5 Steps for Changing Habits 

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Which body part do you wash first when showering?

If you cannot answer to my silly question, don’t worry. I’m sure that the next time you start lathering up, you will notice that you have a very defined routine that is so deeply ingrained into a rhythm that you don’t even give showering a thought.

Routines rock!

Creating a system for every day habits may seem silly, but the busier your life is, the more  important mindless habits are, because they remove the stress of making one more decision. When you’re overwhelmed without deeply rooted routines, it is easy to loose keys, forget appointments and miss meals.

Stress makes a mind scattered, and a scattered mind increases stress.

You were designed for routine.

Our bodies craves rhythm as much as the tides do–all of God’s creation was made with seasons and cycles. Imagine if the sun and moon had the free-will to resist His plan like we do; all of nature would be as stressed out as we are!

For many years I fought routine. I didn’t want anyone telling me what to do–not even my own schedule! Now that I am old (yea, I just had a birthday. I’m feeling it.), I see the foolishness of my younger, scattered ways. Somehow I thought that creating habits was boring and I did’t want to be “stuck in a rut” so I lived “by the seat of my pants.” I was fooled to think that I had better control if I resisted rules and routines. Unfortunately, my unstructured life got the best of me and wore out my adrenal glands.

It’s good to be flexible, but when you constantly change your ways, you create chaos.

I’m living a bit of a scattered life again as I have faced a few major life changes at once. I am working after-hours to finish up a rental home my husband and I are building, my children are in big  transitions and my dad is very sick. My purpose, plan, schedule, diet, location and even transportation are all fluctuating and I have completely lost my rhythm. I no longer love the adrenaline rush of spontaneity; instead, I crave the confidence that comes with having habits.

Routines change

If you, too, are feeling the stress of a scattered life, I encourage you to join me in reforming your routines. Some habits, like showering, remain as consistent as the setting sun. Thank God, we don’t have to think about what to do. We just do it and forget it.

Some habits–like eating–need to be protected for survival.

But even the sun’s routine changes with the seasons. We are wise not to resist life’s changes, but to, instead, make any needed adjustments while remaining as consistent as possible.

Here are 5 steps we can implement to create habits that remove stress:

  1. De-clutter. (It is much easier to live in my rental home, where there are only basic needs.)
  2. Go shopping. (I now have duplicate personal care products so that I don’t have to think about packing them anymore.)
  3. Create new space (I am finally establishing a new place to write.)
  4. Take charge of your schedule (unfortunately, my time to blog has taken a lower priority during this season.)
  5. Breathe (When I miss blogging for you, I remember that I only have so much time with my loved ones and once this house is done, it will always be done.)

Seasons change, but they also change again, and if we are women of confidence, we need olive in the moment. If this moment is hard, then we stay strong and keep going. It’s our habits that keep us  fed, rested and strong. What needs are there in your life that need to become habits so that you no longer have to think about them?

btw, I always wash my right arm first.

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