• Facebook
  • Twitter

Dreaming Beneath the Spires

Anita Mathias's Blog on Faith and Art

  • Home
  • My Books
  • Essays
  • Contact
  • About Me

The Best Way to Develop Shiny New Habits

By Anita Mathias

 

Blogging almost daily for three and a half years has led to self-awareness. I have grown bored of boasting of my weaknesses.

There is a time for self-analysis, and a time for acting on that analysis, and that time came!  

And so I am in the process of developing shiny new habits. These are not yet jelled, but the trajectory is looking good.

* * *

The best way I know to form new habits is the most boring, but the most certain.

Start where you are.

Reading :Do you want to read a book a week–52 in a year, as I want to? How many did you read last year? 5, 12, 18?

In that case, it may not be realistic to read 52 books in a year immediately.

To acquire time for the new habit, you will have to form and reform numerous small habits. Firstly, find a slot for it. The first thing in the morning perhaps? Or audiobooks as you walk?

Then reform a few habits. Compulsive checking of email, of your phone, of facebook, of newspapers, for instance. You might need to become tidier so that you can enter your house, go straight to your bedroom or living room, pick up a book and start reading as Iris Murdoch was reported to have done.

You might need to wake earlier. Or develop the habit of reading before you write to prime the pump, just as it’s a blessed habit to read Scripture before you pray. It may be best to start with 5 pages a day (6 books a year) or 10 pages a day (12 books a year) if you haven’t been reading very much.  Then aim to read the next book in one day less, and so on, until you are reading a book a week.

* * *

Exercise

I have failed with many exercise programmes because I go too fast to begin with. After my (failed) pilgrimage, I am determined to increase my strength slowly, walking 1-3 miles at each session, two sessions a day, adding 10% a week. I am now thoroughly enjoying exercise.

An exercise habit requires adjustments. You will need to find a slot for it. You might need to do it earlier in the day to get it done before darkness, and to enjoy more of its benefits. You might need to carry an audiobook with you so you don’t get bored. And, most importantly, start small.

* * *

Tidying the house or decluttering

If you are embracing minimalism, you will experience some of the pleasure and sense of satisfaction of decluttering and tidying with the very first session.

I am currently putting in an hour a day 5-7 days a week getting my house decluttered (in between writing sessions). However, I began with 5 minutes, and built it up to 60 by adding 5 minutes a day, enjoying the challenge and pleasure of seeing order emerge.

I use the same method to get back into gardening when I have “lapsed.” Slowly, time appears.

* * *

Waking early works best slow. 15 minutes every 4 days has worked for me, and I am waking at 6.10 a.m. though my goal is 5 a.m.

Writing. If you have gotten out of the habit of working on your work in progress, or don’t seem to have the time to, let me tell you how I get back into my work in progress when I have “no time” to do so.

You’ve probably guessed it by now. Yup, I do just five minutes on day 1; 10 minutes on day 2; 15 on day 3; working up to 120 minutes over 24 days. I set a timer, and the anticipation and frustration of it going off, makes me focus intensely, and also long for the next day’s session. My schedule slowly adjusts to the new necessity. I guess I spend less time surfing the net or on social media, and wake earlier

Be realistic. Start small. Start where you are. Walk before you run, run before you fly, and you will be setting yourself up for success and joy, instead of failure and frustration.

 What are your best strategies for developing new habits?

More from my site

  • Burn-Out Vanishes When We Rediscover PurposeBurn-Out Vanishes When We Rediscover Purpose
  • Ora et Labora: How Physical Activity helps my Creative and Spiritual Life.Ora et Labora: How Physical Activity helps my Creative and Spiritual Life.
  • How Circling Prayer can Convert a Vicious Circle to a Virtuous CircleHow Circling Prayer can Convert a Vicious Circle to a Virtuous Circle
  • Two Difficult Things by DecemberTwo Difficult Things by December
  • On Quitting Things…and Breaking FreeOn Quitting Things…and Breaking Free
Share this...
Share on Facebook
Facebook
Tweet about this on Twitter
Twitter

Filed Under: In which I celebrate discipline Tagged With: decluttering, discipline, exercise, Gardening, habits, reading, waking early, writing

« Previous Post
Next Post »

Comments

  1. Alison Hector says

    November 1, 2013 at 4:56 pm

    My strategies are much along the same lines as yours: gradually carving out time to do the new stuff. But as Steven Pressfield says, Resistance is the devil! It truly is a daily grind, and perseverance goes a long way in conquering the many distractions (Facebook, anyone?) that seem to emerge to pull us off track. Let’s determine to get and keep those shiny new habits in order, Anita!

    • Anita Mathias says

      November 2, 2013 at 9:37 pm

      “Steven Pressfield says, Resistance is the devil!”
      Indeed. Pressfield says somewhere that resistance emerges when we try to do anything with an upward movement–try to exercise, wake early, be organized, write etc. It is truly of the Devil because it makes us feel so defeated and bad about ourselves, and then we do not persist in any good endeavour.

