Peace of Mind Organizing

Linking new habits to old

18 May 2015

A few years ago, I wrote a post about how I was able to create a habit of doing an unpleasant (but necessary) task by linking it to something I was already doing. (That habit was cleaning up the back yard after my dog.)

At the moment I have no dogs to pick up after (alas), but I was just marveling again at how I was able to quickly establish a habit, simply by linking it to something I’m already doing every day.

At the risk of oversharing, I’ll mention that I have toenail problem and have decided to try take care of it by soaking in a solution of apple cider vinegar and herbs, something that worked for me some years back. I use the Herbal Nail Fungus Soak from Long Creek Herbs, an herb farm here in Missouri.

That requires me to soak my foot daily for three to five minutes. Ideally that happens right after I shower. If you’ve read my blog for long, you know I’m punctuality challenged. Adding a three-to-five minute task to my morning routine felt like it might be an uphill battle.

It’s been 15 days since I started and I haven’t missed a day yet. And that’s because I linked it to something I was already doing in the morning.

Earlier this year, I started using the app Elevate on my iPhone. It’s one of those brain-game apps. Like many people my age, I worry about losing my cognitive abilities as I age. So I play three Elevate games a day. I enjoy them and they’re good for me, so doing them was an easy habit to develop. The hardest was remembering, but I’ve added “Do Elevate tests” as a repeating daily task in my task management app, Things. (More on Things in a future post.) After a few months, doing my Elevate tests in the morning was pretty ingrained.

So, to glue the new foot-soaking habit into my morning routine, I simply decided to do the Elevate tests while I soak my foot. They take roughly three to five minutes to do. I have my phone with me in the bathroom when I shower. (I listen to music when I shower.) So after I shower, I dry my hair and put on makeup. Then I sit and soak my foot while doing my Elevate tests. I look forward to the tests, so I don’t forget about them (and they’re on my task list). The best part? The foot soaking is not adding any minutes to my morning routine!

If you’d like to add a task to your day, consider what else you’re doing daily that you might link it to. It’s amazingly powerful!

Tagged with: habits, health, routines

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