Why You Need Daily Habits

The TL;DR version: without intentional daily habits it’s hard to accomplish big goals.

We all have daily habits we follow to get us through our daily BS in the most efficient way possible. Get out of bed, pee, fart, make coffee, water the dog, etc. But do you have intentional habits that are driving you forward to make you better in whatever it is you want to get better at?

Having intentional habits is critical because they empower you to use your time to drive towards your goals. I personally have found that by allocating my intentional habits into time blocks it makes them much more achievable. For each habit I do, I set a timer while I do it. There is something about having a timer running that seems to apply some pressure on my mind to keep me focused from running off and chasing mental butterflies.

That small tip: using a timer in my daily habits, has made a huge difference in my productivity.

For example, after work I write 1500 words. When I do this, I do it in 33m blocks (I know 33m is a weird time, but it works for me). I also time my breaks for 5m. If I feel the urge while writing to do something else, or if some idea pops up, I’ll simply jot it down on a notepad file, then resume working. When my break hits, I will feed my ADD urges by watching a funny youtube video, get out of my chair, and maybe some exercises like pushups or squats to get my heart rate pumping a bit. Then the timer is started again in that cycle for as many cycles as I need to get my word counts.

Then I exercise (un-timed), do some mobility work (stretching, foam rolling, etc) for 10m, read for 33m, and meditate for 10m.

The really cool thing about structuring your day like this is that once you’ve completed your habits/daily rituals, any other stuff you get done during the day is just extra. You can go to bed knowing you had a productive day and are moving towards your goals.

Most people go through life without any structure or intention in their days. Without structure, intention, and focus on a particular goal, ten years from now you will be in the same position you’re in today.

What are you some your daily habits that you feel have really added to your life? Let me know in the comments below.

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