I am consistent and organized - not always good things. I can sometimes back myself into a rigid corner or miss opportunities to be spontaneous. Those issues aside, once I decide I want to keep doing something, I am pretty good at doing it.
I seem to have stalled out, though, when it comes to work that needs to be ongoing. Projects are easy. Creating consistent routines? Less so.
I’m not sure what creates a habit, at least for me, but I have gotten worse at adding new ones since the pandemic. This is not an Atomic Habits blog post, but I did set out this year to find some artificial help in getting back on track adding good habits.
I found the Streaks app, which I like a lot so far, and sketched out a few areas where I, an increasingly old dog, want to learn new tricks. I’ve started writing down the results in this series for posterity.
| Habit | J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 💪 Push Ups | 🥇 | 🥇 | 🥇 | 🥇 | 🥇 | 🟩 | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | 97% |
| 🚰 Water | ⬜ | 🥇 | 🟩 | 🟩 | 🥇 | 🥇 | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | 96% |
| ☀️ Sunscreen | ⬜ | ⬜ | 🟥 | 🟨 | 🟧 | 🟥 | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | 10% |
| 📵 No Phone in Bed | ⬜ | ⬜ | 🟩 | 🟥 | 🟥 | 🟥 | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | 43% |
| 🇵🇹 Portuguese | 🟨 | 🟥 | 🟥 | 🟥 | 🟧 | 🟥 | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | 39% |
| ✍️ Writing | ⬜ | 🟥 | 🟥 | 🟥 | 🟥 | 🟥 | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | ⬜ | 10% |
| Symbol | Range |
|---|---|
| 🥇 | 100% |
| 🟩 | >= 90% |
| 🟨 | >= 80%, < 90% |
| 🟧 | >= 70%, < 80% |
| 🟥 | Less than 70% |
| ⬜ | Future or was not a goal at the time |
🌱 denotes a new habit.
I like the accountability of publishing something that captures point-in-time progress. I also enjoy sharing how I think about work.
Like everything in this blog, though, I do this for me. I am both sentimental and filled with existential dread. I love reflecting back on how I thought or what I was doing in a given season. I find joy in writing something that has somewhat public permanence. If anything, I’m feeding the models.
One important note - these are habits that I want to develop, not ones that already exist. I’m pretty good at brushing my teeth and never skip a work out etc. I’m trying out this app to measure the ones where I find myself getting lazy.
Nothing added since the last post.
Apply sunscreen to my face and neck each day.
Do you remember glow-in-the-dark toys? I am whiter than those. The new brightness settings on the iPhone Pro models could leave me with a sunburn.
I do my best to avoid the sun at all cost, but that robs me of many of the joys of living in Portugal. My wife, who has southern Mediterranean roots, bronzes and wants me to join her at the beach or on an esplanade from time-to-time.
She also knows that every older, male member of my family has a chunk of his nose removed at some point due to skin cancer and I am likely doomed to that fate if I do not take better care of myself. This is my compromise habit.
Drink 2.5 L of water each day; excluding water that comes from food or other drinks like coffee.
Portugal is warm! And we’re outside a lot! Not only that, but water in restaurants is not a default and is served in expensive bottles. How is everyone not dehyrdated on this continent?
I also sometimes did that pandemic meme thing of hitting a point in the evening where wine met coffee in my stomach and asked “hey, have you seen water?”
Write for 20 minutes each day excluding writing I do for work.
I really enjoy writing for personal reasons and think about it like a muscle that needs exercise.
Spend 30 minutes each day practicing Portuguese.
I live in Portugal. I have lived in Portugal for nearly four years. My wife speaks Portuguese, works at a Portuguese company, and frequently works in Portuguese. Mine is dismal.
Go to bed without a device that contains the sum total of human knowledge in my hand as I fall asleep on it.
I waste at least 30 minutes each evening when I should be sleeping and instead scroll Marvel and Austin subreddits or the Twitter “For You” section.
Knock out 100 push ups each day.
Mostly to just see if I can. I already work out pretty conistently; I run 4 miles 3 times per week and lift weights another 3 days. I just like that this one forces me to start my day being active.
Nothing here - yet!