Tag / habit

by Nathan Coumbe

Streaks

What comes to mind when you hear the word “streak?”

One of the first images that comes to my mind is the tail behind a shooting star. It leaves a trail of light behind it, showing you its progression through the sky.

You can take that same metaphor and apply it to any part of your life:

  • Developing a daily creative practice (painting, drawing, writing, composing, etc.)
  • Growing a business (daily content creation, calling 5 people every single day)
  • Going on a weekly date with your spouse and not missing a week
  • Incorporating intentional movement or exercise into your daily routine

Just like with the comet, you’ll have a trail behind you, showing your growth and development over time. You can see where you started and how far you’ve come.

And the longer your streaks become, the harder they are to break. Can you imagine exercising every single day for 150 days? How terrible would you feel if you made it that far only to break it?

Jerry Seinfeld is famous for his creative streak: starting in the 1980s, he committed to writing one new joke every single day. That commitment seems to have worked out pretty well for him: today he’s worth in excess of $950 million.

My challenge for you is this: pick a habit you believe would have a major, positive impact on your life. Commit to it, track it on a calendar or an app, and get to a point where you’d be devastated if you broke it.

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by Nathan Coumbe

Change is a skill

That book you read, the TED talk you listened to, or that seminar you attended–it’s only half of the equation. The materials you absorb will not, in themselves, change you for the better (if that is what you seek).

Change is a skill, which means it is something that must be practiced consistently until whatever you seek to change becomes a habit.

The materials available to you are great: in my opinion, they are vital to get you out of whatever rut you currently find yourself. We all need another voice, a voice we trust, reminding us of what better is.

But it’s up to you to change. It requires taking action.

What will you do to change today?

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by Nathan Coumbe

Reaping excellence

I came across a little maxim yesterday that got my mind going, so I wanted to share.

“Sow a thought, reap an action; sow an action, reap a habit; sow a habit, reap a character; sow a character, reap a destiny.”

There is also a quote that pairs nicely with this maxim:

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.

– Aristotle

What is it that you repeatedly want to do? If you did it often enough, do you believe you would truly develop excellence in that habit?

Perhaps you should ask a related question: if what you are doing now isn’t something in which you want to develop excellence, what do you repeatedly think about? Once you have an idea in mind, you can then apply it to the maxim.

For example, let’s say that a person is constantly thinking about art, but only thinking, never creating any herself. We’ll start there.

“Sow a thought…” she is constantly thinking about and admiring the artistic work of others.

“Reap an action…” the aspiring artist decides to take drawing lessons and vows to draw a little bit every day, no matter how small it might be.

“Sow an action…” drawing each and everyday becomes second nature.

“Reap a habit…” she no longer even thinks about if she will draw today; the only thought on her mind is what to draw. A habit is developed.

“Sow a habit…” drawing has become second-nature to her now. It’s as habitual as brushing her teeth or eating.

“Reap a character…” she has become, intentionally or not, an artist. It is now who she is, a fundamental feature of her character. She is now one of the people she once admired.

“Sow a character…” you can see the rest. Her destiny is whatever she decides to make it at this point. She has already developed the skills and habits needed to carry her far down the path of artistic success, whatever she decides that looks like for her. Perhaps it is a career in art, or perhaps it is just a wonderfully enjoyable hobby. But it is now who she is.

So, what is it about which you constantly think? How can you turn those thoughts into action, and then practice those actions often enough until habits form and a certain character you want develops?

“We are what we repeatedly do…”

Decide and act on that in which you strive to be excellent.