Completing the 30 Day Challenge has highlighted the
positive impact of little and often and the importance of routines in creating more consistent habits.
It's helped refocus on little and often and getting back on track with a couple of habits I do regularly but not
necessarily consistently.
These are:
Daily movement - Increasing flexibility and just being more active.
I’ve found 3 ‘workouts’
that require no equipment, don’t take up much time and are easy to do at home or even in the office.
- A 4 minute - quick work stretch, to counteract sitting in front of a computer all day.
- Two easy 7 minute morning and evening routines.
- And if the weather’s favourable, a morning walk around the park (I’m lucky enough to live near one) is a good way to start the day or to take a break at lunchtime.
Little and often through the day is often easier than trying to find a whole hour to get to the gym or do a longer exercise
routine.
Tidy/Declutter - this applies to the digital as well as the physical
space and is an area where little and often works well, especially for me.
- Apply it to your email and data. Clearing out old folders, getting rid of old/updated documents and spreadsheets.
- Do little and often as you go along. When you work on a particular project, delete old versions of files or data.
There’s something satisfying about getting rid of old files by doing a bulk delete.
If you haven’t touched them for months or years, you’re unlikely to need them any time soon. Keep what’s required for financial or legal purposes though.
If your data is
organised into files and folders by date, project or client, it easier to bulk delete.
How
little and often works
When you complete a small task or activity it makes it easier to repeat, requires less effort and is more likely to become a habit.
It gives you a sense of accomplishment so you feel more motivated to do it again and build on the success.
By breaking a task into a smaller, more manageable chunk of time it’s less intense or daunting. You’re less resistant to doing it, so you procrastinate less. Like finding an hour to go to the gym or spending hours cleaning and tidying at the weekend.
Spacing out tasks and activities allows you to manage multiple tasks without feeling overwhelmed by trying to do them all at once or all in one go.
You’ll feel more confident when you complete a small task and that success builds your confidence to do more.
As you build momentum, you're likely to do more.
Take one step at a time rather than focusing on the whole, thousand mile journey.
