Working on habits has been an ongoing process for me. This month, I’ve decided to work on a new habit. But really, truly, I’ve been working on this habit for years, it’s just that I haven’t gotten the habit ingrained in my daily routine yet. As I reread my old journals the other day I noticed that I’ve written the same thing over and over again:
Sleep by 9:30pm
Go to bed by 9:30pm
9:30pm – Light’s out.
This was easy for me to do when I was a child. My parent’s dictated when I went to bed, but now, not so much. Now, I dictate when the children go to bed…as for me…lights out for the children means work time for me.
Yet as the days, weeks and months progress, I’ve come to admit that this isn’t a formula for success. The average adult needs 7-8 hours of sleep a night. By staying up late to get things done, I’m cutting into valuable time to rest and rejuvenate.
And I’m reinforcing the negative habit of staying up late. Blech.
They {whoever ‘they’ are} say that it takes 21 days to develop a habit. But for me to get to bed by 9:30pm, it’s taken more like 72 months…and I’m still working on it.
MY NEW HABIT FOR APRIL-MAY: Go to bed by 10:00pm
Notice that I didn’t write I’ll go to bed by 9:30pm. 10:00pm seems more realistic for me, and perhaps over time I can work towards 9:30pm.
{Hint: When you want to set a goal or incorporate a new habit, start small.}
Would you like to join me? ‘d love to be an encouragement to you as you make positive changes in your life. {And I could us the support and accountability myself.}
If you are inspired, leave a comment for your new habit for April-May in the comments, or email me using the contact link if you’d like to keep it personal.
Let’s see if this works!
P.S. As you’ve noticed, my new habit making spans over two months. This is due to the fact that: #1 It’s the middle of the month and #2 It has taken me a while to work on this habit already. Now, I think it needs some focused effort over a longer period of time.
Leave a Reply