My January Challenge (join me for the next 2 weeks)

[AndreiR]

Progress is going well. I left some points vague since I've come to realize context is important when attempting to be consistent. I'm strict on 1 and 2, and for 3-7 I'm aiming for 90%+ adherence. I don't believe in Jerry Seinfeld's 'calendar chain' method, but instead use a monthly calendar hung beside my desk to track my adherence to my habits for the day, and then tabulate them at the end of the month.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[AndreiR]

I've successfully completed my January challenge. I didn't drink a drop of alcohol (which I would love to do on weekends with friends) or eat any processed sugar (I'm fit but did this for the self-discipline aspect as well as to reset my sweet tooth).

I even went to church 3 times, which in my case is something I'm getting back into after many years of science and atheism (studied math and physics at the University of Toronto).

I'll definitely be doing another challenge in Feburary - if only to help train my discipline as the stoics do. But I'll be addressing other things, while still juggling the habits I've conquered in January.

If I were to distill the value of this challenge into one sentence - it's this simple 'zen' line that I thought of last night: "Lots of pleasure, little happiness. Little pleasure, lots of happiness". 'Happiness' can be replaced with 'inner peace' or 'bliss'.