#8: The Art of Building Healthy Habits
Are you trying to build healthy habits?
I've been publishing atomic essays for 7 days straight now, while exercising and journaling for the past 10 days too. Yesterday, I sent out my 4th newsletter of the month, which means I successfully stuck to my weekly newsletter schedule—something I haven't done for months now.
If you know me well, you'd know this is wonderful news because I have a reputation for being flaky.
So here are three things that have been been helping me show up and build healthy habits.
1. Accountability
As an introvert, I've always shied away from the idea of joining accountability groups. I thought I didn't need one.
But when I wrote 30 atomic essays in 30 days last year? I was doing it alongside an encouraging community.
When I stuck to my writing habit for 7 days again and took the challenge to exercise every day, I also have a group of likeminded people who keep me accountable.
Think you don't need people who check up on you and your habits? Try joining one before discounting it.
"The American Society of Training and Dev. (ASTD) did a study on accountability and found that you have a 65% increased chance of completing a goal or habit if you commit to someone." — Haatch app
2. Friction-free Systems
- Exercise 🧘🏻♀️
I'm forced to walk my dog for 10 minutes every morning because he wakes me up with loud barks, as if begging me to take him outside so he can do both number one and two ASAP. 🐕🦺
I wear workout clothes underneath my work-from-home outfit so that all I have to do is roll out the mat and start practicing pilates after work.
- Journaling 📔
The first thing I see when sit in front of my desk is my journal, which is my cue to brain dump all that's weighing me down, write my gratitude list, and plan my day before I clock in at work.
- Writing 📝
I used to fuss over blog webpage design, get distracted by Medium notifications, and busy myself with browser tabs—all of which take my time from actually writing.
Thankfully, I discovered Scribbble.* It has been a game-changer for my writing habit because all I have to do is fire up the desktop app and write. With its minimalist design (and two modes: one for writing, one for editing), there are no bells and whistles to steal my focus.
The writing frameworks I've learned from this free writing guide* also come in handy—no more dreading the blank page.
The permission to be mediocre helps too.
"Whenever you organize a space for its intended purpose, you are priming it to make the next action easy. This is one of the most practical and simple ways to improve your habits." — James Clear
3. Self-awareness
We all have weird ways.
While there's plenty of tricks we can use to hack our way into productivity and optimize our whole lives, it all comes down to knowing ourselves well.
For example, I'm a Questioner. I'm motivated to meet internal expectations, but not external ones. This is why joining accountability groups is just half the battle for me; I need to understand why I'm doing what I'm doing. I need to feel that sense of purpose for me to keep going.
I like to romanticize mundane tasks to motivate myself to take action, too.
By knowing myself and the best way to meet my needs, I can come up with unique ways to stick with my habits.
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P.S. Broke your habit streak? Here's the secret to consistency most gurus never talk about.
P.P.S. Items marked with * are affiliate links. When you purchase products through those links, I may get a commission at NO EXTRA COST to you. Pinkie promise, I’ll only recommend stuff I actually use and love! 💖
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Hi, and thanks for reading! I'm Kishly, a cheerleader of creatives and copywriter turned marketing strategist. Bookmark this blog to read my daily atomic essays on marketing, compassionate productivity, creative living, and lifelong learning. Or subscribe to Process, my weekly-ish newsletter for young adults (and the young at heart) in pursuit of wisdom and wonder. ✨