Hello 356 Club Members –
I am testing the new group alias ([email protected]) and it appears to be working.
I also wanted to send a bit of inspiration as I know getting started is the hardest part of a commitment like this. First – I want you to know that I am probably an expert on the subject of NOT being disciplined. I have spend almost 35 years trying to figure out how to become a more disciplined person. Well, I finally figured it out!
I was lied to. There is no such thing as discipline. I used to think it was some great gift, or power that people achieved. I would always lament – “Why cant I be more disciplined!” or “If only I could be more disciplined, I would accomplish all these great things!” Well stop wasting your time – disciplined people know the secret. I found out the secret when I finally became disciplined at something. The secret is that discipline does not exist – what exists is good habits.
People that appear to all of us as “disciplined” have really just developed good habits. For a person with very few good habits (like me), the lifestyle of a person that has developed many good habits can seem overwhelming. They wake up in the morning at the same time, they eat a good health breakfast, they exercise, they read scriptures, they pray, they make their bed, they write in their journal, they water the plants, they call their mom, they send letter at Christmas time….you know what I am talking about. Those people. I have never understood “How” to become one of “those people.”
Well now I know. It is really rather simple and they have been hiding the secret from me. All you have to do is really just develop a good habit and then after a while, voila, that habit is no longer difficult to remember to do – it just happens. If you keep up the implementation of good habits – eventually you compile a bunch of good habits and everyone around you will be in awe at your tremendous discipline. It is not hard work to be disciplined, it is hard work developing the good habit!
So I have explored a few questions on this subject during my life. The first is – how long do I have to suffer in developing a habit before it really becomes a habit? The second is what is the most important habit to work on first?
I will answer the first question. 18 days is a myth. I have tried it and 18 days is not enough. Someone told me 18 days was the magic number – that person was not speaking from experience. I have learned that it takes me about 90 days to develop a solid habit. It maybe different for you. I can tell you that it will take at least 60 days. So just plan on 60 – 90 days of having to remind yourself and reinforce the need to keep something up until it becomes a habit.
For those of you who had parents that reminded you everyday growing up to say your prayers, make your bed, brush your teeth – you can now call them and thank them for helping you to develop lifelong habits. For the rest of us – we are going to have to nag ourselves into remembering to follow our 365 commitment everyday for at least 60 days – and then it will become habitual and it will be second nature and you will be surprised that it was ever so hard to remind yourself to do it!
The second question is something I have wondered my whole life. What is the most important habit to develop. Well now you know how and why I came up with the 365 commitment. I concluded that daily prayer was the absolutely most important, followed by planning your day, and finally writing your commitments down. Those three things are the most important habits that I can think of. Now you can debate with me on many others. Exercise would be a good one, eating well might be another – perhaps you will argue that making your bed is the most critical habit. All that maybe true – go ahead and add that to your list each day – but I absolutely believe that prayer and deciding before the day starts what is important to you to accomplish are the absolute foundation of an inspiring journey through life. I also have learned that what I write down becomes true.
I am already experiencing the positive results and I am only on day 2.
Thanks,
Guy Reams (2)
365 Club Member
The (2) represents the number of days I have kept my commitment