  2. Mollie Lyon says

    October 18, 2013 at 6:06 pm

    Wonderful post again. Such wise advice. Starting slowly encourages the improvements over time. I’m working on decreasing Facebook time. My goal is to not stay “connected” at night, so I get to the goal of sleeping well and waking earlier, even though I now work till 11 at night. If I can feel awake in the morning, well rested, I’m sure my goals for the day can be easily accomplished. And the goal for you is in the works. Smile.

    • Anita Mathias says

      October 18, 2013 at 6:32 pm

      Sleep well and wake well-rested, Mollie!

Sign Up and Get a Free eBook!

Sign up to be emailed my blog posts (one a week) and get the ebook of "Holy Ground," my account of working with Mother Teresa.

Join 635 Other Readers

Follow me on Twitter

Follow @anitamathias1

Anita Mathias: About Me

Anita Mathias

Read my blog on Facebook

My Books

Wandering Between Two Worlds: Essays on Faith and Art

Wandering Between Two Worlds - Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Francesco, Artist of Florence: The Man Who Gave Too Much

Francesco, Artist of Florence - Amazom.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

The Story of Dirk Willems

The Story of Dirk Willems - Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk
Premier Digital Awards 2015 - Finalist - Blogger of the year
Runner Up Christian Media Awards 2014 - Tweeter of the year

Recent Posts

  •  On Not Wasting a Desert Experience
  • A Mind of Life and Peace in the Middle of a Global Pandemic
  • On Yoga and Following Jesus
  • Silver and Gold Linings in the Storm Clouds of Coronavirus
  • Trust: A Message of Christmas
  • Life- Changing Journaling: A Gratitude Journal, and Habit-Tracker, with Food and Exercise Logs, Time Sheets, a Bullet Journal, Goal Sheets and a Planner
  • On Loving That Which Love You Back
  • “An Autobiography in Five Chapters” and Avoiding Habitual Holes  
  • Shining Faith in Action: Dirk Willems on the Ice
  • The Story of Dirk Willems: The Man who Died to Save His Enemy

Categories

What I’m Reading

Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance
Barak Obama

Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance- Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

H Is for Hawk
Helen MacDonald

H Is for Hawk - Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Tiny Habits
B. J. Fogg

  Tiny Habits  - Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

The Regeneration Trilogy
Pat Barker

  The Regeneration Trilogy  - Amazon.com
Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Archive by month

INSTAGRAM

anita.mathias

Writer, Blogger, Reader, Mum. Christian. Instaing Oxford, travel, gardens and healthy meals. Oxford English alum. Writing memoir. Lives in Oxford, UK

