Keystone Habits Equal Life Balance: Three Characteristics They All Share

"Keystone habits explain how Michael Phelps became an Olympic champion and why some college students outperform their peers. They describe why some people, after years of trying, suddenly lose 40 pounds while becoming more productive at work and still getting home in time for dinner with their kids." – Charles Duhigg 

Could it really be this simple?  Are we driving ourselves crazy, stressing ourselves out, and perpetuating an imbalanced life because we're focusing on too many things? Perhaps this focus on everything distracts us from focusing on the most important things, which causes us to want to give up before we meet our goals. I know this is the case for me.

I wrote a historical fiction novel about five years ago now and a children's picture book manuscript about the same time. I have invested both time and money over these years, honing my writing craft, working with a consultant, paying for professional editing, and now designing a website (coming soon to a browser near you!). And yet, now that I finally got up the nerve to show the work to an agent or two, I jump on the Etsy bandwagon and decide I'm going to do some sewing projects in my spare time. What spare time?!? 

It took me eight hours over the last couple of days to sew a purse. I decided I to quicken my time without sacrificing quality. Since I now knew how the pieces went together and my material was already laundered and ironed, I cut my time in half for the second bag. Cool. But that was twelve hours that I could have spent writing or perfecting a proposal or completing a blog post – and I'm sewing. Hmmm... I sense a post about self-sabotage coming on, but I'll have to reserve that for another day. Back to the topic at hand....

If I believe in Duhigg's "Cue, Routine, and Reward" cycle, I need to find out what my reward is in delaying the gratification of success in writing. And I need to figure out what keystone habits I should implement to start the ripple of success in writing. 

But let's take one step back. I have learned that keystone habits share three basic characteristics:

1) The Science of Small Wins – "Small wins are a steady application of a small advantage," a professor from Cornell wrote in 1984. "Once a small win has been accomplished, forces are set in motion that favor another small win." These small wins convince us that larger achievements are within reach. We repeat them, see a little more by way of results, repeat them, see a little more...I suddenly feel like The Little Engine That Could! Our habits take over, leaving success as just another step in the pattern.

2) Create New Platforms – We should look for new patterns that create new platforms from which other habits can emerge. Mental visualization is the bedrock of this characteristic. We must visually see ourselves succeeding so readily that it eventually becomes rote. If we can do that, we can rest in the knowledge of success because we have "seen" it happen so often. We will not be riled by unexpected challenges because we will be able to "see" the end result. And success will become effortless.

3) Establish a Culture Where Excellence is Contagious – In order to do this, we must expect the unexpected. We must plan for it and know how to respond when it occurs. If we have that game plan ahead of time, we won't be thrown off track when the unexpected happens.

How does all of this apply to my writing? I haven't quite decided yet, but I know I need to get a copy of this book. Uh-oh...another delay in the writing...?

Enjoy your day. Enjoy this blog.