Habits

 By becoming a life long learner you leverage on the compounding ability of knowledge. 

Reading challenges you to think differently and opens you up to new ideas. 

Growing in kindness also produces compound interest in terms of your relationships. 

Also, stress compounds. Little stressors may seem isolated at first but over time they compound into health issues. (Believe me I know) 😳 

Small changes appear insignificant until it reaches a tipping point or threshold. To get the results you seek, you need patience. 

According to James Clear, a daily improvement or retrogression of 1% will leave you 37x better or worse at the end of the year. 

I say 1% better daily is 365% better at the end of the year. 

Goals are transient- everyone wants results but problems often resurface with this type of mindset. Lasting change comes from the right processes and procedures. The excitement from achieving goals is often short lived. Also, people with a “goal’s first mentality” put off their happiness for a future time. With a “system’s first mentality” you enjoy every step that leads up to the goal. When you enjoy what you do, you’re more likely to repeat it. 

Old habits return when there is nothing to sustain you beyond the achievement of a goal. For example, if you set a goal of losing twenty pounds there are a number of ways you can achieve that goal. However, you may revert to old habits after hitting the twenty pound mark because you did not create an effective system that helps you with your weight management. 

Changing who you are is more important than focusing on what you want to achieve because it makes the change sustainable. 

Character change should be your focus, not achievement. Who you are is more important than what you do. 

When a habit becomes who you are rather than something you do you are more likely to retain that habit. 

Take some time to think about who you want to be. Then ask yourself what you must do to become that person. Behavior is often a response or an outward manifestation of identity. 

For example, if you want to be someone who works out and eats healthy everyday you identify with that and focus  on that and losing weight will come  

If you want to read 700 books in a year like Tony Robbins did, instead of focusing on that end goal, focus on that you want to become and identify yourself as a reader  then make sure you read a little everyday  

The most important value of habits is that they have the power to change what you believe about yourself. 

Emotions drive action. Even when there are logical reasons for doing something, it is emotion that compels you to act on it. 

Identify one habit you want to stop and one you want to apply and work on those. 

Integrity

 Every choice you make speaks volumes about your priorities and true values. 

People of character usually possess a series of virtues or values. These are courage, compassion, generosity, temperance, persistence, friendliness, and many more. 

However, when determining the depth and strength of a person’s character, one essential thing that comes before all those is integrity. 

When your level of integrity is higher you are more honest with yourself and more likely to live consistently with all the other values you admire and respect. 

Becoming a person of character takes tremendous self discipline. It takes ample willpower to do the “right thing” in every situation. And to resist the temptation to cut corners, take the easy way out, or act for short term advantage. 

When you behave with character, doors will be opened for you. People will help you. You’ll get paid more and promoted faster. 

To develop character- study people you admire, hold yourself to a higher standard, write down your goals and develop a daily plan to achieve them. 

Writing is a psycho-neuro-motor activity. The act forces you to think and concentrate. It forces you to choose what is more important to you and your future. 

“Only 3% of adults have WRITTEN goals and plans. And this 3% earn more than all of the other 97% put together”- Brian Tracy 

Here are 7 steps you can take to move you into the direction of your goals via integrity:

1. Decide exactly what you want and be specific. If you want to increase your income don’t just say “I want to make more money.” Decide on a specific amount. I’ve found you need to be extremely specific with this. 

2. Write down your SPECIFIC goal.

3. Set a realistic deadline for your goal. 

4. Make a List of everything that you could possibly do to achieve your goal. Write down the obstacles and difficulties you will have to overcome. Then write the knowledge and skills you will need and the people who’s cooperation you’ll need to help achieve your goal. 

5. Organize your list by both sequence and priority. 

6. Take action immediately! Get going! 

7. Do something every day that moves you in the direction of your goal. 

When you make it a point to do something every day that moves you in the direction of your goal, you develop momentum. This momentum, this feeling of accomplishment inspires and energizes you! And through this and integrity it will become increasingly easy to take even more steps toward your goal. 😊