I guess it’d be a bit dumb to suggest that journaling is the positive habit I’d like to implement in my life, because that’d be the easy way out!
Honestly, I have two habits that I’ve been working hard on recently. The first is getting myself more organized and being more productive. My mind has been a scattered mess for as long as I can remember: Where did I put my keys? Oh I need to remember to do that thi- what am I having for lunch? I haven’t looked over my favorite subreddits in the past 20 minutes, better do that. Wait, what did that guy ask me to do?
Organizing my thoughts and writing out all of the things I have to do every day has started to increase my productivity, but I can take it further. What started as writing a simple list every day has turned into adopting a productivity strategy called Getting Things Done by David Allen. I’ve paid for a premium Todoist subscription, created several projects that group relevant tasks together, and created meaningful labels to show the energy level required to complete those tasks. Every day I make an effort to enter the tasks I need to accomplish in this system so I can organize them, prioritize them and then take action on them. This allows me to know what I’m working towards every day, and makes sure that things I need to do don’t get forgotten.
Far too often I think “I’ll remember that, no problem!”
I need to work on putting more and more tasks in this system. Far too often I think “I’ll remember that, no problem!” and then forget about it until a week later when what I was supposed to accomplish stares me in the face because I failed to remember to do it. I need to also solidify the prioritization system and make sure I’m organizing the tasks effectively and choosing my priorities wisely. Lastly, I need to take a weekly review seriously. Reviewing the tasks still on my list as well as the tasks I have accomplished allow me to reflect on the work I’ve done on a regular basis.
The other habit I would love to implement is just being more active. I’m not talking about running daily, or becoming a mountain climber; I’m talking about just getting up and walking every once in a while. I sit at a desk for 8-9 hours a day at work and continue much of the same a lot of times when I get home. Something as simple as taking my dog for a walk more often will help tremendously to get me off my lazy butt and help me feel a bit better.
I’m already doing some of this, though. At lunch I get into some intense games of ping-pong with my coworkers almost daily. While this may not sound like it’s very active, I definitely break a sweat almost every time I play. I’ve also started weight lifting again after an almost month long hiatus, and I intend to continue doing that three times a week. I can continue improving on this by making it a point to get up and walk around for 10 minutes or so at work every once in a while, or taking my dog for a walk when it’s nice out, or taking advantage of my standing desk that my company has provided me.
There are a lot of things that I want to work on, but many of them are long term goals. These two things are what stood out to me as small actions that I can turn into a habit if I keep at them long enough. Knowing what I need to do to progress those habits further will definitely keep them in my sights.