GET SET  |  2020 Vibes

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act, but a habit.” ― Will Durant

Habit, in psychology, is any regularly repeated behaviour that requires little or no thought and is learned rather than innate. A habit, which can be part of any activity, ranging from eating and sleeping to thinking and reacting, is developed through reinforcement and repetition. What I love about the above definition is that a habit or habits are learned and not innate. Innate is our default, our natural way. If we take a moment and reflect on our HABITs we can get a sense of what we are doing  and ultimately who we are.  At the beginning of a new year, resolutions are set, plenty talk about new “me”, new adventures etc. The aforementioned implicate change as a new year does not automatically lead to a new you.  How do we achieve our resolutions and what should we focus on to succeed? Basically,  our HABITS. (what we doJ).

Let’s break this down – my thoughts:

HABIT – Happiness Acquiring Behaviour In Time.

Happiness: Why happiness?  When psychologists use the term happiness, they tend to mean one of two things. In the narrow sense, happiness is a specific emotion that people feel when good things happen. It includes feelings of pleasantness. People from around the world tend to have a similar concept for happiness and can recognise happiness in others. Yet happiness also has a broader meaning, and an entire field of research has developed around this more inclusive concept. In this broader sense, happiness is a global positive evaluation of a person’s life as a whole. As one might expect, people who are happy in this way tend to experience frequent positive emotions and infrequent negative emotions. This broader form of happiness is not purely emotional; it also has a cognitive component. When happy people are asked to think back on the conditions and events in their life, they tend to evaluate these conditions and events positively. Thus, happy people report being satisfied with their lives and the various domains in their lives.

When people from around the world are asked to list the things that are most important to them, happiness consistently tops the list.

• What makes you happy?
• How does your current habits align?
  • Identify your goal.
  • Identify what habits are unwanted and what habits need to be formed. 
  • Identify your top 3 or 5 HABITS. They can be completely new or even current habits that you would like to consciously maintain. Remember, habits are formed. You are not predisposed to them, they are learned.  

Acquiring: Reflect on typical (habitual) thinking, words, feelings, answers, viewpoints etc. Identify new replacement responses. 

Behaviour: The implication of the quote is that it doesn’t matter what people do on occasion or from time to time. In order to achieve excellence, an action must be done repeatedly to the point that it can be considered a habit. If we focus on the word “do” it suggests that action is needed, not just promises or things people hope to achieve. Obtain, get, secure by aligning behaviour and action steps to the new and replacement responses.

In Time : Perhaps the secret to forming new habits is after identifying what you need to do is to schedule it into your day on a regular basis. However, like learning a new skill, you have to be willing to embrace the work and time it requires. Be gentle and patient, you have 12 months and +/- 330 days.

If you pause and try to understand the power of the quote, you might realise that every goal can be broken down into simple habits that you can build.

2020 an opportunity to acquire behaviour in time for your Happiness.