How and Why It’s Important to Become Consistent in Your Self-Care

Issue 19. April 21, 2023 ✨ Higher Power Coaching & Consulting ✨

I never used to be able to be consistent with self-care or following through on things for myself. Of course, as a former people-pleaser, I could be counted on to be consistent for others. In fact, I prided myself on being reliable. I remember breaking down sobbing one time because I didn’t follow through on something for someone.

I remember the quote “consistency in small things is no small thing” but not really getting what it meant until I learned to be consistent for myself. What that quote means is that if you can get consistent in the tiny little habits of your life, that is what is going to make for a good life.

If you’re to promote your health, it means exercising and eating healthy meals daily, not just occasionally. If you’re trying to improve your finances it could mean paying your bills on time all the time, putting a little bit of money aside with EVERY paycheck. If you’re trying to improve your mindset it means meditating, saying affirmations and journaling just about daily. These tiny little habits have enormous pay-offs down the line.

The reason it’s so hard to be consistent is because when we’re doing something new, beginning is always the hardest step. That’s why the quote “a journey of 1000 miles begins with one step” is so popular. It reminds us that it’s the first fucking step that’s the hardest one!

Another way to think of this is: to go from zero to one is so much harder than to go from one to 10 because we’ve got the inertia of sitting still. Inaction is weighing us down. To liftoff from zero to one takes an enormous amount of energy – often mental energy.

The thing about consistency is that you have to go from zero to one over and over and over again. That’s why developing good habits is really important. Because eventually, you’re not really going from zero to one every day because you’ve got all that momentum behind you from the habit. The inertia has been replaced by the momentum of the habit.

When we develop new habits, we carve new neural pathways in our brains. One of the best strategies for adding new habits to your life is to connect them to something you’re already doing. The example I use with my clients all the time is that most people brush their teeth every day, so adding a habit along with brushing your teeth is a good way to ensure the new habit will happen. If you want to start saying affirmations daily, put the affirmations on a sticky note on your mirror or put the list of the affirmations underneath your toothbrush.

If you’re already brushing your teeth every day you don’t even have to think about it. You have the momentum of the daily teeth brushing habit so adding something to that removes the weight of the inertia which was holding you in your old pattern.

If you want to have a well-lived life, it’s the little moments that will create that, not the big giant moments. So, what do you have a hard time being consistent with? I’d love to hear, reply to let me know.