Developing good habits is the basic of personal development and
growth. Everything we do is the result of a habit that was previously
taught to us. Unfortunately, not all the habits that we have are good,
that's why we are constantly trying to improve.
The following is a list of 30 practical habits that can make a huge
difference in your life.
You should treat this list as a reference, and implement just one
habit per month. This way you will have the time to fully absorb each
of them, while still seeing significant improvements each month.
Health habits
Exercise 30 minutes every day. Especially if you don't do much
movement while working, it's essential that you get some daily
exercise. 30 minutes every day are the minimum recommended for optimal
health.
Eat breakfast every day. Breakfast is the more important meal of the
day, yet so many people skip it. Personally, I like to eat a couple of
toasts in the morning along with a fruit beverage.
Sleep 8 hours. Sleep deprivation is never a good idea. You may think
that you are gaining time by sleeping less, when in reality you are
only gaining stress and tiredness. 8 hours are a good number of hours
for most people, along with an optional 20 minutes nap after lunch.
Avoid snacking between meals. Snacking between meals is the best way
to gain weight. If you are hungry, eat something concrete. Otherwise
don't. Update: for clarification, I mean don't eat junk food between
meals, but eating real food it's ok.
Eat five portions of fruits and vegetables every day. Our body and
brain loves getting vegetables and fruit, so I highly recommend eating
as much of them as possible. Five portions is the dose that's usually
recommended by many health associations.
Eat fish. Fish is rich of omega 3 and other healthy elements. At least
one meal per week of fish should be enough for getting all these
nutrients.
Drink one glass of water when you wake up. When you wake up, your body
is dehydrated and needs liquid. Make the habit of drinking one glass
of water after you wake up in the morning. Also, drink more during the
day.
Avoid soda. Soda is often one of the most unhealthy beverage you can
find. Limit your consumption of soda as much as possible and you're
body will be grateful for that.
Keep your body clean. I don't advise spending your day in front of the
mirror, but a minimum of personal care does never hurt.
If you smoke, stop it. There's no reason to smoke anymore, and quitting is easy.
If you drink, stop it. Same as above. Don't think that alcohol will
solve your problems. It never does. The only exception is one glass of
wine per day during meals.
Take the stairs. This is just a hack that forces you to do a minimum
of exercise. Instead of taking the elevator, take the stairs.
Productivity habits
Use an inbox system. Make the habit of keeping track of all the ideas
and things that comes to mind. You can use a notebook to do this, and
then sync everything on your computer.
Prioritize. If you have a list of things to do, where do you start?
One way is to prioritize your list. If you are in doubt, ask yourself:
"If I could only accomplish one thing today, what would it be?"
Plan, but not too much. Planning is important, and you should decide
in advance what you are going to do today or this week. However,
planning for more than a few weeks is usually inefficient, so I would
not worry too much about that.
Wake up early. Waking up early in the morning is a great way to gain
extra time. I personally like to wake up at 5 am, so that by 9 am I
have already accomplished what otherwise would have taken me many
days..
Check your email only twice per day. Email can easily become an
addiction, but it's usually unnecessary to check it every 10 minutes.
Make an effort and check your email only once or twice per day, see if
the world will still rotate as before after you try this.
Eliminate unimportant tasks. Being busy all day does not mean you are
doing important stuff. Eliminate every activity that's not important,
and focus on what really matters.
Clean off your desk and room. Having a clear room and desk is
important to maintain focus and creativity.
Automate. There are a lot of tasks that you need to perform every day
or every week. Try to automate them as much as possible.
Set strict deadlines. When you do something, decide in advance when
you're going to stop. There's a rule that states that you will fulfill
all the time you have available for completing a task, so make an
habit of setting strict deadlines for maximizing your productivity.
Take one day off per week. Instead of working every day, take one day
off per week (for example sunday) where you are not going to turn on
your computer. Use that time for doing recreational activities like
going for a walk.
Personal Development habits
Read 1 book per week. Reading is a good way to keep your brain active.
With just 30 minutes per day you should be able to read one book per
week, or more than 50 books per year.
Solve puzzles. Quizzes, word games, etc. are all good ways to exercise
your brain.
Think positively. You are what you think, all the time.
Make fast decisions. Instead of thinking for one hour wherever you are
going to do something, make your decisions as fast as possible
(usually less than 1 minute).
Wait before buying. Waiting 48 hours before buying anything is a
tremendous money saver, try it.
Meditate 30 minutes per day. A great way to gain clearness and peace
is through meditation. 30 minutes are not a lot, but enough to get you
started with meditation.
Career habits
Start a blog. Blogging is one of the best way to put your word out. It
doesn't have to be around a specific topic, even a personal blog will
do.
Build a portfolio. If your job is creating stuff, building a portfolio
is a great way to show what you are capable of. You can also
contribute stuff for free if that applies to your work.
What do you think? What are the habits that changed your life?
