Carrie Baker – The Growth Collective

Have you heard about micro habits? I have seen a lot of posts and content out there in the world at the moment.

If you haven’t heard about micro habits yet, then let me fill you in.

Simply put, a micro habit is a small habit you implement in your daily life, that can have a significant and lasting impact.

“You’ll never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret to your success is found in your daily routine.”

– John C. Maxwell

We all know how busy life is don’t we? We feel it in the fast pace with which we go from one thing to the next, racing from work to school pick-up, or from one meeting straight into a conference call.

You may look at your weekly schedule and feel that there is no time to add anything new, let alone be able to achieve a goal or chase a dream. I have wonderful news for you… micro habits are a great way to begin making a space for those things in your life.

Are you ready to jump in?

What is your goal?

“You need a plan to build a house. To build a life, it is even more important to have a plan or goal.”

– Zig Ziglar

First things first: what is one goal you want to achieve? In order to make the right choices about your time, you need to know what is you want to change or achieve, and then form a plan.

Let’s use some easy examples

You want to be able to do the 5K park run. You don’t begin by trying to run the full 5K on day one.

You start small, you might want to do some kind of 5K running app, that eases you in. Or just begin, by running for as long as you can, in bursts with walking in between.

Or maybe it’s learning a new skill, like watercolour painting. You have wanted to learn to paint for years, but you were waiting for life to slow down… and you realise that it might never slow down enough.

Whatever your goal is, or maybe it’s a dream, write it down. I am a big believer in writing down the important things, to outwork your thoughts and make your plan clear.

What is your time goal for when you want to reach a certain point? It’s good to have a time frame to work towards, even if you can’t stick to that exact date.

Start small.

“All big things come from small beginnings. The seed of every habit, is a single, tiny decision.”

– James Clear ‘Atomic Habits’

What is one small way that you can begin your goal or dream today?

Set yourself a small, achievable goal. It might be 10 minutes that you give yourself to begin with. Anyone can find 10 minutes in their day! (If you can’t, next week’s blog post may just help you with that!)

I decided a few months ago, that I really needed to fit in some exercise. But when I looked at all the things in my schedule; my job, the school run, keeping up with the home, the kids, cooking and my writing… it seemed impossible.

My hope was to get a good walk in most days, or even to start the couch to 5K again. I decided it wasn’t possible and I just couldn’t find room for that, But I could at least, spend 15 minutes doing some stretching.

For just over a month now, I have been getting up a little earlier, to spend some time doing yoga stretches while I pray.

I have seen surprising results in that small amount of time I give to it, in my routine each day, but we will talk about that later.

Where can you carve out as little as 10-20 minutes in your day, to give some time to that new habit you want to create?

Small wins.

“I can predict the long-term outcome of your success if you show me your daily habits.”

– John C. Maxwell

Why are so many people having big success with creating micro habits in their life?

Because small habits are attainable, and sustainable in the long term. Also, because each day that you can say to yourself that you showed up, and did that thing, it’s a small win.

Those small wins make you feel so good. It makes if feel possible for you to slowly achieve what you set out to do. Those small daily successes make you want to show up again the next day, and the next.

Consistency

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit.”

– Aristotle

The key to succeeding in anything, is consistency. We all know how hard it is to be consistent and commit to anything. Every. Single. Day.

The beautiful thing about micro habits, is that they are easily attained.

Let me ask you a question: How many times have you set a goal, or even those impossible New Years Resolutions, only to feel overwhelmed? You weren’t able to be consistent with it, and so that goal died a sudden death. It’s carcass joining the remains of all the other goals and dreams you gave up on.

Being consistent sometimes looks like deciding the day before, that you are going to show up for yourself and spend that time on your goal.

Don’t make showing up or not a choice. Make it easy for yourself by preparing the way, so that when your window of time rolls around, you can get straight to it.

The outcomes:

“In essence, if we want to direct our lives, we must take control of our consistent actions. It’s not what we do that shapes our lives, but what we do consistently.”

– Tony Robbins

Let’s talk about the outcomes of these small habits that you will build into your life. It happens one choice at a time, quickly growing and building over time.

What shape are you hoping your life to take? What life are you building each day, brick by brick when you choose to show up and do what you need to?

Though the time commitment may be small, never underestimate the power of those few minutes, to make big changes in your life for the better. Consistency is key, and only time will show you the fruit of your labour.

I promised that I was going to share the outcomes of my own early morning endeavours with my prayer and yoga. I have to be honest, I’ve been surprised by all the benefits, from those 15 minutes I invest every morning.

I already feel stronger and more flexible in my body (which is important as we get *ahem* ‘older’). I feel more awake in the mornings, and by the time I jump in the shower, I can actually think clearly about the day ahead.

My body is awake and I’m aware that my mornings feel better, and therefore as a result (mostly), it sets the rest of my day on a positive trajectory. In a nutshell, it is so worth the small amount of time I give it, and it makes me feel great!

Small habits doesn’t equal small outcomes.

“Don’t despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin.”

– Zechariah 4:10 NLT.

Maybe the goal or dream you want to work towards, is writing that book. If you show up every day for those minutes, you will finish writing that book.

A number of years ago now, my husband worked a full time job in an administrative role. On top of that, he studied part time doing his honours in Theology, while our children were small.

He did his study in his lunch breaks, over a ‘coffee and cake of the day’. He is still amazed that he was able to achieve so much over time, in his lunch break. He also received the medal from his university, which was the highest honour for that graduating year.

He reached a huge goal, by being consistent with small chunks of time.

When you begin the practice of creating these micro habits, this is just the start of great things. By starting and succeeding in what you set out to achieve, you’re telling yourself that not even time can hold you back from the things you want.

This is just the beginning of so many things friend, and in case you needed to hear it today, the Lord rejoices to see YOU step into those things you are created for.

Grow

“There is no elevator to success, you have to take the stairs.”

– Zig Ziglar

As we know, there is no shortcut to success. But by building these small habits into your life, it makes it more achievable. The more success we have, the more it spurs us on to chase bigger goals.

Micro habits don’t have to remain small. They are a great way for us ‘time poor’ people to fit new habits into our lives.

If, as you travel along this golden road to success, you find you’ve got capacity to make that small habit a larger one – then go for it. You may even want to add another micro habit into your daily life, with all that new found sense of possiblity.

Maybe you have felt stuck, or too constrained by your busy schedule, to be able to reach for a goal or to pursue a dream. Let me tell you that you are free to choose what it is that you give your time and energy to, even if it’s in 10 minute increments a day.

What do you want most?

“Discipline is choosing between what you want now and what you want most.”

– Abraham Lincoln

Whatever it is that you want most, go after that, and don’t let those doubtful thoughts stop you. Building new habits into your life may mean that you need to break out of other habits.

If you spend 10 seconds thinking about it, I am sure that you could come up with a few things you spend time on, that don’t fit the life you are working towards. Those things that take you away from your goal or dream and aren’t serving you, will need to be sent packing.

Next week we will talk about creative ways to get back some of your time, so you can do more of the things that light you up and bring you to life.

I love serving you, by passing on wisdom I learn and the things that work for me. I want all the good things for you friend, to see you grow and flourish, as you step into all that you are made for.

If you would like a copy of my free habit tracker, that also helps you to recognise the ways you are growing and changing, you can sign up for that here:

If you want to check in on all the places I hang out, you can find them here.

If you enjoyed this blog post, why not keep me going and Buy Me A Coffee Here!

I would love to hear your plans, and the micro habits you’ve been inspired to build into your life. Comment below, or pop me an email at admin@carriebaker.org

Sending you love Friend,

Carrie xxx