I’m not so crazy about change. But change comes in many forms for all of us.
Many people assume that meaningful change begins when they decide to become a different person. But the thing is, “lasting” change often begins in a much simpler and easier way. One way to start all of this is by changing the routines and habits that we do every day. All those things that shape our everyday lives and we do them just because we always do them.
I know this from experience. Small adjustments to our “routines” can have a remarkable effect on our behavior.
It can be simple, little things. I suppose it all depends on what you are aiming for. Like keeping healthy food where it is easy to use. This will encourage better eating. Or that doom scroll. We can turn off unnecessary phone notifications. This will reduce all those wonky distractions.
I’ve just started doing this next one. It is having a notebook open and nearby. It makes it easier to begin writing or planning or drawing or coming up with new ideas.
Here is another thing.
I learned this simple rule from someone I met in Minnesota about 21 years ago. She used to say, “It will only take two minutes.” She meant that if a task takes two minutes or less, we should just do it now. Easy peasy. It keeps everything manageable.
So. When little tasks pop up, I do them right away. I get them out of the way. It only takes two minutes, and then you are free and clear of it, and your brain opens up to other things.
None of these changes are dramatic. At all.
That is exactly why they are so effective. We don’t have to depend on any super powers. We don’t have to wait until we feel motivated. We don’t need some magic wand to come along and make change possible.
You see, these little things make good decisions easier to make. They will work on any day of the week. They will. Even on those days when we are tired, busy, or distracted. Or on good days, when all is going right.
Little things we do can help us become better people.
Little things we do can help the world become a better place.
It might only take two minutes.
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“Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together.” — Vincent van Gogh
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“Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.” — Robert Collier
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“The secret of getting ahead is getting started.” — Mark Twain
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“Well begun is half done.” — Attributed to Aristotle
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