I have a lot of bad habits. No, seriously. Let’s just start with the worst of them: I bite my nails and grind my teeth. Nail biting has been a part of my life since I can remember and grinding my teeth, well, for the most part, I can’t control that, but I do it without fail every night in my sleep.
This year I’ve wanted to be very intentional about habits. As someone who takes pride in the challenges I am able to throw myself and handle successfully, I wanted to make sure I was making good use of my time so I could continue to challenge myself and not be overwhelmed.
I started using an app called…you guessed it..Habit. It’s a very simple, free app from the App Store. There, I’ve nailed down all the habits I want to form moving forward. There are actually quite a few. However, I’m not interested in making a checklist for my day. In fact, many of my habits I do not intend to check off daily. For many of those habits, weekly accomplishing the task is my idea of success.
Now, let’s take a peek into the habits I am working on:
- Take vitamins
- Exercise
- No dessert
- Practice gratitude
- Write in prayer journal/Pray
- Write a blog post
- Make bed
- Take a picture
- Devo
- Read a book
- Get up before 7am
- Stretch
- Write a song
Yep. Thirteen habits I’m working on forming. I get reminders about my daily habits, which sometimes I actually respond to rather than swiping the banner away.
The main habit I’ve kicked this year is what some may have interpreted as my addiction to social media. I’m very content without it, although, forever out of the loop. That’s okay.
I have to say, the act of checking off a task that you’re trying to make a habit is a powerful thing. I find satisfaction in completing the task, and then also in indicating that I’ve done it on my app. It’s keeping me motivated as well as focused on those thirteen things. When I have a free moment, also, I can turn to this list and find the things I have decided to dedicate my time to.
If you or a friend are struggling with motivation, organization, or sticking to your goals, I strongly recommend this app. You can also click on each individual habit and see your progress in a couple of different formats. Go download it now and let me know how you see progress in the formation of new habits in your day to day life.
If you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to go check off one of my habits 😉
SARAH HARPER 