“The only proper way to eliminate bad habits is to replace them with good ones” — Jerome Hines
You will hear this every day: “You should build good habits!”. Sometimes it might be your friends who give you this advice. Or in other cases you might hear this from your family or other people who are close you. But the most important question remains “Which good habits should I build?”
There are so many habits to choose from. Making drastic positive changes to your life is important but its not an easy step. It requires you to rethink your lifestyle, your choices, your routines. There is also the fear of failure: “What if I fail at this?”. Keeping that view in mind, we still think its important to build good habits to become better.
Good habits can lead to improved physical and mental health, enhanced well-being, increased productivity, stronger relationships and personal growth. In this post we will give you a list of good habits to choose from, that can help you become better.
Get good and healthy sleep every night
Are you surprised to see this as number #1 on our list of habits? Well, we think sleep is the most fundamental habit to human recovery. As of 2024, world’s population is estimated to be around 8 billion people. All of those people get sleep every night but not all of them get good sleep. As per available research only 20 percent of adults say the quality of their sleep is very good or excellent.
Getting good sleep is the single most important fundamental habit that you can build that will give you long-term rewards. The best thing is that it doesn’t even cost you anything. During sleep, our bodies repair tissues, consolidate memories, and regulate hormones, leading to improved physical health, cognitive function, and emotional stability. Sufficient sleep also enhances mood, reduces stress, and boosts energy levels, making us more productive and resilient throughout the day.
Say “Thank you” to people around you
Gratitude is a simple yet powerful way to connect with people. Thanking people allows you to build connection with them, increase your happiness as well as share your happiness. It shifts your focus towards the positive aspects of your life. Saying “thank you” every day is a great way to shield yourself from bad thoughts and negativity. It helps you acknowledge good things in your life and through this good habit you can combat stress and anxiety more effectively.
Saying thank you to people can be done in many ways. It doesn’t always have to be a verbal action. It can be done in non-verbal ways e.g. Smiling at someone to convey warmth and appreciation. Or making eye contact to show you are present and engaged in expressing gratitude. A handshake or a hug is another way to show people that you care about them.
Start your week with one “Hero Goal”
We know goal setting and planning is important. But, most often we get distracted when we set too many goals. Too many goals create noise around us and don’t let us focus on what truly matters. So, how we do we filter the noise to create good habit? The best way to do that, in my opinion, is to start your week with one “Hero Goal”
Hero goal is that one super important, highly ambitious, specific and measurable, yet time-bound goal that matters to you the most. It could be as small as “I have to buy tickets for my family trip this week” to as big as “This week I will run a marathon”. No goal is small or big. What matters the most is how that goal is important to you and what kind of satisfaction it brings to you. Having a single, significant goal for the week helps you prioritize tasks and brings increased motivation that can’t come from multiple goals.
Push yourself outside your comfort zone
“Unfortunately, resilience matters in success, I don’t know how to teach it to you except for I hope suffering happens to you.” — Jensen Huang , Nvidia CEO
The quote was said by Nvidia’s CEO to Stanford students in a recent gathering. Nvidia started as a small hardware company in 1993. Today its one of the most valuable companies in the world providing AI hardware and services. Jensen’s statement is a reminder that success comes to those who push themselves outside their comfort zone.
But, how is this is a good habit? That is because pushing yourself outside your comfort zone is inherently linked to the idea of experiencing challenges. Those who experience challenges often develop a habit to bounce back from setbacks. This is called resilience. There are simple ways to push yourself outside your comfort zone e.g. talk to strangers, travel somewhere new, speak up in gatherings. Doing simple little things beyond your comfort zone will help you in personal and professional growth.
Eat something green and drink water
I think this is one of the simplest and easiest good habits to develop. Unfortunately this is also often the most overlooked habit. Most people believe that they have to do something extraordinary to build good habits and live a healthy lifestyle. In reality, you could just start by eating something green (fruits, vegetables etc) and drinking plenty of water.
Eating green can reduce risk of chronic diseases like heart disease, cancer etc and help improve digestion. Similarly, water helps with recovery, boosts brain performance and helps regulate body temperature. These habits go hand-in-hand to develop a positive body and soul.
That’s it for now. Hope you enjoyed this list of good habits. These are just a few of many important good habits you can build to make yourself better. Hopefully you will find more good habits and share them with us.