Challenge yourself…Everyday!

All the learned people say that with the help of a little will power, it roughly takes 30 days for a person to develop a new habit permanently. Starting something new is always a hustle and for someone like me who is always looking for something new, the hustle is the best part. However it is difficult to adjust to changes therefore it is important to start with small positive activities and changes on daily basis for smaller periods like thirty days.

Just like the old saying about eating an elephant one bite at a time, the philosophy of life works the same way, one step at a time. Trying to take a leap and jump off a couple of steps will only result in you falling face down. There is not anything wrong with falling on this road of life but think of all the things you could have learned while taking those missed steps, how much you will miss and how much you will treasure.

Starting small is always a trick to get a hold of a happy life what is even more fun is to challenge your life and experience what you are capable of doing. It gives you a chance to broaden your horizons and understand yourself in more depth. Small new things and activities just add an extra little spark in life and keep you going and refresh your mind. Below I have presented a list of things that I think can be very helpful in order to have a new beginning and welcome a new habit in your life. No, you do not have to try them all and all at once. Pick the one that best suits you and you are comfortable doing but make sure that whatever challenge you select for yourself, you carry them out wholeheartedly and over the course of 30 days and if you are comfortable enough and that habit has some potential, you can make it a life time habit.

1. Use words that encourage happiness and optimism: Spend the next 30 days using words that encourages smile and makes people happy.
2. Perform a selfless act everyday: In life, you get what you put in.  When you make a positive impact in someone else’s life, you also make a positive impact in your own life.  Do something that’s greater than you, something that helps someone else be happy or suffer less.  I promise, it will be an extremely rewarding experience.
3. Dedicate an hour everyday doing something you are passionate about: For me it is writing. No matter how long the day has been, I have to have sometime in which I can shut the world off and write. Write about my feelings, about my, about my life, anything. Some people like to draw, some like to sing, some like to play tennis. Whatever it is give one hour to yourself every day.
4. Treat everyone nicely, even the ones who are rude to you or the ones you hate: This could be the hardest thing to do especially for me. One thing that I have heard many times is that people calling the ones that are always nice, fake. Remember, being nice does not mean you are fake, it means you are mature enough to control your emotions and act in a better way.
5. Address and acknowledge the lesson in inconvenient situations. – It’s important to remember that everything is a life lesson.  Everyone you meet, everything you encounter, etc.  They’re all part of the learning experience we call ‘life.’  Never forget to acknowledge the lesson, especially when things don’t go your way.  If you don’t get a job you wanted or a relationship doesn’t work, it only means something better is out there waiting.  And the lesson you just learned is the first step toward it.  Over the next 30 days keep a written log of all the lessons life taught you.
6. Pay attention and enjoy your life as it happens. – Our whole lives have been leading up to every moment.  Think about that for a second.  Every single thing you’ve gone through in life, every high, every low and everything in between, it has led you to this moment right now.  Ask yourself this:  How much of life are you actually living?  If you’re like most people, the answer is likely:  “Not enough.”  The key is to concentrate on a little less on doing and a little more on being.  Remember, right now is the only moment guaranteed to you.  Right now is life.  Spend the next 30 days living in the now, for real.
7. Get rid of one thing a day for 30 days. – We have so much clutter surrounding us at any given moment (at the office, in our cars, in our homes) and we’ve become so accustomed to it that we no longer notice how it affects us.  If you start cleaning up some of this external clutter, a lot of internal clutter will disappear as well.  Choose one needless item each and every day and get rid of it.  It’s that simple.  It might be difficult at first, so expect some resistance.  But after some time you will begin to learn to let go of your packrat tendencies and your mind will thank you for your efforts.
8. Create something brand new in 30 days or less. – Creation is a process like none other.  Putting to use your innovative faculties and constructing something with your own two hands will leave you with an indescribable sense of wholeness.  There is no substitute for it.  The only caveat is that it must be related to something you actually care about.  If you are creating financial plans for clients all day and you hate it, that doesn’t really count.  But if you can find something you love, and create something related to it, it will make all the difference in your life.  If you haven’t created something in a while just for the sake of creating, do so.
9. Don’t tell a single lie for 30 days. – With all the seemingly innocent, white lies that trickle out of us, this is way harder than it sounds.  But you can do it.  Stop deceiving yourself and others, speak from the heart, speak the whole truth.
10. Read one chapter of a good book every day. – With the Web’s endless stream of informative, easy-to-skim textual snippets and collaborative written works, people are spending more and more time reading online.  Nevertheless, the Web cannot replace the authoritative wisdom from certain classic books that have delivered (or will deliver) profound ideas around the globe for generations (Usman, this one is for you lol).
11. Get uncomfortable and face a fear every day. – With a strategy of continuous small steps into uncomfortable territory we are often able to sidestep the biggest barrier to positive change:  Fear.  Sometimes we’re afraid we’ll fail.  Sometimes we’re subconsciously afraid we’ll succeed and then we’d have to deal with all the disruption (growth) and change that follows success.  And other times it’s our fear of rejection or simply our fear of looking like a fool.  The best way to defeat fear is to stare it down.  Connect to your fear, feel it in your body, realize it and steadily address it. Greet it by name if you have to: “Welcome, fear.”  Fear can be a guiding friend if you learn how to swallow it, and listen to it only when it serves its true purpose of warning you when you are in danger.  Spend an hour every day for the next 30 day’s addressing a fear that is holding you back.
12. Spend 10 minutes every evening reflecting on what went well.– For the next 30 days spend 10 minutes every evening pondering the small successes that occurred during the course of the day.  This process of positive reflection will remind you of all the tiny blessings in your life, and help you to celebrate your personal growth.
13. Have a conversation every day with someone you rarely speak to. – People are interesting creatures, and no two people are exactly alike.  Interacting with different people will open your mind to fascinating ideas and perspectives.  So for the next 30 days strike up a conversation daily with someone you rarely speak to, or someone you’ve never met before.  Find out what makes them tick.
14. Publicly forgive someone who deserves another chance. – Sometimes good relationships end abruptly because of big egos and arguments based on isolated incidents.  If there’s someone in your life who truly deserves another chance, give it to them.  If you need to apologize too, do it.  Over the next 30 days give your story together a new chapter.
15. Document every day with one photograph and one paragraph.– For 30 days bring a camera with you wherever you go.  Do your best to take one photograph that represents a standout experience from each day.  Then, before you go to bed each night, write one paragraph in a notebook or journal that highlights your day.  If do it all digitally you can unite your daily photograph and paragraph in one digital space (like a personal blog), which can be easily reviewed in the future.  Many moons from now these old photos and journal entries will ignite your recollection of interesting memories you would have otherwise forgotten.

Remember, that personal growth is something that cannot be rushed into,, each step matters. Whatever you do make sure you believe in yourself and that you know that only you have the power to make and break things in your life. So for now, pick one that you like the most and do tell me which one is your favourite. For me, my first on list is number 9 :)