Watch your thoughts, for they become words. Choose your words for they become actions. Understand your actions, for they become habits. Study your habits, for they will become your character. Develop your character, for it becomes your destiny.
I have no idea who said the above, but it’s a great quote. I’ve written it in my quote book and now it’s at the top of this important chapter. It’s also a very powerful quote with deep connotations.
So, habits… things you do on a consistent basis without conscious thought, a behaviour pattern you have followed until it is virtually involuntary. And routines… a regular course of procedure, whether it be your daily routine or any series of regular actions in a given situation.
The two go hand in hand and can have both good and bad undertones.
They can both potentially be the best thing ever or the worst and all that’s wrong with the world. It all depends on the specifics and how they’re applied.
You need to master them and all else will fall into place. Once you’re doing positive and productive things unconsciously and consistently, great things will happen. It’s a great position to be in to have things happen in the way you like without even thinking about them.
However, the flip-side also applies. If you’re not careful then they can go against you, stop you in your tracks… and basically retard your life. They can slip under the radar and before you know it, life has rolled on but you are still in this same loop.
So they need to be looked at and assessed… then acted on so they are working in your favour.
Now, I think I’m going to surprise you a little here. For someone writing a book like this, with its underlying theme…
I like routine.
There, I said it. I like routines. But we should hate them, fight them, surely we want to be different and do loads of adventurous and wonderful, outside the box kind of stuff, right?
Absolutely, but hear me out.
Remember, routine can be used for good as well as evil. The bad routines that you’re thinking of is not what I’m about, but using routine in an appropriate way can prove to be liberating.
The groundhog day, treadmill, bored merry-go-round rat race is hideous, for sure. There are many others that may be a pain. Life in general could be one big chore… and that’s what we’re hoping to defeat, or at least improve as much as we can.
But, if done right and if you can get into the right routine and on the appropriate ride then you can ride the wave of that river and use the energy and momentum for positive strides.
Sure, smash the crap routines, change them, don’t let them trap you in a rut. However difficult try to get out of them and/or change them for the better. But do get into a good, solid routine of positive flow.
A decent routine allows you to focus on what’s important. If you get all the smaller stuff sorted and those things happen as a given it then frees your mind up to concentrate on the rest of your life.
With no good routine, the minutiae of your day-to-day can affect your greater purpose. Take care of that day-to-day and concentrate your efforts on the grander scheme of things.
The last thing you want to do is think too much (as discussed in the previous report!).
If you’re thinking a lot about the bigger picture then you don’t want this taking up your time and energy and draining you of your resources. A decent routine will make sure this part of your life is catered for and lets you concentrate on more important matters.
Try to get into a good routine and follow it religiously.
We always fall into some sort of routine whether we like it or not.
There’s comfort there and an air of certainty. Whether we are permanently living in a place, have a job or are on the road traveling you still fall into some sort of mini routine, however small and for however long, it happens by default so you may as well make it a good one and use it to your advantage.
More specifically, the habits of your actions on a daily basis… what you fall into doing as a matter of course.
This brings us nicely on to habits…
Form good habits and become their slave ~ Og Mandino
One prime example of your routine and a religious habit is cleaning your teeth of a morning and evening (I hope!). There are many of these things like eating, tea, coffee, exercise, TV and far more.
We often don’t do these things when we want or need to, but we do them out of pure habit so we don’t have to think. This can obviously be dangerous so it is vitally important we assess what we’re doing and make sure we are doing consistently what aligns with our values and are taking us forward in what we want to achieve.
As for habits, I’m talking about nurturing positive, life affirming ones and eradicating or minimising the ones that aren’t. A habit needs to be worked on and done consistently for it to become a habit. Also, as is quite often the case, an old habit needs to be replaced by a new one. No-one likes a void… the void must be filled.
When I do certain things at certain times of day I feel relaxed and more centred. I feel a little anxious when I don’t get done the things I think I should or stray from that routine.
Find what works for you. It may be getting up at a certain time in the morning, exercising, shower, breakfast. It can even come down to how & when you have your tea and coffee. These simple little funny rituals we play out, are a little odd but work for us.
I’m a little torn, as my main point for these books is smashing this status quo, normal routine type stuff but at the same time if we engineer things correctly it can work towards our advantage of what we are trying to attain.
Habit ties in with discipline… and if something becomes habitual then the discipline will come naturally, not through a conscious choice but because we would feel weird not doing it. We won’t be relying on strength of willpower (after all, that is what the word discipline screams) but just doing so anyway… no effort, just flowing.
This isn’t a book on making or breaking habits. You can find many books, tapes, hypnotherapy and all sorts to help with that. Do your research and find what works for you.
This book is about awareness mainly and you need to be aware of routines and habits as they are what are controlling you every second whether you know it or not. They are your destiny playing out.
Having said that, I will probably expand on this chapter (and all the others) at some point on the blog. Maybe even produce a full report, audio or video on the subject.
Until then, remember…
People form habits, habits form futures ~ Mike Litman
It is from this structure that you will have more freedom in your life.
It sounds paradoxical, but it’s true.
Aristotle once said -
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit
And he was quite a clever cookie so I'm told.
Oh, and check out Atomic Habits by James Clear… some handy tips in there on this very subject!
Now let us next address the affect of the perfectionism plague…
Take the Red Pill, Quit the Quo
Book written by Adam Barratt, 2011
Chapter 1: The Status Quo
Chapter 2: Who Am I?
Chapter 3: The Dream Chasing Paradox
Chapter 4: And… Action!
Chapter 5: Decisions, Decisions
Chapter 6: Priorities
Chapter 7: Discipline, Attitude & Patience
Chapter 8: Persistence
Chapter 9: Fear of Criticism
Chapter 10: Kaizen
Chapter 11: Blue Pill Heads & The Not Much Crowd
Chapter 12: Karma
Chapter 13: Rally Call & Final Word
Taking the Red Pill – The Next Level
Book written by Adam Barratt, 2012
Chapter 1: Now Where Were We?
Chapter 2: Routines & Habits
Chapter 3: Perfectionism Plague
Chapter 4: Gossips & Whingers
Chapter 5: Gratitude & Reframing
Chapter 6: Fear Fairies
Chapter 7: Simplify, Minimise, Zen
Chapter 8: You're Not Normal
Chapter 9: Closing