I’m not going to pretend that creating new habits is easy (change is never easy!) but if you truly want to be more productive and have a successful business, there are certain habits that will serve you well and lots that won’t.   This post is aimed at female business owners so read on if you are wanting to start some new habits for success.

Before creating new habits it’s a good idea to do a quick audit of your daily routines to see which habits are serving you well and which aren’t.  For example, if you are wanting to be more productive but are spending hours scrolling on your phone; that habit requires change. Perhaps you are trying to be more healthy and do more exercise but you always save exercise for the end of the day so it often doesn’t happen; again something needs to change.

Once you have thought about or listed all your daily habits, read this list of 25 Habits of Successful Women in Business to work out if there are any other areas in your life that could do with a shake up. 

It takes around 21 days to create a new habit.  Those 21 days take effort, consistency, persistence and belief.  And remember; if nothing changes, nothing will change.

The following will help in creating and sticking to new habits.

WHY DO YOU WANT TO CREATE A NEW HABIT?

Be very clear on why you want to create your new habit.  There needs to be a concrete reason for doing it or it won’t be a sustained change.

Overcome the excuses. 

It is often our mindset that is stopping us from making a new habit a reality.  Take the time to listen to what is blocking you from the change. We repeatedly tell ourselves stories that have often been ingrained from childhood.  But with a simple mindset shift, those stories can change and new habits can form.

Triggers

Certain triggers will help you succeed and some will keep you falling back into old habits.  

When creating a new habit, attach it to something you already love to do.  By combining it with something that fills you with joy you are more likely to keep going.

For example, I wanted to start writing in my gratitude journal daily, so I have placed it next to the coffee pot in the kitchen so I can journal while my coffee is brewing.  On the contrary, my old habit was to scroll through my phone while my coffee brewed and before I knew it, i’d wasted 30 minutes. By removing my phone from the process and adding in my gratitude journal, I am achieving my goal of filling my morning with a positive attitude of being grateful.

Make Success Easy

To succeed you need to follow through.  For this you need a plan.

Make it easy to take action by being organised. If you want to do yoga first thing, lay out your mat the night before and plan which YouTube video you will follow.  My example of having the alarm clock on the other side of the room makes it easy for me to get up and out of bed. Make sure your mind is not sabotaging your new habits by slipping into negative thinking or old patterns that no longer serve you.  Try committing to the new habit by writing down a positive affirmation that you read daily. What small changes can you make to ensure easy success with your new habit?

Reward

In the early stages of creating a new habit, it’s a good idea to associate it with a reward.  Go to the gym; grab a coffee afterwards. Have a super productive day; listen to your favourite podcast in the evening.  Go to bed early during the week; allow yourself a late night watching Netflix at the weekend. You get the idea. If you can attach something nice to a new habit then you are more likely to succeed.

Now it’s time to go for it if you really want to see changes in how you do things.  Go create new success habits, read the 25 Habits of Successful Women in Business again and start today!

Let me know how you go in the comments below.

Much love for now…
Nicola

How do you start your day?  Did you know that the way you start your day can greatly impact how the rest of your day goes?

Most successful entrepreneurs and business leaders talk about having a strong morning routine.  I spent months thinking I was the exception to the rule and didn’t need a morning routine to have a great day.  

I told myself stories like; there isn’t enough time in the mornings, I’m too busy running around after the kids,  I can’t wake up early. This is all rubbish of course and since creating a routine for myself I can honestly say I’ve become a much more structured person and having a great morning definitely flows into the rest of the day.

So here are 7 ways that you too can have a great start to your day.

2. Wake up at the same time every day

Find your magic wake time.  Mine is 6.24am. As I said above, I have spent years telling myself I’m not a morning person.  Once I decided to kick start my morning routine, I knew I needed to get up earlier but I didn’t want to make it too early and unrealistic.  So 6.24am is my magic time. I have been waking at this time for a while now so it might be time to change it to 6.14am.

By the way, I am not one of those lucky people whose children sleep in.  My kids are often up before me at around 6am. I am fortunate however that they are old enough now (6, 9, 11) to look after themselves for a bit while I exercise (see below)

3.Exercise

Try to do some form of exercise every morning whether its walking the dog or a YouTube exercise video.  I go to the gym 2 mornings a week when my husband does the school drop off and on the other days I do yoga or skipping.  I LOVE the yoga. The stretching and breathing always sets me up for a great day ahead.

4. Be grateful

I keep a gratitude journal.  Every morning either after yoga or when I first sit down at my desk after the kids have gone to school, I write down 3 things that I’m grateful for.  Others find following Mel Robbins’s advice of setting an intention for the day really useful. You need to discover what will work best for you.

5. Meditate

Slowing down the mind is so good for you and a daily practice of meditation will help with feelings of overwhelm or stress.  Simply sitting and breathing for 10 minutes listening to a guided meditation will do wonders for your sense of self.

6. One House job

As a working mum it is always a struggle to get the house jobs done.  Since waking up earlier I have tried to do one house job in the morning so I can feel like the house is not being neglected.  It’s a great feeling to know that one house chore has been done and I can spend the rest of the day in the office without feeling guilty about all the other jobs..  It can be as simple as vacuuming or putting a load of washing on, clearing the kitchen bench of clutter or stripping the kids beds.  

7. No Social Media

My rule is no social media until the kids are out the door.  We all know that social media is a massive time waster. If you want to have a productive morning achieving some or all of the above then avoid socials.  Having my phone charging in the office helps me to achieve this. It is freeing to know that I don’t automatically reach for my phone the minute I wake up.  

Can you implement any of the above into your morning?  Do you think it will help you to have a great day? I’d love to hear your thoughts so feel free to pop a comment in the section below.