Good Habits = Success
We’re coming to the end of the first quarter of 2023. How has it been for you? Hopefully, you’ve been making progress, and my articles have been good support. However, if you’re not quite where you thought you’d be, here are two thoughts I’d like to offer you: 1. Give yourself a little more time. 2. Have you developed the right habits to achieve your goals?
Today, our focus is on our habits. If we look at life from a simplistic perspective, our lives are our habits. So, if you have a “good” life, you have “good” habits, and vice versa. I use quotations because good is relative and dependent on your definition.
So, what are habits? One possible definition is the cluster of activities that tend to be completed together. What do I mean by this? When you get up in the morning to get ready to start the day, what are the things you do? It’s probably some combination of cleaning yourself, getting dressed, and eating. Each could be considered a habit; all three combined would be one bigger habit.
In my last article, I discussed preparing to take action on your goals. That was laying the groundwork for this week on habits. How? To successfully achieve your goal, you need to link up the preparation work and the work you need to do. In other words, a habit.
I’m a bit of a Warriors bandwagoner, but I remember hearing a story about Steph Curry and his work ethic before he became the man he is today. I believe it was during junior camps, but after practice, Steph Curry stayed afterward and wouldn’t leave until he made five free throws in a row. Why did he do this? For one, what you practice is what you do in a real situation. Second, he intentionally was creating pressure on himself so that it would translate into a real game. Can you imagine how many times he made four free throws and missed the fifth?
So building habits, as we see with Steph Curry, it was about building resilience under pressure. Why was it important? Simply because he knew he’d end up shooting a lot of free throws and wanted to capitalize on those opportunities as often as possible. He knew it would be under a pressure situation, so he prepared himself for playing under pressure. So, in this case, practicing making five free throws in a row allowed him to make those clutch free throws.
Back in my music days, as a percussionist, we had a lot of instruments to play, especially in musical theater. I might be sitting in front of a drum set, but I also have a set of timpani next to it on one side, and the xylophone and glockenspiel set up on the other side. Then there would be the tambourine and triangle on a stand somewhere in between and another stand just for all the sticks, mallets, and beaters. A good chunk of learning my part was where I would set everything up. I would read through the score and see what transitions there would be, so I could create an efficient setup. Performing it would be near impossible if I didn’t spend enough time doing this. I also planned for if/when I dropped a stick or mallet and had extras nearby. The preparation and thinking through different scenarios allowed me to focus on playing confidently, and I didn't have to worry about if things went wrong because there was a backup plan in place.
So, when you’re building your habits, what are you wanting to do, and what preparation needs to be completed? It could be meal planning, so it’s healthier food when you cook. Maybe it’s meditating first thing in the morning so you can better handle the stresses of the day. Maybe it’s planning breaks throughout your work day so you have a better attitude, feel more creative, and have enough energy to get through the day. I hope these examples gave you some point of inspiration!
As always, I’m curious to hear about your takeaways. Let me know how you will prepare to crush your goals!
Coach Kev helps people achieve calm, clarity, and confidence in their life while running all the scenarios. Contact him at kevinkoocoaching@gmail.com, or follow on IG and YouTube @kevinkoocoaching
