This journey in life presents so many crossroads. I don’t know how it started, but I can say it did. I never bought a Kindle, but I did get a hand-me-down iPad. You know, a “Gen 1” with the curved back screen. My folks gave it to me, and it had a leather case. I don’t even know if they made Otterboxes at this point. All I wanted to do was mess around with apps and then I discovered that you could read books on it. I bought a few, and then discovered further that my library allowed for you to download books.
Something pulled me into the idea of reading on this device. Granted, it didn’t take long for the app that I read on to be added to phones, and there went the iPad. Except, of course, for Angry Birds.
I started listening to books so after when I realized I could listen and do a lot of other things. Puttering in the yard, making dinner, driving my 40 minute commute. It got so good that as I walked out the door and my toddler and Kindergarten aged children were giving my wife a hard time, I can remember her saying “Have fun listening to a book on your relaxing drive!” I believe it was said with sincerity and love. RIght?
The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg. I learned about basal ganglia and habit loops and my life changed. I started seeing these things that I did through this lens. While I didn’t change every habit in my life, shining a light on them at least got the ball rolling.
Fast forward to James Clear and his book “Atomic Habits,” and I’m still working out details on how to improve my own habits. No one is perfect after all.
We all engage in journeys. Our lives are never straight lines from challenges to success. The roller coaster of successes and failures is a reality for us all. The key is to embrace both ends- accept the failures and work to get better, enjoy the successes but don’t become complacent.
My habits journey has taken me from worrying about my weight to logging 2 meals a day with snacks (it’s hard to truly get a good read on dinner when it’s a recipe). Exercise was pushups or air squats and now it’s visits to a local gym. There is still work to do when snacking gets out of control, or too many days go by without exercise. Mindfulness and mental health are the next hills to climb. There are too many negative thought loops with which I engage.
That’s the rub, though. Knowing what I have changed, knowing where I need to continue to make changes, and maintaining positive changes. The journey continues.