Images from walks around Oxford. #beauty #oxford # Images from walks around Oxford. #beauty #oxford #walking #tranquility #naturephotography #nature
So we had a lovely holiday in the Southwest. And h So we had a lovely holiday in the Southwest. And here we are at one of the world’s most famous and easily recognisable sites.
#stonehenge #travel #england #prehistoric England #family #druids
And I’ve blogged https://anitamathias.com/2020/09/13/on-not-wasting-a-desert-experience/
So, after Paul the Apostle's lightning bolt encounter with the Risen Christ on the road to Damascus, he went into the desert, he tells us...
And there, he received revelation, visions, and had divine encounters. The same Judean desert, where Jesus fasted for forty days before starting his active ministry. Where Moses encountered God. Where David turned from a shepherd to a leader and a King, and more, a man after God’s own heart.  Where Elijah in the throes of a nervous breakdown hears God in a gentle whisper. 
England, where I live, like most of the world is going through a desert experience of continuing partial lockdowns. Covid-19 spreads through human contact and social life, and so we must refrain from those great pleasures. We are invited to the desert, a harsh place where pruning can occur, and spiritual fruitfulness.
A plague like this has not been known for a hundred years... John Piper, after his cancer diagnosis, exhorted people, “Don’t Waste Your Cancer”—since this was the experience God permitted you to have, and He can bring gold from it. Pandemics and plagues are permitted (though not willed or desired) by a Sovereign God, and he can bring life-change out of them. 
Let us not waste this unwanted, unchosen pandemic, this opportunity for silence, solitude and reflection. Let’s not squander on endless Zoom calls—or on the internet, which, if not used wisely, will only raise anxiety levels. Let’s instead accept the invitation to increased silence and reflection
Let's use the extra free time that many of us have long coveted and which has now been given us by Covid-19 restrictions to seek the face of God. To seek revelation. To pray. 
And to work on those projects of our hearts which have been smothered by noise, busyness, and the tumult of people and parties. To nurture the fragile dreams still alive in our hearts. The long-deferred duty or vocation
So, we are about eight weeks into lockdown, and I So, we are about eight weeks into lockdown, and I have totally sunk into the rhythm of it, and have got quiet, very quiet, the quietest spell of time I have had as an adult.
I like it. I will find going back to the sometimes frenetic merry-go-round of my old life rather hard. Well, I doubt I will go back to it. I will prune some activities, and generally live more intentionally and mindfully.
I have started blocking internet of my phone and laptop for longer periods of time, and that has brought a lot of internal quiet and peace.
Some of the things I have enjoyed during lockdown have been my daily long walks, and gardening. Well, and reading and working on a longer piece of work.
Here are some images from my walks.
And if you missed it, a blog about maintaining peace in the middle of the storm of a global pandemic
https://anitamathias.com/2020/05/04/a-mind-of-life-and-peace/  #walking #contemplating #beauty #oxford #pandemic
A few walks in Oxford in the time of quarantine. A few walks in Oxford in the time of quarantine.  We can maintain a mind of life and peace during this period of lockdown by being mindful of our minds, and regulating them through meditation; being mindful of our bodies and keeping them happy by exercise and yoga; and being mindful of our emotions in this uncertain time, and trusting God who remains in charge. A new blog on maintaining a mind of life and peace during lockdown https://anitamathias.com/2020/05/04/a-mind-of-life-and-peace/
In the days when one could still travel, i.e. Janu In the days when one could still travel, i.e. January 2020, which seems like another life, all four of us spent 10 days in Malta. I unplugged, and logged off social media, so here are some belated iphone photos of a day in Valetta.
Today, of course, there’s a lockdown, and the country’s leader is in intensive care.
When the world is too much with us, and the news stresses us, moving one’s body, as in yoga or walking, calms the mind. I am doing some Yoga with Adriene, and again seeing the similarities between the practice of Yoga and the practice of following Christ.
https://anitamathias.com/2020/04/06/on-yoga-and-following-jesus/
#valleta #valletamalta #travel #travelgram #uncagedbird
Images from some recent walks in Oxford. I am copi Images from some recent walks in Oxford.
I am coping with lockdown by really, really enjoying my daily 4 mile walk. By savouring the peace of wild things. By trusting that God will bring good out of this. With a bit of yoga, and weights. And by working a fair amount in my garden. And reading.
How are you doing?
#oxford #oxfordinlockdown #lockdown #walk #lockdownwalks #peace #beauty #happiness #joy #thepeaceofwildthings
Images of walks in Oxford in this time of social d Images of walks in Oxford in this time of social distancing. The first two are my own garden.  And I’ve https://anitamathias.com/2020/03/28/silver-and-gold-linings-in-the-storm-clouds-of-coronavirus/ #corona #socialdistancing #silverlinings #silence #solitude #peace
Trust: A Message of Christmas He came to earth in Trust: A Message of Christmas  He came to earth in a  splash of energy
And gentleness and humility.
That homeless baby in the barn
Would be the lynchpin on which history would ever after turn
Who would have thought it?
But perhaps those attuned to God’s way of surprises would not be surprised.
He was already at the centre of all things, connecting all things. * * *
Augustus Caesar issued a decree which brought him to Bethlehem,
The oppressions of colonialism and conquest brought the Messiah exactly where he was meant to be, the place prophesied eight hundred years before his birth by the Prophet Micah.
And he was already redeeming all things. The shame of unwed motherhood; the powerlessness of poverty.
He was born among animals in a barn, animals enjoying the sweetness of life, animals he created, animals precious to him.
For he created all things, and in him all things hold together
Including stars in the sky, of which a new one heralded his birth
Drawing astronomers to him.
And drawing him to the attention of an angry King
As angelic song drew shepherds to him.
An Emperor, a King, scholars, shepherds, angels, animals, stars, an unwed mother
All things in heaven and earth connected
By a homeless baby
The still point on which the world still turns. The powerful centre. The only true power.
The One who makes connections. * * *
And there is no end to the wisdom, the crystal glints of the Message that birth brings.
To me, today, it says, “Fear not, trust me, I will make a way.” The baby lay gentle in the barn
And God arranges for new stars, angelic song, wise visitors with needed finances for his sustenance in the swiftly-coming exile, shepherds to underline the anointing and reassure his parents. “Trust me in your dilemmas,” the baby still says, “I will make a way. I will show it to you.” Happy Christmas everyone.  https://anitamathias.com/2019/12/24/trust-a-message-of-christmas/ #christmas #gemalderieberlin #trust #godwillmakeaway
Look, I’ve designed a journal. It’s an omnibus Look, I’ve designed a journal. It’s an omnibus Gratitude journal, habit tracker, food and exercise journal, bullet journal, with time sheets, goal sheets and a Planner. Everything you’d like to track.  Here’s a post about it with ISBNs https://anitamathias.com/2019/12/23/life-changing-journalling/. Check it out. I hope you and your kids like it!
Load More… Follow on Instagram

© 2020 Dreaming Beneath the Spires · All Rights Reserved. · Cookie Policy · Privacy Policy

»
«