I decided to make today's step purposefully vague because I didn't know what situations I might be faced with in the course of the day's events.
Make a better choice in at least one situation today.
Does this mean pick a healthier snack, choose not to make a smart-mouthed retort (even if I am sitting on a zinger), not ignore a phone call I don't want to deal with, or take the stairs instead of the elevator? Who knows? I can't be sure what the day will bring or what I will have the strength to do in a given moment. What I do know is that life is sure to offer me at least one opportunity today where I will be able to act out a better course of action than the one I usually follow.
There is a lot of research that suggests many of our negative responses are made out of habit. Experts tell us to consider why we are making our response and what we
really want as an outcome before we actually act on the impulse. We always say "Supersize it" even if we aren't that hungry; we always roll our eyes after that weird lady at work walks by our desk; we tell someone "no" not because we don't want them to do something but because we really don't want to take the time involved to consider the idea or make the effort to help out; we park close to the building because we value a "rock-star" parking spot not because we are lazy.
The only way to break a habit is to make more conscious decisions. Of course there is value in what they say - "they" are "experts." I also know, from real life experience, that some impulses are hard to resist even with the best of intentions, sometimes you need to say "no" in order to keep your sanity, and sometimes you park close because you really are too lazy that day.
My goal isn't to make the BEST choice in EVERY situation EVERYDAY, simply to make a BETTER choice in SOME situation TODAY.
Reflection:
Today was an interesting first lesson in Simple Steps. Specifically, I was intrigued by the way it pervaded my conscious thought. I choose to make my better choice first thing in the morning to see how it might impact my day. I found that I was much more aware of small ways in which I could make better decisions that might make me feel better.
I chose to put on grown-up-going-out-in-public clothes this morning instead of hanging-around-the-house-and-doing-chores clothes. When I promised to take care of something, I immediately went and did it instead of waiting to do it later in the day. I chose to take my son to the library AND go on a short walk with him, rather than just going home after school per usual. I chose to be open and listen to what he wanted to talk about instead of guiding the conversation. I also even chose to let him take a risk that could have ended up making more work for me. (He wanted to jump from one rock to another in the middle of a small stream. It wasn't an impossible jump, but a little bit of a stretch. The real risk was that, if he missed, he would be butt deep in water and mud. He made it! The smile on his face was totally worth it.)
Let's see, what else? I walked up two flights of stairs to let someone know I had arrived to pick them up instead of making a phone call. I paid my library late fees. ($1.10 that I have been ignoring for about three months.)
So, all-in-all, I did a fairly good job of making better choices today. Even though I have a different step for tomorrow, I wonder if or how the lesson from today might carry over.
Today was an interesting first lesson in Simple Steps. Specifically, I was intrigued by the way it pervaded my conscious thought. I choose to make my better choice first thing in the morning to see how it might impact my day. I found that I was much more aware of small ways in which I could make better decisions that might make me feel better.
I chose to put on grown-up-going-out-in-public clothes this morning instead of hanging-around-the-house-and-doing-chores clothes. When I promised to take care of something, I immediately went and did it instead of waiting to do it later in the day. I chose to take my son to the library AND go on a short walk with him, rather than just going home after school per usual. I chose to be open and listen to what he wanted to talk about instead of guiding the conversation. I also even chose to let him take a risk that could have ended up making more work for me. (He wanted to jump from one rock to another in the middle of a small stream. It wasn't an impossible jump, but a little bit of a stretch. The real risk was that, if he missed, he would be butt deep in water and mud. He made it! The smile on his face was totally worth it.)
Let's see, what else? I walked up two flights of stairs to let someone know I had arrived to pick them up instead of making a phone call. I paid my library late fees. ($1.10 that I have been ignoring for about three months.)
So, all-in-all, I did a fairly good job of making better choices today. Even though I have a different step for tomorrow, I wonder if or how the lesson from today might carry over.
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