Habit Will Sustain You
Source: entrepreneur.com
“First, forget inspiration. Habit is more dependable. Habit will sustain you whether you’re inspired or not. Habit will help you finish and polish your stories. Inspiration won’t. Habit is persistence in practice.” - Octavia E. Butler
Inspiration is exciting! It sets off a chain reaction of creative output and propels us in new directions. But it can’t happen every day, nor would we want it to. I doubt I’d get laundry done or get the dog groomed or weed the garden if I were continually struck by inspiration. Would you? Inspiration is great but it’s not always going to be there to get you through your typical day. Habits will.
I joined a writing community a few months ago and it's often been challenging to find my rhythm and inspiration. But the daily habit of showing up and just writing something—anything—makes a huge difference.
Our minds and bodies are reliant on neural pathways. To build my writing habit, I must create patterns that focus my mind and body on writing, establishing new neural pathways to sustain me. When the spark of inspiration is elusive, I can still rely on the habit of sitting myself down daily to write, even if I don’t always produce my best work.
Work, no matter what you do, is built on habits that help you focus. Finding the most efficient movements, planning your schedule to do your most challenging work when your brain is at its freshest and most alert, shutting off notifications when you need to concentrate: these types of habits are the foundation of growth and creativity. They provide necessary stability. If you find yourself struggling to build habits, check out these ideas. (And remember to be patient with yourself: It takes about 66 days to firmly establish a new habit.)
For all these reasons, we devote a great deal of our training and leadership development to learning how to build good habits; they’re vital to creating the environment we need to thrive. They carve out the mental space for inspiration to appear and they get us through the days when inspiration is nowhere to be found. Cherish your good habits and let them sustain you.
Michelle Kelly, CEO (Chief Enjoyment Officer)