Life is, indeed, a journey with various forms of experiences. These experiences have a way of shaping our behaviours. Someone once said it’s better to live a life that is proactive instead of reactive. What this means is being in control of your life and overcoming negative experiences.
To live proactively, I developed positive habits that have tremendously changed me, especially physically and mentally. I am not perfect, and to be honest, I don’t want to be a perfectionist; however, I need to create a positive change in my life by evolving.
I specifically decided to start with these simple habits below because they are directly related to my desire.
1. Practicing Gratitude. This practice has made me realise that I don’t need to wait for the ‘mountains to move’ before being grateful to God. It makes me complain less about what’s not working and appreciate God for what I already have.
2. Mindfulness. I used to be extremely anxious about all sorts of things but developing the habit of mindfulness has made me focus on what I can control, being more present rather than being lost in the thought of what has already happened or what is yet to happen. I wander into such thoughts, but when I realise myself, I overcome such thoughts by repeating positive affirmations and bible verses about mindfulness.
3. Self-development. I do this by reading books, listening to podcasts and taking professional courses.
4. Being more rational and logical about long-term decisions. Okay, this is a sensitive part, but I hope you’ll understand what I mean after reading this. I used to be extremely emotional, and most decisions I took in the past were based on my emotions. In retrospect, what helped me develop this habit was my husband’s lifestyle. Being married to my somewhat polar opposite created a balance in terms of my emotions. Now, I don’t have to act extremely emotional (especially when happy, excited, nervous, and scared).
5. Self-care routine. I am still working on this, but I must begin or end my day with a self-care routine. On the side, this is part of my me-time.
6. Increasing my water intake. This is particularly necessary because of the dry season in Nigeria. It helps me stay hydrated all the time.
7. Being physically active. When I decided not to count house chores and baby care as physical activities, it made me dedicate more time to actual physical activities such as taking long walks, Zumba, Tabata and, full-body workouts.
8. Forgiving. In the past, I used to hold on to many memories- the good, bad and ugly. Still, when those ugly experiences started changing my thinking process, I realised that giving room for disappointments will help me overcome any situation. I don’t mean I have trust issues, but hey, no one is perfect. Forgiveness is actually a beautiful thing!
9. Trusting in God. Finally, This is one aspect of my life I can’t do without. Psalm 37:4-6 ‘Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday sums up how I can evolve because it’s not by my power but by trusting and depending on God. In Christ, there is peace, a kind of peace that men don’t quite understand; there’s hope for a better future, there’s strength to cope in any situation, there’s the capacity to grow.
In summary, developing a positive habit requires time and effort; therefore, it is important to identify what aspect of your life needs a change and gradually evolve.
If you love this blog, kindly share the posts with your friends and loved ones. It will mean a lot to me to know your thoughts in the comments. Love, Grace
