Developing Excellent Habits

Yesterday when I got off of the train I slowly made my way down the block as the breeze gently caressed my face. It was just another long day coming to an end. I went to the store to buy my usual hero, grabbed a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos and a Tropicana orange juice then scurried off to my home.

Everyday I do just about the very same routine like clockwork, only with a few exceptions. I won’t get into those exceptions now because they may be used for a later post.

Habits control a huge percentage of our time, energy and life here on earth. I recall having an old habit of smoking cigarettes. I used to smoke a pack a day for 6 years. That is 2,190 cigarettes; Lord knows how many coughs I scowled, and all those carbon monoxide moments I stopped to take. I was so dedicated to those things. I think I was more dedicated to the habit of smoking than any other habit I had, good or bad.

Developing excellent habits help us to become better people in our respective fields and throughout our walk of life.

Training 2 Develop a Habit
In order for something to become a habit I am told you have to do it for 21 days consistently for it to become a habit. So here is my challenge to you. I want you to come up with 3 new habits that you want to incorporate into your life. You can make a list of 10 and select your 3 best habits you desire to adopt.

Now incorporate one of your habits for the next 21 days. If you happen to skip a day you have to start all over again from square one. Many individuals want to develop excellent habits, but are not willing to go the distance by dedicating themselves to it.

"I hated every minute of training, but I said, 'Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life like a champion.'" Muhammad Ali

I don’t believe boxers train as hard as Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, and Joe Frazier did back in their days. They fought fights that went 15 rounds. So you can imagine the conditioning they endured to be able to stand in the ring with an opponent for that long

I believe that if we become dedicated to our habits the way I was dedicated to smoking those cigarettes years ago we can accomplish great things. I mean

Habitual Excellence
Once we develop excellent habits they will repay us with excellent results.
“Excellence is an art won by training and habit. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act but a habit.” Aristotle