I Know What To Do, Why Am I Not Doing It?

My brain knows, but my habits clearly didn’t get the memo because why is doing the obvious thing so ridiculously hard

We all know that one person who gives amazing advice but doesn’t follow their own. Guilty as charged👀.

I know I should exercise more, eat better, drink more water, save money, sleep earlier, read more, spend less time on my phone and stop scrolling instagram at 2a.m. The problem isn’t knowledge, I know the answers, I’ve saved the motivational posts, I’ve even made the beautiful plan that makes me feel productive. What happens after? I then convince myself to do it tomorrow then tomorrow and then next Monday because Mondays feel more official.

You see, I am very much inside the problem, and if you’re feeling the same way, congratulations you’re not alone, apparently, procrastination has a very large membership , good thing is we can unsubscribe if we are willing. Think it through, the problem isn’t that we’re incapable, maybe we’re simply asking ourselves to do too much at once. We create complicated routines and unrealistic schedules. Then, when we inevitably fail to follow them perfectly, we quit.

The real culprit? Consistency. Sounds familiar? Consistency is less exciting than motivation. Motivation makes you feel powerful. Consistency makes you do boring things repeatedly, then you find the boring things enjoyable over time and it becomes a habit. Ironically, it’s the one that actually gets results.

The annoying part is, motivation feels great when it shows up. For the first 3 days, I become a completely different person. I wake up early, make plans, drink water and convince myself this is finally a new era. Then one tired morning happens, and suddenly the old me is back on the couch negotiating with the alarm clock.

So, instead of saying, “I’m going to exercise every day,” start with fifteen minutes three times a week, instead of saving a huge amount of money, start with a small automatic transfer. Instead of saying, “I’ll never waste time on my phone again,” put it away for thirty minutes. Instead of trying to read an entire book, read five pages. Small enough to do and simple enough to repeat, right?

The goal isn’t to become a completely new person overnight. It’s to become someone who keeps promises to themselves, one small promise at a time. Start small, make the habit easy, track your progress, expect bad days instead of being laid back by them, If you miss one day, simply return the next day without turning one missed day into a three month vacation.

Hmmm… and now my mind just went to discipline. A topic for another day, but  one that walks hand in hand with consistency. Discipline helps you stay consistent on days you lack motivation and consistency strengthens discipline. Hope that makes sense?

Turns out, knowledge has never been the problem because the solution wasn’t actually missing. It was CONSISTENCY!

So, if you’ll excuse me, I have some advice of my own to finally take. Wish me luck😌.