Habits

Yesterday I mentioned that I can develop habits quite easily, if I want to.  I don’t mean this in a virtuous sort of a way, because some of the habits I have developed over the years aren’t necessarily good ones. Like getting too hooked on checking my Instagram timeline, for example.

I went from not using Instagram at all, to posting the occasional photo, to posting photos more regularly, to posting daily. I just had to make a little bit of time in my day to check it, initially. From that little bit of time invested, the number of people following my account has grown, and the number of people whose accounts I follow has also grown. I’m commenting on others’ photos, others are commenting on my photos; I’m making new friends. All of which serves to reinforce the habit. The time I spend on Instagram has increased too, naturally, which is what I think is not necessarily a good thing.

A good habit I’ve developed is the early rising habit. I hadn’t really thought about it, but I started the habit at around the same time as I started this blog. I started this blog in June 2005. (June must be a good month.) So this blog is 11 years old, and so is my early rising habit!

I have been waking up at 5 o’clock every morning for 11 years. It seems rather odd when you see it in writing. I do remember that it was rather challenging forcing myself out of bed at first – especially on cold June mornings. I’m glad I stuck with it, though. It’s not something that’s hard to do, now, and I think I wake at 5 even if I don’t set the alarm (but I do, because I’m cautious). I wake at 5 on the weekends, too. On the rare occasions when I do wake up late (7am!) it feels strange and wasteful.

There are other habits I’ve cultivated which I shan’t bore you with, here. What I think each habit has in common, is that I didn’t think too hard about whether I would do it or not. It sounded interesting, or useful, or challenging, and I wondered if I could do it. I might have read one or two articles about how to do them, and then I decided I would try, or just experiment. I do like having little challenges or projects. Sometimes they take, and become habits. Sometimes they don’t.