How often do you take the time to reflect on your habits? If you’re anything like me- probably not very often. That’s why it’s sometimes hard to see when our everyday habits are affecting us negatively.
Here on this blog, I focus on self-care, mental health, and personal development. I couldn’t do those things without taking a good look at the habits that myself and so many others are doing that may be keeping us from being as happy as possible. Below, I’ve outlined 7 of the top bad habits that I feel can contribute to a less than happy life.
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- Comparing yourself to others.
We all do it. We see someone we are jealous of, and we instantly start comparing ourselves to them.
It can seem so harmless, but it really messes with our overall happiness.
When we spend our time taking mental note of all the things we should be rather than what we are, we are keeping ourselves from the self-love we deserve.
I know it’s much easier said than done, but next time you start to compare yourself to someone else, try to press pause, and remind yourself of ways that you are unique and amazing.
Bonus reminder- that person you’re comparing yourself to is most likely comparing themselves to someone as well. our views of ‘perfection’ are often subjective.
- Excluding self-care from your routine.
I get it-you’re busy. I’m right there with ya.
And when we have a seemingly endless to-do list, it can seem like a waste of time to ‘relax’ or spend time on our mental health.
But taking time to focus on ourselves, whether it’s daily or weekly, helps us in ways you may not even realize.
One time I saw a quote that has stuck with me. It said ‘you can’t pour from an empty cup’.
That is a constant reminder that I can’t give my all to whatever I’m doing if I am running on empty.
I need to take time as often as necessary to fill myself up again so that I can conquer whatever it is I’m doing.
- Not making your physical health a priority.
This is one that I am so so guilty of.
I find myself overwhelmed and busy, and I completely put my health on the back-burner.
I resort to fast food to save time, I skip exercising, and I sleep as little as possible.
At the time it seems irrelevant and unnecessary to me to make a healthy meal or make sure I’m drinking enough water, but soon enough, I start to feel the effects of my careless choices.
I’ve realized that self-success and physical health aren’t completely separate concepts.
How we treat our bodies matters so much. It can lead to better mental health, more productivity and so much more.
- Letting others make decisions for you.
When it comes to making decisions, many of us lean on others for advice and wisdom, and there is nothing wrong with that.
It’s perfectly healthy to care about the opinions of others.
It becomes unhealthy, however, when we start to allow those opinions to override our own in the decision-making process.
If we know in our hearts and minds what we want to do, but we allow others to make the decisions for us, we end up living a life that doesn’t really feel like our own.
Whether it’s your parents or spouse or friend or some complete stranger swaying you, stick to what you feel is right for you.
Each of us has our own path to follow. Choose the path that makes you happy.
- Saying ‘yes’ to everything.
Despite what you might think, it is not your job to do everything for everyone all of the time.
Society sometimes makes us feel like we need to spend all of our time taking every opportunity that comes our way. That can come in the form of helping others or taking on more work or having new adventures (and countless other things).
No matter what your ‘thing’ is, there can come a point when you get overwhelmed and overbooked.
Saying yes to everything may make you feel like you’re living life to the fullest, but it can also deplete you.
Learning to say ‘no’ every now and then can be beneficial.
It gives you a chance to unwind, to help your mind reset, and (like I mentioned in #2) refill your cup so that you are able to give 100% when you go back to doing your thing.
Next time you’re feeling a little bit empty, try not to take on any new tasks- at least for a little bit. Discover how it feels to take time for you.
- Negative self-talk.
Just like comparing yourself to others, this bad habit can really take a toll on how we see ourselves.
The more time we spend talking (or even thinking) negatively about ourselves, the farther away we get from the truth about how amazing (and deserving of self-love) we are.
A good lesson I learned a while back is to talk to yourself just like you’d talk to your friend or loved one. Chances are you wouldn’t tell your friend that they are fat or ugly or undeserving of love, so don’t tell yourself that either.
Regardless of what you may think, you are amazing and beautiful, and worthy of love. Give yourself the kindness you deserve.
- Waiting for ‘someday’.
Let me ask you this- are you currently going toward what you want most in your life? Do you feel like you are making progress toward your goals and achieving your dreams?
If the answer to that is no- what is stopping you?
So many of us spend our lives pushing off our goals and dreams in the thought that ‘someday’ we will do them or ‘maybe later’ things will be better.
But the truth is- ‘someday’ and ‘later’ likely won’t be any better than right now.
Life is so short, and it flies by. Rather than spending all of our time thinking about what life could be, we need to be actually living that life.
If you’re waiting for the perfect time to start something, that time is now. ‘There’s no time like the present’, as they say.
Right now is your opportunity to start living the life you want for yourself. So whatever that goal is you want to achieve- take that first step now.
Are you guilty of any of the bad habits on this list? Cutting out habits like these may seem small, but they’ll have a big impact on your happiness and well-being.
What’s a bad habit that you would like to break in your life?
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