What habit changed your life?

[Matt Mortensen]

The habit that changed my life the most was making to-do lists. At first it seemed almost juvenile to be making lists every day. But after a while my productivity started going through the roof. Now every single day I make a to-do list and work to check every single item off of my list.

 

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[aaronteagles]

taking time to LISTEN and comprehend what someone smarter than me was saying

True. If possible, play it back and listen multiple times. My comprehension increases and develops over time.

 

[Santi M]

A habit I implemented some time ago and have taken me to the next level (in efficiency above all) is planning the next day every day at night.
I recently created a thread about this, here's the link if you are interested:
A daily tool for your efficiency

P.S: I really like this thread, watching other people new habits gives you ideas for new challenges

 

[Zcott]

Doing something productive as soon as I wake up.

I noticed that back in uni I'd be a lot more productive if I woke up and read something or did some work straight away, compared to doing whatever and then starting to work. I'd get so much more work done. I would become literally obsessed with it. To be honest, I loved it. This would last until the work was finished, could be a day or so, or could be a week or two.

I noticed similar trends when working too, but it's hard to be like that when you are working, because you don't wake up to start working, you wake up to commute like a lamb to the slaughter. But now I am working on something, I am reintroducing being productive as soon as I wake up back that into my life. For the first time in five years, I finally feel happy about working on something.

Typing that made me feel nostalgic for my student days, sad at my recent work life, and excited for the future.

Just an update to this to prove the importance of habits and self-awareness.

This week when I've been getting up, instead of doing something productive straight away I've been doing the opposite... watching YouTube. Sure, they're funny and entertaining, but it's lazy. As a result, I've been incredibly less productive and found myself in the mid afternoons feeling unfocused and somewhat bored.

Now, that could easily could become a daily habit moving forward. Self-awareness and recognising a bad habit when you see one is important. So recognising this bad habit was beginning to form I'm nipping it in the bud and reverting back to my habit of being productive as soon as I wake up.

 

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[chuckypita]

I get up at 5 in the morning - exercise, meditate, cold shower. Game changer.

COLD SHOWER! I'm a believer...

 

[RazorCut]

This week when I've been getting up, instead of doing something productive straight away I've been doing the opposite... watching YouTube. Sure, they're funny and entertaining, but it's lazy. As a result, I've been incredibly less productive and found myself in the mid afternoons feeling unfocused and somewhat bored.

That effect is so powerful.

This is akin to making your bed. Starting your day with an easy win sets you up to be productive throughout the day as you move from completing one task after another. Doing something unproductive is the exact polar opposite and can easily destroy productivity.

At the risk of feeding people a youtube video here is the clip from Admiral William McRaven, the man who popularised 'make your bed':

make your bed speech - Google Search

 

[RazorCut]

This is just the begining want to work on my self to become a better me and recover all the years I had neglected doing stupid things

If you maintain everything you are currently doing then no one is going to recognise you in a years time including yourself. The difference will be night and day. Well done, keep going, don't stop.

 

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[Zcott]

That effect is so powerful.

This is akin to making your bed. Starting your day with an easy win sets you up to be productive throughout the day as you move from completing one task after another. Doing something unproductive is the exact polar opposite and can easily destroy productivity.

At the risk of feeding people a youtube video here is the clip from Admiral William McRaven, the man who popularised 'make your bed':

make your bed speech - Google Search

That's weird/funny. When I woke up this morning I immediately made two beds. You're right, it is an immediate win.

 

[Re:Kay]

Gratitude

I could not agree more. The single thing that made the most impact on my life is taking another perspective and be greatful for whatever comes your way. Not satisfied with it. but greatful.

Every single situation makes you stronger and smarter, no matter what. Especially the difficult ones teach us lessons we often neglect, and sometimes at least it was like that for me, the worst situations in life make you acutally pull the trigger and change something.

So I´m greatful for all the trouble I had. I`m greatful with all the pain I´ve gone trough. Why? Because when you are greatful you´re not a victim anymore. I think it´s really a mindset thing. Maybe some of you can relate.

 

[jerryB]

Starting ketosis, cutting all curbs and sugars.

I eat basically only animal products + low carb veggies. Plus sometimes dark chocolate.
First week on this diet was terrible, but then I started to feel amazing, because our bodies work so much better on fat. You don't get tired so quickly, you're more focused, etc.

My next goal is to wake up earlier and limit coffee.

 

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[samuraijack]

Controlling my breathing and stepping back from my thoughts
Viewing nervousness as a blessing & sign of excitement instead of fear

 

[Determined2012]

Obsessively making (physically writing out) To Do lists.

