I have not missed a daily workout in over nine years. My daily meditation practice has been consistent for over seven years and I have been publishing a daily blog for over five years
When people hear about this most of them comment on my discipline or ask me about habits.
Many people ask me the secret, maintaining such consistency over a long span of time.
This consistency is not rooted in discipline or in habits
Although it may have created a habit, it starts with commitment.
Yesterday’s Saturn Cazimi provides aligned energy for making a long-term commitment. As you consider what you are committing to, here are three tips for creating commitments that you can sustain for the long term.
(1) Align Your Commitment With Your Values
When your commitments are not aligned with your values, keeping them becomes an uphill battle.
my health and wellness or one of my top values. Health is the foundation for everything we do in life I know that exercise is important for my health. I feel better, and I am more effective in my work when I move my body. The same goes for meditation even just a few minutes to sit in silence gives me time and space in my day and helps me show up better for the people in my life
Writing fuels my creative expression.
These are things that are important to me to fit into my life, so it’s easier to keep my commitments to them.
(2) Make Your Commitment As Small As Possible
Here’s a general principal:
Set big goals and make small commitments.
Smaller than you feel might be effective, especially at the beginning.
If you’re used to big moves, this will feel challenging and counterintuitive.
When I first started meditation, my commitment was for 2 minutes each day. You always have two minutes. And if two minutes feels like a challenge, drop it down to one minute.
Under commit and over deliver when you can.
What is the minimum viable commitment you feel certain that you can make?
Maybe it’s 5 minutes to stretch each day. Start there.
Consistently meeting your commitments builds confidence, whereas failing to meet your commitment creates fatigue and burnout.
(3) Create a Plan
When you strip it down, every commitment requires you to show up
- in a certain place
- at a certain time
- for someone or something
Even if that someone is yourself. Even if that “something” is a process or a task that nobody will ever see.
Plan these specifics of your commitment:
- what you’re going to do
- when you’re going it do it
- where you’re going to do it
- for how long
As a bonus, make a back up plan: what will you do if your first plan fails?
The difference between a promise and a commitment is that a commitment is specific and has a structure around it.
Without the structure, all you’ll have is broken promises.
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