I’ve been writing a daily blog for 550 days straight. 1 per day.
I’ve been writing consistently for at least 10 years - I started my blog on Medium in 2015.
I’ve been coaching for at least 5,664 days. Even longer, unofficially, since school.
I’ve been meditating for 9,131 days, since I was 13.
I’ve been in the gym every week for 25 years, except for the two or three weeks I was recovering from a motorbike accident.
My Kindle says I’ve been reading for 365 weeks in a row.
And I just celebrated a 300-day streak on Duolingo.
I might not know everything about everything.
But I could teach the world a thing or two about how habits stick.
Here’s the first lesson.
Just like a new kitchen gadget, a habit needs the right place to be used and appreciated - a permanent corner on your counter, the one that's convenient but also out of the way for the rest of your cooking to flow.
There’s a difference between something you do for a day and something you plan to do for the rest of your life.
A short-term habit can sit on the counter, like an ice-cream or a waffle maker you pull out on holidays or over some weekends.
But a lifelong habit needs more of a fixed, easy-to-reach spot, like the kettle you grab every morning without thinking.
So as a new month unfolds, and you’d like to stick with some new routine - at work or at home, ask yourself, is this like my waffle maker I use once on Christmas? Or is it something I plan to stick with for life?
If it’s the latter, are you giving it seamless space that fits into your day like a good cup of coffee?