This has transformed my life. I KNOW my targets. I KNOW what I need to do to reach them. I KNOW when I missed them, and how/why. I can refer to my lists and measure where I am winning and where I need to focus.

To do lists also got my debt and finances in order. I became obsessively organized with due dates, amount due, amount to pay off, etc. etc.

To Do lists made me prioritize important things.

To Do lists for the win.

 

[Determined2012]

The habit that changed my life the most was making to-do lists. At first it seemed almost juvenile to be making lists every day. But after a while my productivity started going through the roof. Now every single day I make a to-do list and work to check every single item off of my list.

Wow! I just wrote this. I didn't read any posts, just the title of the thread. Yup, To Do lists have REAL POWER!!!

 

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[Determined2012]

That effect is so powerful.

This is akin to making your bed. Starting your day with an easy win sets you up to be productive throughout the day as you move from completing one task after another. Doing something unproductive is the exact polar opposite and can easily destroy productivity.

At the risk of feeding people a youtube video here is the clip from Admiral William McRaven, the man who popularised 'make your bed':

make your bed speech - Google Search

This week when I've been getting up, instead of doing something productive straight away I've been doing the opposite... watching YouTube.

At 10X Growth con Tai Lopez and Grant Cardone and a couple others were vehemently AGAINST making up your bed in the morning and how it sets the tone for the day, etc. etc! lol I honestly forgot the reasons WHY they said this did not matter, but when I heard at the time it made sense.

Tai Lopez went on to say how Jeff Bezos, the richest man in the world, spends 2-3 hours every morning in his unmade bed thinking, imagining, letting his mind run wild and aimlessly being online doing nothing productive (ie. no "grinding" and no "hustling".) That he doesn't even wake up with an alarm clock, he just wakes up whenever he wakes up.

They also in so many words told an audience of 35,000 to not study millionaires, but to study the ultra, ultra wealthy and what they do, instead.

I personally think it just depends on what type of person someone is that determines how and what they should do each day to "move the needle forward"

That was also one of the main themes of the conference- A lot of the things that people do does not move them forward with their GOALS...

 

[Apo]

- Working out 4 to 6 times a week even small sessions
- Waking up at 5am during the week
- Stop making excuses

The latter is always a big work on ourselves!

 

[David 964]

Tomorrow I'll set my 14th day checkmark for a handful of new habits I'm building (reading, writing, meditation, no alcohol, healthier eating etc). Going really good so far.

That got me thinking.

Any new habit/habits that changed your life for the better or had a positive major impact?

This is great thread Sander,

so nice to see focus in right direction as well as to read many great habits from all of you. I think most of us will be able to fill page if we really think about it. From time we were kids to teenage years to now. From what I can think of: tighting my shoe laces (first good habit I can remember, well actually, not using my diapers was first), respect older and ask them meaningful questions, don't believe everything I hear - investigate on your own, be fully responsible for work I do, take calculated risk, journal (write my thoughts down especially when I am in tough spot), stretch in the morning (for us older guys), rebound, align my beliefs first thing in the am, breath slowly, cold showers, there many guides we acquire throughout our life.

The nice thing about those is to keep what works well and build more on top of it. For example stretching for few minutes in morning is something I started in 2010, in 2013 cold showers, non chemical body products 2009. All these influence my health.
There are many habits we all do, hopefully through our life we gather bunch of those which work, in different areas of our lives (wealth, business, relationships, wealth, etc) and we act on it.

Isn't Unscripted life group of habits, decisions and mindset which lead us to Fast Lane. Aren't we all writing our own book?

 

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[RazorCut]

At 10X Growth con Tai Lopez and Grant Cardone and a couple others were vehemently AGAINST making up your bed in the morning and how it sets the tone for the day

Ask yourself why. Most likely by calling something out that has gained interest and traction at the time will direct focus to you so you get more publicity. It's an old trick.

Recently Jillian Michaels has been ranting about the Keto diet to get publicity because Keto and Intermittent Fasting is big news at the moment.

Tai Lopez went on to say how Jeff Bezos, the richest man in the world, spends 2-3 hours every morning in his unmade bed thinking, imagining, letting his mind run wild and aimlessly being online doing nothing productive (ie. no "grinding" and no "hustling".)

That is because he can afford to (how many millions is he making while laying there?) Lesser mortals, who haven't developed passive income streams need to hustle and make money. Ask yourself how spending an extra 3 hours of your morning laying in bed will move your business forward.

They also in so many words told an audience of 35,000 to not study millionaires, but to study the ultra, ultra wealthy and what they do, instead.

More BS. How are you going to sit in your private jet or $15M Yacht on $50k a year? You have to walk before you can run.

