Habits

I’m 25. Below are some of the habits that I practice daily.

1. Cultivate your focus. Here’s how:
1. Work on a task single-mindedly. Multitasking isn’t a virtue. Your mind isn’t designed to multitask. When I multitask, I usually get little things done. When I singletask, things get completed pretty effectively.
2. Your mind will sneakily look for distractions. That’s normal. Acknowledge your wandering mind and refocus on your task.
3. Focus on things which are reasonably beyond your comfort zone. So that you can grow. Solve challenging questions. Study helpful topics. Challenge your pre-existing beliefs.
4. When you master the ability to focus, you get into flow state much more easily. Your learning curve will increase exponentially. You’ll be an effective learner and productive hustler.
5. I hope you see that the opportunity to practice focus is everywhere. Focus is an invaluable asset. Cultivate it.
2. Read. Here’s how:
1. Most people don’t read. Some read for pleasure. Few read to improve their behavior. To improve your life, read with the grand objective to improve your behavior.
2. It’s easy to intellectualize the things you’ve read, and that’s required. But most people are trapped there, almost forever. You have to go beyond that. You want to have both the theory and practice. You want to internalize those wisdom. Don’t simply stop at understanding something intellectually - make it a part of who you are.
3. Assess yourself and identify your current bottleneck. If you procrastinate recently, read books about procrastination. Understand the mechanism of procrastination deeply. If you want to be more financially-literate, read books like Rich Dad Poor Dad, Cash Flow Quadrant and The Millionaire Next Door. I’ve read those books again and again. Good results do happen.
4. Highlight important text. Make your own notes. Challenge the author’s point of view if necessary. You don’t have to agree with everything the author says. Cultivate your own thinking ability.
5. Most importantly, revisit your books from time to time. New wisdom will be explored. That’s what I consistently experience.
3. Reflect. Here’s how:
1. It’s impractical to aim to be a perfect human being. It’s more practical to be the best we can be, and reflect from our mistakes.
2. You have to accept that mistakes are unavoidable. In fact, mistakes are our silent mentors. Just make sure you don’t make the reckless and foolhardy ones. That’s a different story.
3. Identify behaviors which weigh you down and consciously decide to behave better next time. For example, if you waste too much time on the bed, make a conscious decision to literally jump out of the bed once you wake up.
4. I was stupid. I used to make my reflection sessions into self-sabotaging sessions. Don’t do that. You can’t change your past. Accept it and look forward.
5. Imagine you applying reflection on your career, relationship and the skills you want to build. Man, you’ll be able to go much further.
4. Feel good. Here’s how:
1. You don’t want to feel bad, do you? Well, understand that it’s you who fundamentally determines how you feel. In other words, inner work is required.
2. Practice gratitude. No matter how good or bad your life is, there must be something to be grateful about. This morning, I am consciously grateful that I am alive, the sun is bright and my car engine starts smoothly. You get the point.
3. The ability to feel good is a skill. Build that skill, so you don’t have to depend on low-conscious things like alcohol, party and junk food to feel good temporarily.
4. I’m not suggesting you to abstinate from alcohol, party and junk food all together. You can enjoy those things, as long as you don’t make them as your only source of good feelings. Put this crucial understanding into perspective.
5. You can feel good at anytime. Anytime. The question is, are you actually willing to make it happen?
5. Exercise. Here’s how:
1. Pick up some physical activities you like and do it for at least three times per week and 30 mins per session. Better yet, exercise daily.
2. Have fun while exercising. Be present in the moment. Put all other things aside.
3. Health is wealth. To verify, you may ask those wealthy people laying on the hospital beds. I’ve asked them. Yes, they said health is wealth.
4. Don’t mix up exercising with competition. If you jog, there’s no need to be the fastest runner in your town. Just jog, sweat and enjoy. Your goal is to be healthy, not to win medals.
5. Make friends through exercising. It will be fun. Also, a number of them may become your best buddies or confidants someday.

I practice these habits consistently, and my life’s improving.