Habits To Break in 2021
On my path through perpetual self-reflection, I have consistently come across the 21/90 rule. They say it takes 21 days to form a habit...good or bad and 90 days to make it a permanent lifestyle change. I can say some of my habits were thanks to the pandemic, but realistically they started before then and the pandemic just solidified them. And, it feels like I have been cultivating them for more like 21 years. In a recent Instagram post, I shared how I don’t believe in resolutions; more like goals. One of my goals is to finally break some of these habits. Of course one of my habits is every year around this time I vow that this is the year I am going to be better, do better, live better. What makes this year different from all other years? It just feels like the right time. Maybe, because I have had soooo much time this past year to really hone in my “habit” skills, and I’ve had enough.
So, I am going to focus on changing the following in 2021:
For years, I have been a very early riser. It started when my kids were little, because kids get up early. It’s what they do. As they got older and learned to appreciate the fine art of sleeping in, I continued to get up early because it was usually the only time I had to myself during the day. Eventually I replaced my alone time with gym time and gravitated to going to the gym early in the morning. I loved getting my workout done and over with early in the day. When the world shut-down last March “temporarily”, I figured there was no reason to get up at 4:30 am with nowhere to go. I allowed myself the luxury of sleeping-in and decided I would start my day at 6:30 am instead. It was only temporary. As temporary became less so as the months went by, I found myself starting to go to bed later, because I didn’t have to get up so early. Doesn’t really seem like such a terrible habit to have created. But I want to go back to the gym. I’m working on that get-in-bed-earlier thing. Early=Productive.
My eating habits have been going downhill for years. Truth is, I like to eat. Other truth is, not going to the gym (even though I remained active), staying home most of the day (where it was way too easy to grab a bite), and food shopping for my kids who both moved back home (allowing for an abundance of things to grab a bite of), helped me gain a pound or two. Time to shed. Fit=Confident.
I get distracted. And by distracted I mean that even though I block out time for what I want to do each day, I can easily let a phone call throw it all off. I also get wrapped up in the business and marketing end of art. But if I have no art, then I have nothing to market a business around. Art=Life.
I’m lazy. Well, when it comes to my house. Well, when it comes to decluttering my house. Let’s be honest, who actually wants to clean out their refrigerator on Saturday afternoon. Or any afternoon. Or evening. Organized=Calm.
I can walk a fine line between sane and hypochondriac. It’s not that I am afraid of what the doctor might tell me, it’s just that I am a little afraid of what the doctor might tell me. Really, I dislike the whole process. Freaking out about every ache or spot runs in my family, so I kind of go a bit to the other extreme. If something isn’t right, I usually say...well let’s give it a couple of days and see if anything changes. I am overdue by about 3 months for a physical. Making an appointment has been on my to-do list, but getting a physical means I have to get blood drawn. I hate getting blood drawn. I’m also due for a mammogram, a check-in with my dermatologist and an appointment here and there with some other “ologists” as well. Health=Wealth.
Lofty goals for the coming year.
8 days in I have been getting up at 4:45 am and heading to the gym. I’ve been shifting toward eating cleaner for most of my meals. I finished two new photos to add to my portfolio. 13 more days to go to 21 and I’ll check in with you around April 1st and let you know if any of it stuck.
Jessica
“I would like to be remembered as someone who used whatever talent she had to do her work to the very best of her ability.”~ Ruth Bader Ginsburg
