Success Triggers by Ramit Sethi – Momentum

These are three personal habits that I would like to improve:

1) Keeping my belongings organized
2) Going on the walking route I take at least 3 times (currently walk it 2 times max)
3) Washing/moisturizing my face daily

For keeping my belongings organized, I could throw/put away one item daily. For walking, I could start with walking however much I normally walk the first day, and then each day walk back home after taking an additional 5 steps. For a face care routine, I could start by purchasing a face wash and a moisturizer/toner, and then set it up in a convenient place near my sink. It’s probably also a good idea to put a hairband near the sink so I could put my hair up. I could wash my face after brushing my teeth in the mornings. If going through the extra steps seem like too much, I can just splash my face with water the first week, then use the face cleanser the second week, then add moisturizer/toner the third week. I think it will be okay though because I used to wash my face with an acne cleanser and used regular lotion on my face afterwards. I just lost the habit because I ran out of cleanser and COVID-19 hit, so I didn’t go to CVS to buy a new one. But, I can set a reminder in my calendar to look for a face wash online.

Also, this can be a test to see if my skin improves. I remember one time I used to wash my face with Cetaphil, and I broke out in the lot of weird places on my face that I normally don’t break out in. It definitely was not good for my skin. I’ve heard people say that it’s sometimes best not to wash your face at all. I don’t know about that, but some products might not work too well with my skin. So, I can experiment with that.

I like Ramit’s idea of systematically creating small wins that can lead to big wins. I did this a few times in trying to create new habits. Before COVID-19, there was a walking trail I used to go to. I started off going around 3 times. Then in later weeks, I got used to going around 4 times. And eventually, I would go around 5 times. That would take a little over an hour by the time I got back home. It was my only form of exercise, so it was a big deal that I was at least walking that much every day.

I’m also thinking about trying to produce music in the evenings before I go to sleep in a way to build up momentum so that I am doing it more consistently and for longer periods of time. I could start off with 5 minutes, just creating a simple melody or drafting lyrics. Or, I could try recreating another song. And if I feel like continuing, I can. If not, retire for the day. I could do this for a week straight. Then, I can increase to 7 minutes, 9 minutes, 10 minutes, 12 minutes, 14 minutes, 15 minutes, 18 minutes, 20 minutes each week. So if I start that now, by November, I’d be consistently creating music 20 minutes a day, or 2 hours and 20 minutes every week. I could even increase that to 30 minutes a day. I think 20 minutes is substantial though. I could always do more than 20 minutes if I feel moved to do so.