Thursday, November 12, 2015

Change your habits...but not today.

What are some habits you would like to change about yourself? Would you like to exercise more? Eat better? What about going to all your classes? Being more organized. Don't procrastinate as much. 


With the winter breaks coming up, it is a perfect time to access yourself and decide on one habit you would like to change. Instead of focusing on too many habits and getting overwhelmed, focus on the ONE that is most important to you. You can add on later once you have successfully accomplished your first goal. Furthermore, Don't expect to change anything about yourself in just a day. The only way to make a true change is to take baby steps and gradually improve.


 Believe it or not,our habits are determined by our cerebral cortex, which involves muscle memory. Our habits are literally engrained into our brains through synapse connections. It is impossible for us to change those connections one day, instead we need to gradually carve out new pathways for our synapses to make a permanent change.


Lets take an example. Say you want to be more organized for the Spring semester.
Start out with small steps. Get yourself a planner. When your teachers give you your syllabus, go ahead and write down all your known homework for that semester in your planner. If you're on a roll, you can even color highlight different activities, events, or classes.
Next, create a weekly set schedule. I have a chart above my desk that tells me where I absolutely need to be and at what times for every day of the week. That way I can see where my free time and utilize it properly.
Finally, Its time to clean out those files from your high school English class on your computer that you're never going to need again. Do a clean sweep of everything you don't need on your computer and organize the things you do need into folders. My personal computer has folders in folders in folders. Keep up with your organization by always saving your work to the correct folder. This way, you will never lose anything!


Whatever you're goal is, don't forget: Pick 1 and take it slow! Don't be afraid to reward yourself either!

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