March Was the Beginning of an Experiment and Here’s Everything I Learned
Even though the experiment was a failure...
At the beginning of March, I made a plan. All this started with a long brutally honest talk with my husband after which I realized that I was not doing enough for my goals. In fact, 70% of the time I am still going with the flow.
During our conversation, I realized that no matter how efficiently I start, I always get back to my old habits. I would:
Get up early
Write every single day
Read every chance I get
Exercise
But then after a few days, I would skip a day here and there until I realised:
I keep pressing the snooze button instead of getting up early
I am not writing anymore
I spent most of my time worried
I am a couch potato again
And I am only reading fiction
I started again in March with the resolve to not quit no matter how hard it gets and I still failed.
Here’s why
I even woke up at 5 am for about two weeks, but by the third week, I realized there was a flaw in my plan.
Most of my plans were made on the assumption that things would go my way and I would be able to follow the routine. I didn’t take into consideration the external factors like:
I will get sick
There will be guests
My nephew and niece will come to stay with us for a week
I would visit my parent’s home
And about 10 other obligations and responsibilities.
Other than everything, one thing that stuck out to me is that there is no review process.
Why did the plan not work?
How can I make it better?
Am I doing everything I can?
My new plan
Among all this confusion, my husband gave me the best and simplest idea to track my progress daily. A process that needs just 3 minutes every day. Basically, at the end of the day, I have to answer three simple questions.
Did I do anything for my mental growth (meditation, reading, etc.)?
Did I do anything for my physical growth (exercise, walking, yoga, etc.)?
Did I do anything for my financial growth (writing, coding, etc.)?
Just answering these three questions is enough to make every day count and that’s what I need.
And even though I think I failed, March was still better than the previous few months.
I was writing
My work was published
I woke up early most days even though I hated it
I made a little progress in my coding journey
My mental health is better and so is my physical health
So, in April, I will try this new process and this time, instead of waiting for the month to end, I will make adjustments at the end of each week.
In this month, I have realized that the biggest hurdle is not just starting. Starting anything is easy. You’re full of hope and everything.
It’s the journey that is hard. Doubts start creeping in and you hate everything and everyone. You’re tired most of the time and spend all the time judging yourself.
It takes strength to keep going despite these doubts. But if you show up every day for 90 days, even if your life will not change completely, it’ll certainly be better than it is now.
❄️ Published this week on Medium
These are my friend links, so even if you’re not a Medium member you can read it.
10 Crucial Everyday Habits You Need to Embrace Without Guilt
I Spent Years Wishing I Was Born a Man
I Was So Anxious as a Kid That Even Small Humans Found Me Irritating
I’ll see you next Sunday,
Sush