When to Avoid Choices

Think about the things you find difficult. Or that get you feeling sad or angry or otherwise unresourceful and triggered.

What happens feels automatic. You don’t usually have to think about whether or not you’re going to get mad or sad or frustrated. It just happens.

When I’m working with clients, instead of feeling triggered, I want them to get to a place where they have a choice. A choice in responding, a choice in behaving, a choice about feelings.

Except not always.

Sometimes you know in advance how you want to respond, how you want to feel, what you want to do in a particular situation.

It’s at times like those that having well-structured habits and routines in place are a miracle. You don’t have to decide over and over again.

Think of all the things you do automatically during your day already. Imagine if you had to decide to do each one every time it needed to happen. Now imagine if you were doing the things you wished you were doing just as easily.

That’s the power of habits.

You decide in advance what is important to you, what would make your day go more smoothly, get you headed toward that big scary goal, and you create habits to get those results.

Willpower? Not a prerequisite.

If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time, you know that I’ve had a hard time even accepting the power of habits. Yet, once I came to my senses, I’ve developed some amazing habits, like blogging five days a week for seven weeks straight, a regular workout schedule, and loads of tiny things that have become so familiar I’ve forgotten about them.

What you can do.

Remember how I traveled to St. Louis back in April to give a workshop with Janine Adams?

Guess what? Janine’s traveling to Portland so we can give the workshop here!

All the details are set.

And if you’re ready to create some Freedom and Ease with Habits and Routines we’d love to have you join us in Portland the morning of August 3. Read all about the workshop here.