Every morning when I wake, I stretch, I might say good morning to Sal if she’s up, I’ll get out of bed and jump into the shower. Pretty standard I guess, except for one thing.
My shower is cold. There’s no hot water involved. I just blast that cold tap and get in.
I’ve done this every morning for the last 5 years. It’s a part of my routine and it feels weird if I try to get on in my day without it. It’s so ingrained in my behaviour, that it requires little to no decision making. I know that I will do it.
When we are attempting to build positive habits (or break down negative ones), this is the goal. To make something so autonomous, that we don’t even think about it.
But this requires a commitment. A commitment to yourself that you will complete this task/ behaviour. It needs to become a non-negotiable. You can’t talk yourself out of this. It must be done! When I started having cold showers in the morning, it sucked. Some mornings, I had to force myself to have one.
And I started small. We need to start small, if we are aiming for long-term behaviour change. This is where the magic is. And of course, we need the environment, cues, support/accountability and systems in place in order for this to become a habit.
But it starts with the commitment.
So what are your daily non-negotiables? What are the things that you are trying to do every single day?
It could be something like getting 10,000 steps throughout the day. Or reading a chapter of your book every night. It could even be something as small as flossing your teeth morning and night, or saying “I love you” to your partner before bed.
What sort of commitment have you made to yourself? I’d love to hear from you.
However, it really is a commitment.
Simon G. Cooper 