Most of my adult life, I haven’t been a“morning person.”If I could sleep late and begin my day slowly, I would. But most of the time I couldn’t.
虽然我不是一个早起的人,我(和我)a responsible person, so if school, work, children, or any other pressing situation required I get up early, I would drag myself out of bed and get going. And that was most days.
Now my children are grown, and I work from home, so I can get up and start my day any time I wish. But ironically,I now enjoy getting up early.
When I was in my twenties,I wrote a happiness list.I remember clearly writing the list and believing once I attained those things, I would feel content and free to enjoy life.
我不好意思告诉你一切我穿上e list.
It seems so materialistic to me now.
But let’s just say it included a particular type of car, a certain sized house, the decor to fill the rooms of the house, and other stuff I believed reflected success and happiness.
As time went on, I was able to check off many of the items on my list.
For a short while, the attainment of one of these items brought me happiness.
But over time, the shine and sparkle wore off, and I grew bored and restless again. I kept repeating this pattern, moving the bar of happiness farther and farther out in hopes that some “thing” orsuccess would fulfill my longing.
I have recently been obsessed — well maybe obsessed is too strong a word — preoccupied with frustration and sadness about the physical effects of getting older.
It has really hit me that this aging thing is happening. The face and body I had in my youth are gone forever, and there isn’t a damn thing I can do about it. I find myself looking in the mirror and thinking mean things about myself like it’s my fault that I’m getting older. Maybe you can relate.
The other night, I listened to an interview with Oprah and Eckhart Tolle on appearance and the impermanence of physical beauty.
Bad habits creep up on us.
One day we smoke that first cigarette, eat that first bag of Cheetos, or discover how easy it is to charge things on a credit card.
Before you know it, that one decision has mushroomed into big, bad habit. We become physically or mentally addicted to substances, food, spending, nail biting, and any number ofactions that don’t reflect our best selves.
Habit is a cable; we weave a thread each day, and at last we cannot break it. ~Horace Mann
Isn’t it amazing that every day, we have the ability to reinvent ourselves? We can learn new skills and create habits that make us healthier, more interesting, more productive, and more valuable in the eyes of those around us.
New habits can improve our careers, our financial success, and our relationships — and they give us a huge boost in self-esteem and confidence.
I’m sure you have a habit in mind that you’ve been attempting for several years. Maybe it’s exercise, losing weight,eating better,learning something new, meditating, writing, or de-cluttering your house. Maybe you’ve wanted to take a course or add a new professional skill.
The only problem with self-reinvention through habit creation is this: it’s really hard.
As much as you want to create habits and sustain them (and you really, really do), your desire to keep at it begins to fade away after a few days or weeks. At first it’s fun, then it’s challenging, then it’s work, and finally, it’s forgotten.
Why does this happen?
It has nothing to do with your will power or energy. It has to do with brain chemistry. You haven’t given your brain enough time to fully rewire itself to incorporate your habit as part of your daily routine. And that’s what has to happen — you actually have to retrain your brain.
This may feel like a Catch-22. How can you give your brain enough time to rewire itself if you can’t sustain the motivation to give it time?
It comes down to understanding exactly how habits are formed — and this is truly an art and a science!
Have you ever looked at your schedule for the upcoming weekend and cringed?
Two days off of work, and it’s crammed with chores, spillover from work, family duties, and activities that fill you with a sense of dread?
You have organized what youneedto do, but is it what you want to do?
Ever have those days when you feel you’re dragging a ball and chain behind you?hea
Everything is a struggle. Your productivity has tanked, your energy is at rock-bottom, and you just want to crawl in a hole and suck your thumb.
Sometimes it’s easy to identify why we’re so lethargic. We might feel physically ill, the weather is bleak, or the stars are out of alignment. Conditions out of our control can vaporize our energy and smack down our motivation.
Most of the time, however, our fatigue and burn-out is the result of our daily habits. We sabotage ourselves with thoughts and behaviors that create a toxic environment for vitality, well-being, and achievement. You may not even be aware how your own habits are affecting you.
I run every other day.
However, only about a quarter of the time do I feel motivated to run before I begin. Even less so in the winter. It’s cold outside, and I’m quite comfortable inside. Most of the time, I’d rather stay put than put on my running clothes and push my body. But I do it anyway.