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30th June, 2020, Natalie opened note on her I-pad. It had all the goals she set for the New Year with nice mood board – turning vegan, work out everyday, completing master class…. her face turned sad as she reviewed it. She had not achieved any of them. OMG, we are 7 months down year 2020 already! “What did I achieve yesterday?” she asked herself.
Like Natalie, at the beginning of the year, many of us make resolutions for the months to come. We vow to work out more, procrastinate less, or save more money. Though some of us stick with these aspirations, many of us fall short. How do we actually develop good habits and maintain them?
When you repeat an action over and over again in a given context and then get a reward when you do that, you are learning very slowly and incrementally to associate that context with that behavior. Eventually, that behavior becomes automatic, to the point where we aren’t consciously thinking about the behavior anymore. Many of the things we do every day fall into this category.
A habit is a reflex action that the brain and body performs without any external impulse. The feeling of being rewarded releases certain pleasure chemicals in the brain, which ultimately results in habit creation.
What’s a TIWIW Wish List?
If you haven’t heard about the wish list, it is a list of all the specific things you want to have, goals you want to achieve, dreams you want to fulfill and life-experiences you desire to experience in your life.
Why create this Wish List for habit building?
Why have a Tiwiw wish list? If you don’t live your days by personal goals and plans, chances are you spend most of your time caught up in a flurry of day-to-day activities. Like Natalie, you ever feel days are passing by without any tangible output to speak of? What were your accomplishments in the past 3 months? What are your upcoming goals for the next 3 months? Look at the things you bought and the things you’re planning to do next – Do they mean anything to you?
Having a TIWIW wish list reminds you of what’s really important so you can act on them. You can regularly update your wishlist with what you would like to get rewarded with. Share your goals and wishes with friends and family. They can be really support and act as a motivator.
Even if you frequently live by goals or to-do lists, they are probably framed within a certain social context e.g., possessions, performance, travel, career, health. A wish list opens up the context. It’s a forum to set anything and everything you’ve ever wanted to do, whether it’s big, small or random.
You can add your new goals in your wishlist on TIWIW and link it to an event – ‘milestone’. A habit is formed when routine action is met with a reward, which need not be materialistic. To consciously cultivate a habit, after reaching a goal or milestone, add a reward as wishes – such as new workout gear or a new workout session with the celebrity trainer etc. It releases pleasure chemicals in the brain, which ultimately results in habit creation.
We are constantly chasing a better lifestyle and habits are a crucial part of it. So don’t be afraid to ask for the support of your loved ones.
TIWIW helps you express the lifestyle new choices freely with friends and family.
What do you think?