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Daily, weekly, monthly, yearly habits are often predictable. We brush our teeth, take out the garbage, pay our bills, file the taxes. The familiarity of unvarying rituals reduces the effort needed, and-if that consistency serves us well-there is little need to change.
On the other hand, a lack of variety can be the death-blow when habits become tedious, especially when progress toward long-term goals is slow and the immediate rewards are hard to come by. In such cases, we benefit from designing a pattern that includes variety, taking an imaginative approach to the behaviors we want to change.
Last week we mentioned that it takes 21 days to initiate a habit and three months for it to become established. Does that mean we must do exactly the same thing for 21 to 90 days? Consider physical activity. Do we take a 3-mile walk every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday at 2:00 pm? Maybe. On the other hand, maybe we invest 30 minutes a day, six days a week, in some type of physical activity. Let's take a look at that approach.
First, we brainstorm a list of activities appropriate to the season and our schedule: a walk while waiting for the car to be fixed, a trip to the gym before work, a hike to check out the wildflowers in the afternoon, a yoga tape at home, an evening of dancing, biking to a meeting, mowing the lawn. Then, each morning over breakfast choose an activity from the list that fits with the day ahead. Three weeks later, the ritual of planning our activity over breakfast will be underway, while the activities themselves will range from A to Z.
Healthy eating is another challenge. How can we choose more wisely, while maintaining the motivation of novelty? I set eating goals on a weekly basis. This week I am abstaining from cookies, pastries, ice cream, and chips. Next week I might decide to have a beer when out with friends, but not at home on my own. I did not buy peanut butter as soon as it ran out (I will replace that favorite in a week or two). Another week, I might eat only fruit, veggies, and dairy products before noon. I find it helpful, in addition to the unchanging ritual of tracking what I eat (a longstanding Weight Watchers habit), to play games with what and when I eat and drink so that neither sacrifice nor indulgence is "forever."
What area of your life would benefit from mixing up the tactics while pursuing a larger, longer-term strategy? Is it eating? Exercise? Rest and recovery? Mindfulness? Learning? Friendship? Try it out. Let us know what works for you (maybe it will work for us too).
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