One of the questions I get asked most often as a health and wellness coach is, how do I create healthy habits that are sustainable? The answer to this question actually lies inside of you already.

Lets break this down into an idea that you can work with today. When people decide to make a change, they often set their sights on a big goal. This may be a goal they have wanted to try or have tried in the past and have had success but it wasn’t lasting. We often equate big success with big action. For some people this can work, but for most of us, honing in on smaller habits are what lead to success. It is the accumulation of the success of smaller habits that sets the foundation for the success of the larger habit. 

James Clear wrote a book called Atomic Habits. In his book he talks about improving yourself 1% everyday. It sounds pretty simple, right? Most of us could commit to doing 1% better than we did yesterday. James states, “The effects of habits multiply as you repeat them. They seem to make little difference on any given day and yet the impact they deliver over the months and years can be enormous.” James also says, ”The seed of every habit is a single, tiny decision.”

How do you apply this to a habit you would like to change or develop in your life? Look at the habit and then pick one small thing you can do today to head you in that direction. For example, when I wanted to start reading regularly, I decided to read just one page from my book everyday. Once I was successful with one page everyday, I changed that to 5 minutes. As I continued to be successful, reading everyday became something I did and not something I had to plan for or think about. I became a daily reader, it was part of who I was.  

Make sure that you pick just one habit to focus on that day. You want it to be small enough that you can experience success. As you continue to experience success you will begin to identify yourself as someone who lives the lifestyle you are seeking. This will be the foundation for continuing to make change that is aligned with what you want out of life and is sustainable. 

What is one small thing you can do today to help you create a healthy, sustainable habit? If you need help or have questions please reach out! I’m looking forward to hearing from you.