Practicing healthy habits does not have to be boring.
Habits Can Be Boring
Let’s face it, habits, especially the ones you’ve been practicing for a while, can be boring. You force yourself to wake up every day and do your morning routine, or you force yourself to plan meals for the week. Every day, you do a long routine of getting ready for bed. Sometimes you just want to rush through and get it over with, but what if you could make it more enjoyable? More like a special ceremony? That’s where creating a ritual can be fun! Make your habits more special by creating a ritual.
Creating a Ritual for Daily Habits
You want to make your daily habits more enjoyable, memorable, calming, uplifting, or grounding. Imagine starting your day with a special little ceremony just for you. How much more pleasurable would it be to do dishes if you could also use a special, natural scented soap, light a candle, and listen to soft music? What if you had a special cushion and a favorite essential oil picked out only to be used during meditation?
Try some of these:
- Put essential oils in a diffuser that are grounding, or uplifting, depending on your mood. You could also light a candle.
- Find a special spot in your home to practice your ritual.
- Make your special spot comfortable with pillows, cushions, or a comfy chair.
- Play soft music or a meditation.
- Make your ritual special, by only using your comfy spot, a special cup, candle or crystal during that time.
- Practice your ritual in a quiet spot where you won’t have any disturbances. Do not use technology, except to play your music or meditation.
- Be mindful during this time. Be in complete awareness of your thoughts, emotions and experiences.
What Can You Use Rituals For?
You can create a ritual around anything to make it feel more special. I’ve compiled a list of a few I could think of off of the top of my head.
- Making and drinking your morning coffee or tea
- Your morning routine
- Religious or spiritual practices
- Meals
- Bedtime routine
- Meditation
- Yoga
- Daily walk
- Chores
- Gardening
Example of a Habit Turned Ritual
Imagine you wake up early to exercise before work. You’re exhausted, but you don’t want to break your streak of practicing this daily habit. How can you make it more special? More calming, grounding, enjoyable, and uplifting.
Let’s take yoga, for example, because that’s what I do most mornings. You put on your yoga pants and top that make you feel beautiful. They are your favorite shade of blue. You go to a quiet spot in your house before everyone else wakes up, and roll out your large eco-friendly yoga mat. Your favorite scents of jasmine and sandalwood waft from your essential oil diffuser. There is just a bit of light coming from a small lamp on the shelf. Soft music plays in the background while you follow along with your favorite yoga teacher on YouTube. At the end of your practice, you lie in shavasana, quietly listening to your breath. You feel calm, focused and ready to take on the day. Doesn’t that sound like more of a ceremony than just forcing yourself through your exercise?
What will you create a ritual around? Do you already have rituals that you practice? Let me know in the comments.
Keep an eye out for my 12 week, Empath Reboot, group program opening soon! I’ll help you reduce emotional and physical pain, so you can find peace and joy.
