goals. If you find habits that go against it, don’t blame yourself! Instead, direct your energy to adjust as much as it takes until it feels right for you. We’ll be with you as you do!
Thumbnail by Soroush golpoor (@soroushgolpoor) and Aron Yigin (@aronyigin) from Unsplash