Habit and Progress

“First we make our habits, then our habits make us.”

• Charles C. Nobel

This week is the one year anniversary of beginning this weekly blog, Searching Daylight. Having that deadline every week, the structure and accountability of it, has been a good thing for me. Full disclosure – developing and nurturing positive habits hasn’t always been my strong point. I’ve spent at least as much time in my life pursuing unconstructive habits as healthy ones. But maybe I’m being a little hard on myself. As old Will Shakespeare wrote,

“But that was in another country, and besides…”

Anyway, this discipline of writing consistently and regularly has added some purpose to my days. And the days turn into weeks, the weeks to months, and now to a year. Maybe not much in the grand scheme of things, but still, for me, progress. And that’s what we all hope for right? Progress. Something life affirming. Something worthwhile to share.

I’ve thought a lot over the past year about the habits that lead to progress. Trying to look a little deeper at my own life. The good, the bad, and the ugly. And the minutiae of positive gravity, tugging me along.

As with much good information, would have been productive to know it sooner. Still, I’ll take it…

Habits, not goals, make otherwise difficult things easy. Studies have shown that brains can confuse goal setting with achievement. The effect is more pronounced when people inform others of their goals. This is probably one reason Ernest Hemingway resisted talking about his writing when he was at work on a project. In short, he felt talking too much about the work relieved him of some of the need to actually do it. Some truth there. Human nature.

Goals can be intimidating, but habits are easy to complete. Once we develop a habit, our brains actually change to make the habitual behavior easier. After about thirty days of practice, executing a habit becomes easier than not doing so. 

And with consistency, the benefits of non-negotiable habits can lead to extraordinary achievements. When seeking to attain something in our lives, we would do well to invest our time in forming positive habits, rather than concentrating on a specific goal.

“First forget inspiration.

Habit is more dependable.

Habit will sustain you whether

   You’re inspired or not. 

Habit is persistence in practice.”

• Octavia Butler

And then this is important. We don’t always know as much as we think we know. And we can’t correct that without first being conscious of and acknowledging it. Then we can move forward and improve.

Also this from Warren Buffet…

How to get smarter.

Read. A lot.

“I just sit in my office all day and read.”  He says.

He estimates he spends 80% of his day reading and thinking. 

“I don’t know anyone who is wise who doesn’t read a lot. But that’s not enough. You have to have a temperament to grab ideas and do sensible things.” He adds.

Sow a thought, reap an action. Sow an action, reap a habit. Sow a habit, reap a character. Sow a character, reap a destiny.

That’s it for this week. Happy Anniversary and as always, thanks for reading.