A Few Thoughts On Habits

 
 
 
 
 
 

 

Habit:  an acquired behavior pattern regularly followed until it has become almost involuntary. (www.dictionary.com)

Habits. We all have them. Whether we want them or not.

As the definition says, to create a habit you have to do the same thing over and over again, for an extended period of time, until the action or thought pattern becomes almost involuntary.

Awesome. It’s like hardwiring your brain.  Talk about a timesaver!

Buuuut….

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Albert Einstein

Hmmm….

This is where I have some difficulties. I have many good habits. For example, I brush my teeth and shower on a regular basis. I also have some habits that are not so good. If I recognize a bad habit and work to change it, that’s great. But I get into patterns where I do the same thing over and over again and expect that THIS time the result will be different.

For example, if I stop at the store and buy croissants, then stuff them all in my mouth when I get home, chew them, then swallow them, my blood sugar will be high the next morning. I can do this every night of the week if I choose, and every time I stuff croissants in my mouth, chew them, and swallow them, my blood sugar will be high. It doesn’t matter if I tell myself that THIS time won’t matter. If baked goods go in and are swallowed, the numbers go up. Do it long enough, and the weight and medication go up as well.

If I shop on Amazon, my credit card balance goes up. The action produces the result. I may tell myself that THIS time I can shop with abandon and the charges will not show up on my credit card, but they always appear.

If I spend my free time on social media and surfing the net, no writing will be accomplished. Again, action – result.

So when looking at my bad habits, I have to remind myself that the results are not going to be different if I keep taking the same action. The only thing that will change the result is to change the action causing it.

And that sucks.

Sure wish I had some miraculous habit-changing pixie dust. 😀