How to Add More Joy into Your Life with Small Changes
Is your life ok, not terrible, though it seems flat and wondering if anything different is going to happen? You get up each day performing what needs to be done, and yet at the end of the day, you can’t help but wonder if there is something different that you can do with your life. Are your habits controlling you?
It’s vital to incorporate habits into our lives, yet we also need to question regularly whether our habits are still working for us. Ask yourself how much of your life is made of habits that you do every day or frequent thoughts that fill up your mind every waking moment. You will see that a significant part of your life is made up of your habits. Habits are incorporated into many parts of our lives.
Some Areas Where Habits Develop
- Thoughts you have about yourself.
- What are your daily routines?
- How do you interact with other people in your life?
- What is your performance level at work?
- How do you take care of yourself physically?
- What are your financial habits?
What Habits Do You Feel Still Work for You?
As you look at the habits that are part of your daily life, which ones work for you still? Habits are essential and are there to serve you to make your life easier. Take some time to look at all your habits and decide which ones add value to your life. As you create your list, listen to how you feel when you look at each of your present habits. Do they bring your satisfaction, efficiency or fun? Do they serve a useful purpose in your life? Or does the practice interfere with your wellbeing or the well being of others? Honor those habits that work for you as they can free you up so you can make other changes in your life.
What Habits Do You Believe Can Change and Add More Happiness into Your Life?
List those habits you believe don’t bring value to your life. This is a personal question as each of us has separate journeys in life to explore. I think that you know whether a habit works for you, just by sitting with the thought of the practice and deciding how you feel about it. If you feel angry, upset, anxious when looking at the habit, then it is not serving you, but rather you are serving it.
Importance of Small Changes
Unless you had received a medical alert and need to make rapid and significant changes in some physical habit you have, small changes are all you need to work on. Why do I say small changes — because every little step you take towards your well being enhances your present day? Since we can only live in the present, each change we make, however small, makes a ripple into our lives which automatically changes us. Remember as a child tossing a stone into the water, watching the rippling effect, and knowing that the water has changed because the stone has entered it. That is what small changes can do for your life.
Next Step with Your Habits
Now that you have created two separate lists: habits that work and habits that don’t work for you, you can select one habit that you would like to change. Take the next 28 days to focus on this habit by spending 10 minutes a day writing about what you did to create change and how you feel about it. At the end of the 28 days, you can decide to continue to work on your current habit or select another one on your list that you would like to change.
Remember small steps are wonderful and bring more energy into your life. This is your journey in creating more joy in your life.
Your Thoughts
Do you find it hard to change? Have you made recent changes and did you celebrate doing it? Make a list of habits that work for you and that don’t add to your overall wellbeing.
Women’s Group Topics
This is an excellent topic for a group because we all have areas in our lives where we want to change. It’s just human nature that life isn’t perfect. How can you help each other with change and keep each of you accountable to the change?
Be well,
Pat
“To fully enjoy the ‘richness’ of our lives, we need to stop long enough to visit with ourselves.”
(Pat Brill)
Other Posts You May Be Interested In
How to Live a ‘No Excuses’ Life
If It’s Not Working, Change It
Why Are We Resistant to Change?