What Lopez should have said is don't pay attention to what fake guru's want you to do (buy their courses), pay attention to what these fake guru's are doing (selling courses). That's where the money is.

 

[Zcott]

Tai Lopez went on to say how Jeff Bezos, the richest man in the world, spends 2-3 hours every morning in his unmade bed thinking, imagining, letting his mind run wild and aimlessly being online doing nothing productive (ie. no "grinding" and no "hustling".) That he doesn't even wake up with an alarm clock, he just wakes up whenever he wakes up.

This is bad advice imo, not everyone has the time to do this.

Imagine coming across someone who said they laid in bed for 3 hours every morning doing nothing productive but telling everyone they're an entrepreneur. You'd laugh at them. It's fine if you

 

[John F.]

The one habit that changed my life for the better was simply drinking a full glass of room temperature water immediately after waking up in the morning. The body is typically dehydrated to some extent in the morning and sending a rush of water into it right away helps kick start the brain and everything else.

 

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[SK1]

This thread is powerful - just what I need to kick my a$$ into gear.

Current habits

• Wake at 6.30
• Shower, breakfast, think about how much i hate my job and how disappointed I am for not doing more for my future the previous day. "Always work harder on yourself than your job" Jim Rohn.
• 1 hour commute - usually thinking about the mountain of work I need to do for job.
• 8.30-6.30 - job - usually skipping lunch and working late due to the excessive workloads.
• 1 hour commute home - mindless eating of anything I can get my hands on and listening to music or an audio book.
• 6.30-11.00 - eating, watching tv, playing Fortnite, usually an hour reading, thinking about what I could do to make money, drinking alcohol.

I don't know why I am perpetually unhappy and stuck in the slowlane! Lol.

New routine/habits

• Wake at 5am
• Exersize, cold shower, meditate, complete 1 important fastlane job, drink water, write a list of 5 thinks I am greatful for, think about how positive my day will be, review to do list for day.
• Commute to work - listen to positive audiobook.
• Work 8.30-5.00 - take lunch: walk and 30 mins catching up on this forum whilst eating healthily. If I cannot complete work in allocated time, then they are trying to get me to do too much!
• Commute home - brain switch off.
• Evening: 3 hours productivity on future, journal day, write to do list for next day, spend time with family.
• Commit for 1 month - no excuses.

Easy to write - now need to action...

 

[Olimac21]

I was wondering how many of you journal in the morning or during the night. I have been journaling for many years however I do not feel it has been adding to much value to my overall well being or mental clarity.

 

[Lex DeVille]

Never blaming anyone else for what happens in my life even when it "really is" their fault.

 

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[pat9000]

I'd say identifying my morale patterns.

For example. If I clean the house and it's spotless, I will postpone cleaning for another few days and live in denial. Then it all piles up and I feel overwhelmed.

I work on the low points in my habits because the high points take care of themselves.

I will clean daily instead of waiting for it to build back up and overwhelm me.

I also made a list of all the problems I've been putting off and started solving them.

It's increased my motivation and cleared some clutter from my brain.

 

[Mattie]

I think I've always focused more on breaking habits versus forming habits. I suppose I use the word self-mastery of acquiring skills. I would say the biggest one was back in 2009 when I realized I had formed an emotional and mental pattern to give up and quit when things got hard from following the example of certain people in my life.

I believe that was a huge awakening moment to realize the impact that had on my life. I just worked on it every day and mastered not quitting. In 2019, you can put any kind of obstacle in front of me, I don't really quit, and don't get all down about it, because I know what I can control and what I can't control in my environment. Otherwise you observe your surroundings, pay attention to what is happening, and try to make the best choices at the time.

The other is recognizing and event is only for a certain amount of time. It never lasts forever, and the average person will have a mini crisis every time someone says something bad about them, or does something to rattle their cage. I think once you get past those types of illusions, it really doesn't bother you as much as it once did.

 

[Seth G.]

1. Reading & Audiobooks (daily)
2. Writing & Reflecting (daily)
3. Meditation (daily, 7+ times per week)
4. Healthy Living (minimal alcohol/substance, good food in moderation, daily exercise)

I'd say those things continue to help me succeed and were huge factors in all previous successes.

• Reading/Audiobooks - You aren't smart enough nor do you have enough time to come up with every single brilliant thought in the world. But a lot of brilliant people dedicate YEARS of their lives to pack their brilliance into a book. You can read and gather huge amounts of information/perspective. It also helps with writing, communication, retention, focus, etc etc etc. I usually read some fiction I enjoy in the evenings and read some non-fiction book in the mornings (this forum has LOADS of great reading recommendations). If reading isn't your thing, download audible - it ROCKS.
  
