This Habit Will Permanently Change Your Life

This Habit Will Permanently Change Your Life

January 18, 2019

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Habits are a way to immediately change our lives.

Habits are also big business.

Millions of dollars are made every year by people who are trying to get you to make millions through habits.

But habits do change lives. Even if sounds a bit too sales-y to our ears.

The catch, however, is that not all habits make a difference.

Some habits don’t change squat.

For example, I heard once on a Tim Ferriss podcast that making our bed each day is life-changing habit. It gives us a win first thing in the morning. And that win can bolster our spirits, making us more productive and successful.

Sounds good, right?

So I tried it. And you know what?

I loved it.

I love having the bed made every day. I haven’t missed a day in years.

But has that habit actually changed anything?

Do I make more money now that I make the bed? No.

Am I more productive? No.

Am I happier? Maybe.

I like the neatness and the discipline, but the effect this habit has on my life is pretty negligible. This is true for most habits.

Make no mistake, though, in the hierarchy of self-help. habits are right at the top.

According to studies, if you’re talking about what creates high performance that’s sustainable, habits are better than live seminars or mantras or affirmations. Those things are all good, but they also can fade away with time.

Habits don’t fade away. They’re around every day, constantly cranking out success.

But, as I said, not all habits make a difference.

Here’s one that does, though.

Make a habit of helping other people.

As a teacher, you can make a habit of showing up early, working hard, and focusing on your strengths. Those are all admirable habits, regurgitated for millennia, but they don’t necessarily mean the student will get better.

If you want a student to get better, make a habit of making them your #1 priority.

The student is #1.

There is no #2.

Make a habit of focusing solely on them, and they will be successful.

Every time.

And then the teacher will be successful, too.

If helping others is something we do every day, then success is either already here or around the corner.

It’s one habit that never fails.

 

My book is called The Inevitability of Becoming Rich, and you can find that here.