The Time Problem Of Habits
Why Many People Struggle To Stay Committed To New Goals
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The Time Problem Of Habits
Why Many People Struggle To Stay Committed To New Goals
I have written, edited, and published articles for 1,099 days straight as of publishing this article.
So you might be able to say that I have found a bit of a groove with my writing habit.
But I know that so many people struggle to stay committed to their goals.
Now, there are a few reasons, some of which I have detailed over the past few days...
But there is one that I want to focus on today.
Specifically the Time Problem.
One thing that many people have asked me over the years is...
How?
How have I been able to find the time to write so many articles, so consistently?
The challenge that they are often seeing is that of timing.
They struggle to see how I can write every day...
And live the rest of my life...
And go on vacation...
And constantly learn...
And spend time with family...
And cultivate my Faith...
And and and.
Our list of things to do in life always seem to expand and expand...
And how do we deal with expanding lists when time remains the same?
I have the same 24 hours a day as everyone else...
I have to take time to sleep and eat as everyone else...
I get sick like everyone else (though, significantly less often and less harshly since I began improving my health)...
And the real question is not how “I” continue to write...
It is how “some” individuals seem to do more, while others struggle with their time.
I have found that there are a few things at play.
The first is the strictness of your time.
Many people try to create a very specific time and dedicate it to whatever habit they are working on.
In the world of habit building, this is often called “Time Blocking”.
Now, here’s the thing about Time Blocking...
You absolutely need to dedicate time to doing what you deem is important...
But the stricter you are in Time Blocking, the less likely it will actually happen.
How do I mean?
If I say that I will dedicate 30 minutes to working out every day...
I could very likely Time Block 30 minutes somewhere in my day.
But if I say that I finish work at 5:00 pm, and will then drive to the gym to start working out at 5:30 pm, then I will work out for 30 minutes until 6:00 pm, and then be home to do my next thing at 6:30 pm...
There is a very high likelihood that you will fail.
When you become too strict with your time...
You are likely to discover that life has other plans.
Perhaps there is traffic that turns your 30-minute drive into a 60-minute drive.
Then that same schedule is going to make it so that you do not get home until 7:30 pm...
Or what if you have friends who want you to spend time with them, and they want to go somewhere 20 minutes from where you live, but in the opposite direction of the gym?
And they want to meet at 6:30 pm for dinner?
Do you decide to sacrifice the gym or time with your friends?
Both are important aspects of your life.
But this is the exact problem of being too strict with Time Blocking...
There is no room for error...
And in life, there is always error.
I get around this by having malleable blocks of time.
Today is a perfect example...
I typically like to write at nights...
It is usually when my head is most clear.
But today, I’m getting ready to head out to spend time with good friends.
My solution?
I’m writing now, in the morning, instead of in the evening.
I woke up a bit early to make sure this gets done.
I am not “restricted” to writing at night, but I am “dedicated” to writing...
Period.
The time I write can change...
But I always make the time to write.
The Time Block is important...
But malleable enough to fit into whatever else I want to do in life.
A second challenge that people have is that of the size of the time block.
Many people believe that doing something is only “worth” it or “qualifies” if it reaches a certain size.
So, let’s look again at working out.
Many people go to around an hour of working out to make it “worth” it.
The problem here?
Consistency.
Can you consistently hit that amount of time?
If you believe that it is only worth it to work out for an hour...
And there is traffic on the way to the gym, and you can only work out for 30 minutes before you need to leave...
That “feels” like a failure...
And, as humans, we hate to fail.
The more often we fail...
The more likely we are to give up.
How do you overcome this?
You have to realize that “any” work is better than no work...
And that has to become a win.
You make the ability to “win” so easy that you are guaranteed to do it.
For me, I write every day, and I run every day.
My “win” for writing is 250 words minimum.
My “win” for running is 1 mile (which I can jog in less than 10 minutes).
Now, are there days when I write “more” than 250 words?
Yes, frequently.
Are there days when I run “more” than 1 mile and do other workouts as well?
Yes, frequently.
But here’s the difference...
If I do more than the minimums, it is a bonus...
If all I do is hit the minimum, it is still a win.
As humans, we like to win.
The more we win, the more likely we are to continue to do things...
So if I win every single day...
How likely is it that I will continue to want to win?
Well, I’ve nearly written and published articles for 1,100 days straight...
And I am coming up on 600 days of running.
These make up the Time Problem for most people who try to adopt new Habits...
Either they become overwhelmingly too strict with their timing...
And fail...
Or they make the bar to win too high...
And fail.
In either scenario...
You fail.
The solution is to be dedicated but malleable enough to fit into any day...
While having a goal that is easy enough to win “any” day, while also allowing you to do more if you so choose.
That is how you make it easier to stay committed to any new habits.
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Now, I am coming to the end of my time block for my vacation…
So I am going to come at you quickly with this next section.
I have 3 Psychophysiological Challenges that people often face with new habits.
Let’s Dive In…