  
• Writing/Reflecting - Writing lets you synthesize your otherwise chaotic thoughts. It lets you vent. It lets you plan. It forces you to take your thought bubbles and take a small action on them (which is the whole secret to doing any of this shit anyway). It can also be meditative.
  
  
• Meditation - Open your phone right now and download the app Insight Timer. It's free and has thousands of meditations from people all over the world and dive into mindfulness. Meditation hones focus, it hones control, it hones the entire edge of how you experience the world. And if you haven't realized it yet, your mindset (how you experience the world) is 80% of the battle or more. Calm yourself, charge yourself, pace yourself, push yourself. Meditation will amplify that more than I care to write. If you aren't meditating or trying to or have tried and given up, you are short changing yourself.
  
  
• Healthy Living - Alcohol, tobacco, marijuana (for those who live in decent parts of the country), and other substances are bad for you. Across the board. Period. They can be fun, they are often the center of social gatherings, but they ALWAYS cut into your ability to focus and drive results. People who use anything 'to relax' and who claim 'it doesn't really affect me negatively' are full of it. That being said, sure, I partake sometimes (who doesn't?) but you need to be in moderation. Limit yourself to these recreations only once or twice a week (or even a month) and you'll be shocked at how much better you feel.
  
  Diet and exercise are also no brainers. Eat well and be well. Exercise and be strong. There are dozens of posts before this one re-emphasizing this for a reason.

~

 

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[LRG]

Here is a summary after reading through the thread. The popular areas where you tried to break old habits are (mentioned once in this topic means one point):

1. Healthier eating (13 points)
2. Waking up early/early morning stuff/cold shower (12 points)
3. Gym/working out/exercise (12 points)
4. Meditation/awareness (11 points)
5. Reading (9 points)
6. Writing/journaling/diary (8 points)
7. Listening (7 points)
8. Daily action/kaizen (4 points)
9. Planning (3 points)
10. Full responsibility (3 points)
11. Stop procrastinating (3 points)
12. No alcohol (2 points)
13. Gratitude (2 points)
14. To do lists (2 points)
15. Taking deep breath/breath control (2 points)
16. Getting out of comfort zone (2 points)
17. No porn/fap (2 points)

Mentioned only once:

- stop watching TV/video games
- better sleep
- making phone calls
- repetition
- daily tracking
- turning sexual energy into focus and drive
- daily learning
- more time with family
- keeping piece of mind
- never giving up
- stop making excuses
- glass of water in the morning
- not quitting

Change your life and be happy. Every day is a new start.

 

[rwhyan]

17. No porn/fap (2 points)

Many people scoff at the "NoFap" movement, but in all honesty I believe for young men especially it is the #1 thing you can do to jumpstart your self-improvement journey and start getting your life together.

 

[Sanj Modha]

Controlling that voice in my head: I call him 'Bitch' now.

 

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[Deleted50669]

Last October I took the academic, over-analytical version of myself out back and shot him in the face. Then I replaced him with an action-hungry, purpose-driven version of myself that relentlessly acts, assesses, and adjusts. This change has resulted in going from zero progress to a deep understanding of javascript, a nearly-finished progressive web-app with maintainable architecture, the beginning of a marketing plan, and a reorganization of life priorities to allow for consistent action against my mission. I went from uncertain and hesitant to committed and confident. If this fails, I will start the next project without blinking. I will follow this process until I find success.

 

[Apo]

My complete change this year!
Things I stop or cut down on
-Since I was 13 years old I heavily smoke and got drunk at least once a week (I'll be 33 years this August)
- I have quit smoking (hardest thing I ever did) not a single cigarette this year and any kind of nicotine
-I used to smoke marijuana heavily about 7 years but quit that in September 2018
-I had only got drunk once this year (record in 19 almost 20 years) I want to avoid alcohol now at least until summer and make it a rare thing in my life
-I quit porn
-I stop taking sugar and any kind of stupid unnatural drinks more water
-I stop eating bread and cut down on carbs as much as possible (keto diet 2 weeks less then 25g of carbs/day) now just natural carbs and some pasta from time to time

Things I started to do
-Hit the gym at least 3 times a week and Dry sauna after
-Read more and listen to an audiobook per week
-Learn something towards a business every day at least 2 hours minimum
-Spend more time with my Family

I have an intense labour job manipulating more than 1000kg sometimes 3000kg and a regular daily basis (work hours 5/day maybe 6 when busy ) I`ve got so much energie now I don`t remember having when I was 20
This is just the begining want to work on my self to become a better me and recover all the years I had neglected doing stupid things

Waking up at 5am in the morning to get some me time and work on my project.