November 27

First day on the new habit. Did 10 minutes of yoga using about 5-6 different poses that I held for about 1-2 minutes. Initially only felt like doing 1 minute (the smallest win possible) but the momentum felt good. My trigger of making the bed actually didn't work out so well--because I make it right after I get up and it doesn't give me much time. I've decided to use the trigger of turning on the coffee pot in the morning instead. I also didn't immediately have coffee right after, but I did check in to the Lift app and had a moment of gratitude.

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November 26.

Pivoting my 30 minutes of walking for 30 minutes of yoga.

#1. I need a low-barrier-to-entry form of meditation and exercise: I can do yoga in my house, thus eliminating 5-6 closers.

#2. It's much more efficient and I can also eliminate the need for having to put on socks and shoes (or any clothes at all)

#3. I can be more creative about scaling small wins by reducing the # of minutes and poses.

I think it's important that I be incredibly intentional about the habit I build (this is def the Questioner/Rebel in me).

Here's 10 poses I can cycle thru.

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(6)

Small Wins:

A Habit Oddyssey - image 1 - student project

The essence of why I want to walk is around balance and mindfulness, so if there's really wasn't time to go for a walk I'm replacing it with meditative breathing. Would love some feedback. Did anyone else choose walking as a habit? How did you scale your habit down to less challenging activities?

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(4-5)

Reminders:

iPhone alarm at 6:30a
Habit Template posted on my bedroom door.
Lift reminder at 6pm daily (if I didn't check in)
Kaizen check-in at 11:30am.

My implementation intention:

"When I finish making my bed, I will walk for 30 minutes because I am the type of person who values time for reflection, mindfullness, and a long-term investment in my health--which benefits everyone around me."

I'm curious if people think it could be useful or overdone to repeat the implementation intention just before doing their action. I can imagine reading this intention before I go for a walk. I'd like to try that as an experiment tomorrow.

I do this with a similar activity (wrapping teffillin) that I do in the morning:

A Habit Oddyssey - image 2 - student project

And repeating your intention helps to center your mind on the activity you're about to perform--as long as you're emotionally connected to it. I remember my spoken word professor (yes--and it was a great class) told us that to get people emotionally invested in your work, you have to supply sensorial details that people can imagine. At a workshop I took in Jerusalem last year, I heard another tool called mind-mapping. The mind basically has an attention span of about 8 seconds, so about every 8 seconds you need to switch the 'internal powerpoint' if you will with some thought connected to your statement. Given these two points I would then change my statement to be something more like:

When I've smoothed out the last wrinkle from my blanket and am standing triumphantly over my bed like Simba from the lion king, with the circle of life booming from the speakers, I will walk for 30 minutes, feeling the support of pavement and dirt underneath my feet, the gentle glow of sun on my skin, the gentle breeze of wind shaking the trees--as if to shake me out of my comfort zone and remind me what I'm living for--like a tree--to grow--because I am the type of person who values time for reflection--to know what I'm living for--mindfulness--to know that I've expressed myself and values through the choices I make, the words I speak, and the thoughts that I think--and a long-term commitment to my well-being--and I can see the benefit to everyone around me because my well-being can be a light for others to be well--because my well-being means sharing positivity and health with others through my existing.

It's a bit long--but I think I'll record it and play is as I take my first few steps outside my house.

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(1-3)

I'm Raphael and I'm a producer and designer living in Los Angeles. I'm taking this class because I want to see tangible improvement in my personal and professional life, and that can only come about through well-thought out, carefully crafted habits.

My habit personality quiz indicates that I'm a chow chow-boxer mix of QUESTIONER & REBEL, though I think I'm just misunderstood.

For my first habit I'm looking to build a habit of walking for 30 minutes and it will be triggered by making my bed (a habit I've done everyday since I heard this commencement speech a long time ago).

My reward is going to be a mix of coffee (which I can make before I go on my walk so it's ready upon return), the endorphins that make me goto my happy place, moments of gratitude that I can reflect upon during the walk and after, as well as checking into Lift.

Here's what it looks like in my worksheet:

A Habit Oddyssey - image 3 - student project

Other ideas that came to mind for the reward/accountability: posting a picture to Instagram of something on my walk, and one of those hashtags that say #21days or something like that. Any suggestions?

H Dev

student

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