How Tiny Habits Improved My Life

I chanced upon a helpful video on YouTube a few weeks ago. It's about developing 21 tiny habits to improve your life effortlessly (video here). I realized I started to do that in the past few months. I had severe shortness of breath the first half of the year. This was due to the blood clots in my lungs and additional complications. 

I was really keen to get better and started exercises to help my lungs. I started doing wall push-ups. I could only do three in the beginning. Every week I'd try to add two more reps. It took months, but I was eventually able to increase it to 30 reps with additional exercises. I do the exercise while I'm preparing my coffee. I tied it to another routine so I do not forget. My lungs improved and my back rarely hurts because of the daily exercise. 

A friend pinged me the other day and asked how I've been able to go back to blogging. In previous years I'd usually do a 30-day daily blogging challenge. Using the Blogger app helped since I'd usually post while I was on the train to work. I started blogging everyday again in 2020. It started as a 30-day challenge in January which I extended to the whole year. To remember that I have to blog I tied it to my coffee time routine. 

I never had an issue with completing tasks when I was working. I would efficient just go from one thing to another without missing a beat. When I got sick and got depressed things went really bad. I knew I had to get myself out of it when my physiotherapist asked me why I wasn't scheduling to see my doctor. She had me call up his office in front of her. She understood what I was going through and held my hand through it (super love her to bits!). After that day I worked on prioritizing important tasks. I'd usually do it after blogging. Mind you these were simple tasks like scheduling the aircon cleaner to come. It is hard to fight depression led procrastination, so developing tiny habits by following a routine helps. 

Starting tiny habits help a lot and I found it useful to tie them to a routine. I tied it mostly with my coffee time because it's something I rarely forget to do. It all starts though when I get up and prepare my oatmeal. My life completely changed in the past year. Everything I used to do had to change for me to live a healthier life so my body, heart and mind could recover. 

There are still a lot of new habits I'd like to develop, but I'm taking it slow for now. It was really a huge struggle to get out the hole I fell in, so I thought I'd share what tiny things I did to get out of it. 

Don't forget, it's day 2 of St. Jude's novena :)

CB////*Yr2/192 #StuckAtHomeDay/Yr2/213 #NewG258 #Home14 #Xmas66 #StayHome #BeKind

How to Find Your Voice

Happy Women's Day everyone! I'm a day late for this. I wasn't feeling well yesterday. I thought it would be important to share something I learned through the years - finding my voice and being able to speak up. 

I am an introvert. It takes me so long to warm up to a new person (even to people I know for a long time). I got my current job because I role played. I put my best foot forward. I guess I resembled an extroverted person. When I first met my manager in the US he was surprised to find me so quiet. I was so overwhelmed back then and ended up being my observant self. 

I'm lucky though because through the years I had managers who understood how best to manage introverts. They showed me that my thoughts and ideas mattered. The most important advise I got was, "Be yourself." I thought I needed to keep "role playing". I was relieved that I could just be myself. 

Be yourself. You matter. 

That's how you find your voice. Just be yourself and know that you matter. I had the additional challenge of being an introvert. As an introvert, I normally think and practice what I want to say before I speak. That's my nature. I realized I had to stop analyzing and judging everything I wanted to say. I also saw I had good ideas and that added to my confidence. 

It took me years to find my voice. The quest started when my graduate school thesis panelist said, "You have it in you, just find your voice and build your confidence." That was 16 years ago. I still don't like speaking in public, recitation (being put on the spot), being in large crowds and meeting so many people at the same time. I manage now because I just remind myself to be me and that I matter. 

CB///334 #StuckAtHomeDay/364 #StayHome #BeKind