5 Habits That Will Change Your Life
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Do you ever wish that your life could change for the better? You might think that you’ll need a shooting star or a God-given miracle to do that. However, the reality is that your life can be changed with a few key habits. According to James Clear, studies show that habits make up 40% of our day. By changing and adding habits that will optimize your life, you can turn it into something special. Here are five subtle habits that will change your life for the better!
1. Be one hour early for every appointment.
One of the most famous stories about Dwight D. Eisenhower was about his philosophy on punctuality. For him, if you weren’t at a meeting 10 minutes before it starts, you’re already late. While some people might define it differently, being late is never an ideal thing. In the professional world, tardiness is a sign of poor behavior and organization. If you’re late to any meeting, you might be seen as unprofessional and untrustworthy.
To keep yourself safe from any trouble, show up to your appointments at least one hour beforehand. It’s one of the habits that will change your life, since you will never “late” again. In addition, being early can give you more time to prepare and compose yourself beforehand. Rather than scrambling to keep things in order, you’ll have enough space to breathe and assess your behavior.
Why it will help you:
Being early is one of the habits that will change your life because it shows respect. Think about how you’d feel if you had to wait several minutes for someone to arrive. Regardless of how much time you allow, being late to any meeting is a sign of bad faith. Meanwhile, an early arrival also shows people you’re determined to see things through. Even if a meeting is canceled, no one can fault you for being prepared. Those who notice your punctuality will understand that you keep your commitments.
How to maximize this tip:
If being early is one of the habits that will change your life, it’s important to know how it’s done. First, always measure how much time it takes to go from one place to another. If you’re going to a familiar place, consider the distance and traffic. Whether walking or driving, it’s good to estimate how long you’ll be traveling. Make it a point to be at the venue an hour before the scheduled time. It’s better than overestimating and being late by even a minute.
Another good rule of thumb is to prepare all the necessary things before you even leave. Make sure to check all essential items before leaving. If you’re traveling from the house, prepare your clothes the night before. That way, you can freshen up and change into your suit quickly. Remember that preparedness is also one of the habits that will change your life.
2. Act first, then feel motivated after.
Many people prefer to wait for productivity to arrive. You might’ve heard of a “flow state” where you’re so focused that things seem to fall into place. If you’re at work, you want to be in a flow state when you do all your daily tasks. For example, content writers will need all their focus when making an article about financial news or life advice.
However, getting into a flow state isn’t like taking a breath. You can’t turn that switch on whenever you feel like it. Instead of waiting, do something and act first. One of the habits that will change your life is taking initiative, even if you’re not feeling it. Sometimes, working towards the habits that will change your life means taking the first step, even when you don’t feel ready.
Why it will help you:
In Charles Dickens’ famous book, David Copperfield, one character says that procrastination is the thief of time. That’s exactly why waiting until you’re ready is nothing more than an illusion. You might think that you’ll feel it later, but like any postponed promise, that feeling might never come. Even if it does, you could’ve started sooner to get things rolling.
By working even when you don’t feel like it, you get your body into that mood. You help it transition into the flow state as you get busy. Sometimes, the motivation comes after you start putting in the work. Eventually, once you accept these habits that will change your life, you’ll discover the results of your hard work and be grateful for it.
How to maximize this tip:
To make this one of the habits that will change your life, remember that it all starts with the mind. When you arrive at your work desk or your office space, don’t think about your mood. Instead, get started on doing something at work. To make it easier, don’t force yourself to do something heavy or complicated at the start. Consider doing a buffer task, some kind of errand that doesn’t take too much time or thought. By choosing a menial task, you help yourself get productive without pushing yourself too fast or too early.
3. Don’t spend more than five minutes worrying about something that won’t matter in five years.
Being worried is a normal feeling and a part of life itself. There will always be times when something bothers or concerns you. This is one of the habits that will change your life for the worse! Whether it’s national news, economic reports, or even personal fears, you’ll always have something to worry about. That said, it’s not good to constantly worry about things, especially if they are out of your control. Being bothered isn’t healthy or good when it becomes a constant in your life.
To stop worrying, you need to learn how and when is the right time to linger on it. One of the best habits that will change your life is the 5×5 Anxiety Rule. The trick is to consider whether your concern will matter in the next five years. If it does, then you have a right to think about it and plan accordingly. However, if it won’t matter in five years, then don’t spend more than five minutes on it. When those minutes are up, take a deep breath and let the issue go. It’s not worth mulling over, especially if it won’t matter later on in your life.
Why it will help you:
The 5×5 rule is one of the habits that will change your life because it helps you focus on what is important. There are many things in this world that we complain and obsess over, even when they don’t affect us personally. With the 5×5 rule, you train your mindset to know when an issue is serious or not.
By knowing what matters, you can cut out a lot of stress and bother in your world. What might upset you one day will turn out to be nothing but a distant memory. Plus, it takes your mind off of overthinking or panicking about unimportant things. In effect, this gives you more brainpower to concern yourself with that is useful and relevant.
How to maximize this tip:
Practicing the 5×5 rule can give you a mental checkpoint for all your concerns. However, if you want to make it more effective, consider writing it down. Writing is one of the habits that will change your life, especially when you use it to list your troubles.
The act of writing makes you process the idea as you jot it down. It’s not just a mental exercise, but an exercise of logic, penmanship, and muscle memory. In other words, your brain uses more areas to consider what is written, instead of mulling over a thought.
