Are we merely a results of our habits?

Every morning,  We wake up, Brush our teeth, shower, and perform an entire routine of other action even before I brains fully engage.  These are our habits!  Some habits work for our benefit and some do not.  The question  that remains to be answered, however, is how do we use the power of our habits?

There have been many books, written on the effects that habits have on our lives, to include, “The Power of Habit” and “Rich Habits” (the two that I’ve read recently). Authors have been telling us, that in order to succeed, we need to manage our habits, they have even given us anecdotes of how habits are used.  But how do you use the power of habit to change your life and succeed in areas that you wish to excel. Unfortunately, I don’t have a direct answer for you except to say, that managing your habits will, in fact, help you to create the life that you want.

Several years ago, I managed to create a mess of my life.  Let’s just say life was not a happy life. But I learned a few small tweaks, to refocus my life’s habits and I began to see dramatic changes. I had more energy to face my day, I no longer had a lack of focus, to me it seemed my life had some purpose.  Today, I can say that I have a happy life.

What were those tweaks?  Simple. Learning and implementing! I changed 3 things to begin with in order to change the direction of my life.  Here are the three things that I changed:

  1. Developed a Habit of Savings
  2. Refined a Habit of reading
  3. Created a habit of Fitness

There will be more to come on each of these over the next few posts.    But for now, Ask yourself, are we merely a result of the habits that we have?  In my experience, it would appear so. Take a look at your own habits.  Are they helping you? Or, are they hurting you?

I’d Love to hear your thoughts or views.  Please leave me a comment below or on my FB Page

3 Brutal Tips for Life

Life’s “teeth and ambitions are bared, so be prepared”

One of my favorite things to do is to listen to Disney movie songs with my children.  Occasionally, we will sit for hours listening and singing along to some of our favorite songs. From Aladdin’s A whole new world  to the Lion King’s Kovu’s lullaby, no song gets missed.   One of my favorite songs is Scar’s Be Prepared.   The song says, “something’s about to happen and you should be prepared”.

A few years ago, I came home after work and began to complain to my wife about how my day was horrible.  Being the person she is, she looked me square in the eyes and said.  “Get over it!”   In other words, stuff is going to happen.  The quicker you accept that and deal with it, the quicker you can move on to the things that really matter.

In later discussions she would remind me that life is not fair!   Good things do not always happen to good people, and bad people don’t always get what’s is coming to them.  So, deal with it, and press on.  How do you do that “BE PREPARED!”

Here is what I have discovered over the years.   Just as the song says, Life is brutal!  And like a lion, it comes at you with teeth and ambitions are bared.  it is up to you to be prepared to deal with it.

Here is how you prepare yourself:

1.  Recognize that it is your fault!  You are in your current situation, good or bad, because of the decisions that you have made up to this point in your life.  Accept it!  Accept the fact that if you want to stay or move out of your situation, that it is your decisions and your action that will get you there.

2.  People don’t really care about you!  You are being used. the quicker you learn that, the better off you will be.  People don’t care about you unless you are affecting them.  How you are affecting people will determine the role that they will play in your life.

3.  You will get out of life only what you will allow!  Stop letting people treat you poorly.  Not everyone lives by the golden rule.  The law of the jungle seems to be more prevalent. Don’t allow people to walk all over you.  Accept and demand to be treated with respect.

Remember, you control your life.  Your decision and actions determined where you are now, and it will determine where you will be 5 years from now.  If  you are not where you want to be in life, only can get yourself to where you want to be.  Take control!