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Wisdom from the Greeks #TuesdayTruth

Breaking into those habits
Over the summer holidays, I managed to watch several of my favourite old movies that are on my hard drive. One of the these golden oldies was My Big Fat Greek Wedding. This movie is filled with a barrel of laughs but what stands out is how the father relates everything in life to the Greeks and how the Greeks invented just about everything.
Today’s #TuesdayTruth comes from the famous Greek philosopher Aristotle who was a scientist and so much more. One line of wisdom that can literally change your life. Reading this quote, I instantly thought Habits !
Much has been written and said about Habits both negatively and positively. Many a famous line includes the theme of habits i.e ” You can not teach an old dog ,new tricks” . Habits are formed over time and are influenced by the society we live in, religion, culture and our family and friends. Not all of these habits are good or bad. It is only as we grow older that we decide what is what and if that is what we need to say and do.
Several articles have been written on how to form a Habit. The common element in all of these is the repetition of the Habit until it becomes almost second nature. The 21 day rule is often used which says doing something repeatedly for 21 days makes you form the Habit. I have used this theory a few times and it did actually work. BUT it is hard work.
The 21 day stages :

  1. The first 3 days are amazing. Full of positivity and energy all pumped up to do this. Often this like any relationship is the “Honeymoon Period”.
  2. The next 3 days there is a slump. Here we just go through the motions and do the Habit almost because we are forced to do it. The “Honeymoon Period” is ending.
  3. What then follows is when we start questioning everything. At this stage we are almost dragging ourselves to do the new habit that we try and find excuses not to actually do it.
  4. By Day 10 most of us give up and that is the sad reality.

As 2016 is rather newish still and we are all trying to stick to our goals and resolutions I thought that this quote was very appropriate. We often give up because it is hard, boring, no motivation and a long list of other reasons. BUT we need to go back on repeat like how we love hitting the repeat button to our favourite song.
Tips to help you form Habits :

  1. Start off with babybsteps.Rome was not built in a day so do not expect miracles over night.
  2. Have a motivation buddy that helps you while you are trying to form this habit.
  3. Increase your habit weekly. For example if you walk for 30minutes everyday next week add on 15 minutes.
  4. Do not give up if you fall off the wagon. Just because you ate one cupcake does not mean you must forget about your healthy eating habits and eat 5 cupcakes.
  5. Set yourself realistic targets and goals.

Personally I am trying to form the following Habits :

  1. Blog on a regular basis.
  2. Eat healthy meal options.
  3. Go to sleep at a decent hour.
  4. Read atleast 1 book a month.
  5. Switch off my mobile phone by 11pm daily.

Some of these Habits are much easier to do than others. I am determined to become what I repeatedly do and create good Habits. These Habits will help me achieve several of my goals for 2016.
How do you form/break a Habit ?
Be Inspired !
Ciao
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