4. Set a deadline for each of your goals.
If you want habits that will change your life, you can’t just make goals without reason. Everyone wants to be a millionaire. People around the world want to become healthy and good-looking. There are probably those who desire fame and fortune. However, these are just ambitions. If you want to make a goal, you have to start putting deadlines.
Deadlines are the timeframes and time limits you give yourself. It helps set your goals in a more realistic schedule, especially if it’s something life-changing. Anyone can be a millionaire, but can you become one in the next five or ten years? That might seem difficult, but it’s not impossible. By giving yourself a deadline, you can make that ambitious dream into an inspiring challenge. This change of mindset will help you enjoy the quest to make better habits that will change your life.
Why it will help you:
Have you ever heard of SMART goals? The acronym is a guideline on how goals should be to make them worthwhile and life-changing. SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-based. Note how the last one is about time. That’s because a good goal must be timely. If it took you 50 years to make a million dollars, is it worth all the effort? Now, doing it within five years is a different story!
Another reason why deadlines are among the habits that will change your life is the added pressure. Nothing good in this life ever comes easy. If you want your goals to be meaningful, you can’t wait forever until they show up. Otherwise, you’ll risk procrastinating and doing nothing in the meantime. With a deadline, it can push you to make the changes you need to become successful. As the saying goes, pressure makes diamonds.
How to maximize this tip:
All deadlines you make should be realistic and fair. Even if it is possible, it’s not likely to happen and it’s not healthy to think so. Too little time and you put too much effort into a fruitless venture. Too much time and you risk getting lazy or unmotivated. Keep things simpler by examining the big goals of your current lifestyle and schedule. Then, streamline the process by adding smaller and smaller goals. Once you do this, you’ll learn how to time your deadlines and make it one of the habits that will change your life.
5. Be accountable for all your decisions.
Of all the habits that will change your life, arguably the most crucial is being accountable. It’s when you start accepting responsibility for your decisions. By being accountable, you take your first step in changing your mind forever. Instead of treating everything like chance, you can make the decisions that will improve your life. Whether that’s saving money or educating yourself, you become the reason for your success.
Being accountable also means accepting fault when things go bad. It’s easy to take credit for something good that happens. However, it’s harder and takes more maturity to admit when you’ve made a mistake. It’s why being accountable is one of the habits that will change your life. By learning to accept your gifts and faults, you gain the power to define your own life.
Why it will help you:
Being accountable is one of the habits that will change your life because of how it brings the “victor’s mentality”. Playing victim to any problem in life is not good, even if it’s justified. Things may be out of control, but that doesn’t mean you must let it be. By staying accountable for what you do, you put yourself in control of what you can change.
Another reason why deadlines are among the habits that will change your life is the added pressure. Nothing good in this life ever comes easy. If you want your goals to be meaningful, you can’t wait forever until they show up. Otherwise, you’ll risk procrastinating and doing nothing in the meantime. With a deadline, it can push you to make the changes you need to become successful. As the saying goes, pressure makes diamonds.
How to maximize this tip:
As one of the habits that will change your life, accountability requires the right mindset. Start by setting your goals and working towards them. Even the smallest tasks, such as exercising in the morning or walking for 30 minutes, are goals that can benefit you. Being accountable means ensuring you do each task and understanding why you did or didn’t.
Once the day is done, take time to review how you’ve performed. Look at your goals and see which ones have stuck and which ones didn’t work. For those that you failed or neglected, examine why. Don’t excuse yourself. Instead, look at the reasons you made them and see how you can change that. The sooner you confront your mistakes, the easier it will be to accept your problems. Once that happens, you’ll start changing for the better.
Takeaways :
- Habits constitute 40% of our day. You can improve them by choosing key habits that will change your life for the better.
- There are five ideal habits that will change your life: arriving an hour early to all appointments; starting work even when unmotivated; following the 5x5 anxiety rule; setting deadlines for all goals; and being accountable for all decisions.
- Arrive an hour early for every appointment: It demonstrates respect and reliability. To do this, plan your travel time and prepare in advance.
- Start work even when not motivated: Don't wait for motivation to arrive, start a task and motivation will follow. Begin with simpler tasks to ease into the workflow.
- Follow the 5x5 Anxiety Rule: If something won't matter in five years, don't spend more than five minutes worrying about it. This reduces stress and enhances focus.
- Set a deadline for your goals: Make your goals specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). Deadlines add urgency, prevent procrastination, and help turn dreams into challenges.
- Be accountable for all your decisions: Accept responsibility for all your actions, good and bad. This promotes a "victor's mentality" and allows for personal growth and improvement. Reflect on your actions at the end of the day to assess your performance.
- Ali, M. (2022, December 31). Change Your Life with These 5 Rules.
- Bradberry, T. Accessed on April 7, 2023. How to Make Yourself Work (When You’re Not in the Mood). Inc.com.
- Brock, T. (2016, March 17). 10 advantages to arriving early to meetings. The Business Journals. Retrieved from:
- Clear, J. Accessed on April 7, 2023. Habits Guide: How to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones. James Clear.
- Dusko, T. (2022, December 19). How The 5 by 5 Rule Alleviated My Teaching Anxiety For Good. TeacherVision.
- Murphy, S. (2016, September 25). 13 Tips For Getting Up Early and Arriving Early. SKMurphy, Inc.
- Wooll, M. (2022, November 11). How To Hold Yourself Accountable: 5 Tips. BetterUp.
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Being successful as a person can both be learned and taught, but you must have the willingness to overcome obstacles and create habits that will make you more successful . I will give you the systems that will do both.
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