4 Powerful and Life-Changing Habits

Shaida M Zin, Training and Communications Coach

Shaida M Zin is a training consultant and a communications coach. She specializes in Emotional Intelligence (EQ), Mindfulness and is a certified Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) coach.

According to research, the best way to bring change into your life is by developing new and positive practices and sticking to them until they turn into habits. So, if you would select a few habits guaranteed to change your life completely, what would they be? This is not an easy question to answer.

There are four habits that are so powerful that they can be traced back to great civilizations of the past. But what we are concern with is developing the empire within ourselves. Life has so many challenges, and we always strive to make changes that will positively affect us.

If you are wondering where to start, here are 4 habits that are guaranteed to bring massive impact on your life:

Make Reading a Habit

You might have already heard that reading makes you smarter and boosts your memory. Well, there is more to this. The first word that is revealed in the Quran is Iqra which means read.

Reading fiction work helps you to temporarily escape from reality and forget all the troubles you are going through. In fact, research has shown that it can heighten your sense of empathy also known as the Theory of Mind in Psychology

On the other hand, non-fiction work allows you to learn new things. Whichever material you read, you are guaranteed to learn something from it.

Billington (2015) undertook a UK-wide study exploring the benefits reported by adults regularly reading for pleasure. The findings indicated that reading for pleasure is positively associated with a greater sense of community, a stronger feeling of social inclusion, a stronger ability to enjoy social occasions, and enhanced openness and talkativeness.

If you stick to books, they can assist to get you out of a rut. Reading has been known to release endorphins, chemicals produced by the body that gives you that feeling of euphoria.

Reading acts as a distraction, allowing you to forget your feelings of despair and anxiety.

Books boost your mood and help to replace unhealthy habits like smoking and drinking. With occasional reading, you will be able to feel better about yourself and your life.

Smart individuals do their best to keep up with the latest industry news and read a lot to add more knowledge and information into their minds.

They do all they can to stay ahead of the competition. They love learning and engaging with new ideas and perspectives.

Good books have strong power, and if you allow them, they can have a massive impact on your life. They will give direction to your life, and offer you a lift when you desire it most.

Writing as a Habit

Writing does not necessarily mean that you should publish a book. Listing down your goals or the simple things you appreciate in life can bring a lot of change in your life.

Believe it or not, writing is therapy in its way. Writing a few paragraphs about what you are feeling helps to recollect your thoughts.

In turn, this allows you to get rid of those bad feelings of dissatisfaction and unhappiness. Listing the small things you happen to appreciate in life and going through them can boost your mood immensely.

Writing helps to boost your creativity. It allows you to be as imaginative as you want.

This creativity grows in you and can be used in other areas too. Creativity lets you explore new ideas, find deeper meaning, and make connections.

Staying in touch with your creative side will help to make your life more satisfying and exciting.

Writing fosters a sense of progress and achievement. It helps expand your possibilities and boost productivity.

If you record your accomplishments and go through them after some time, you will realize that you have done a lot with your life. This will give you the confidence and drive that you need to keep moving forward. 

I always encourage my students to write a learning reflection journal as part of the learning process. This is something that everyone can start doing every night before going to bed. Start your journal with “ What I have learned about myself today.”

Writing is a process of discovery of your inner self.

Connecting as a Habit

If you want to be healthier and successful, you need to go out there and talk to people. It does not matter what you think, but humans are social animals that love living amongst people.

This is why you see people that have been brought up in a lonely environment having more problems as they grow up than those that have been in the midst of healthy social contact.

It is high time you give your gadgets a break, stop interacting with virtual media for a while, and go out to meet people face to face. Have lunch with some friends, get to know more about them, and learn something new from them. You will be surprised to see the great impact this can have on your view of life and overall well-being.

Connecting with other people has been proven to help individuals build constructive relationships, improve personal growth and development, reduce stress and anxiety levels, and help people to understand one another.

Additionally, it helps to boost one’s self-confidence and helps to boost your self-esteem. It is also a good way of getting physical, emotional, and spiritual support.

Furthermore, networking with people helps you to gain a lot of knowledge. This assists you to achieve your goals and ensure overall success.

Networking is also a source of endless opportunities. That person you talk to today might end up becoming your business partner or client.

Asking Questions as a Habit

Asking questions doesn’t make you look dumb, but allows you to learn from other people.

So, be curious and start asking your friends what they are working on, or how they managed to achieve something. You could also ask them to explain to you what you don’t understand .

Ask for assistance when you require it. Be curious everywhere you go – in meetings, at events, over a drink, or while sitting at your desk. Strive to learn, and you will start seeing results in no time.

Asking yourself the right kind of questions will also bring a lot of changes in your life. The questions you ask yourself determine how your mind thinks. If you want to be successful in life, you need to ask yourself the steps you can take to get what you want.

We are surrounded by ‘teachers’ who appear in our life for a reason. Your task is to open your eyes, be curious and learn as much as you can from them. These are the ordinary people that always have a story with them.

I personally have learned about gratitude from the homeless, learned about persistence from the door-to-door salesman, creativity from the artiste and the list goes on and on.

Habit depends on consistency

It is not the great things that help to mold most leaders and successful people; it is the little things that are done consistently and relentlessly.

Most of the time, we tend to focus on huge things, and we end up forgetting about the smaller ones. At first, things might be working perfectly. However, within a short span of time, the decay begins, and things start falling apart.

What you do on a daily basis has more impact compared to what you do once in a while. Without some daily practices to keep you energized and aligned, your hard work and talent will eventually fail you.

While there are many things you can do, there are some keystone activities bring all your great aspects together, allowing you to be prolific, brilliant, successful, and healthy.

Such things include reading, writing, connecting with other people, and asking relevant questions from the people around you.

The four habits mentioned above look pretty simple. However, if you are serious about changing your life, they are just what you need to get started. Do let us know if you have already made any of the four actions above your habit. I would like to hear your story.

Shaida M Zin, Training and Communications Coach

Shaida M Zin is a training consultant and a communications coach. She specializes in Emotional Intelligence (EQ), Mindfulness and is a certified Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) coach.