What are some rules you live by?

Are those rules serving you in a positive way?

Or are they simply old habits that are holding you back but you are afraid to let them go?

Take some time and think about the rules that you live by day-to-day and if those rules are no longer benefiting you. Often times they are old habits that we just become so accustomed to and a fear of change holds them in place year after year.

This quote by Therese Anne Fowler is one that may be a hard realization for some people to swallow. When it comes to a person’s identity, a defensive stance is taken rather fast when it is challenged, whether it is for their own benefit or not.

I talk to so many people who tell me they feel stuck in their lives but they can’t put their finger on exactly why. They don’t realize that some of the rules they’ve lived by for so long are outdated. They attribute that feeling of being stuck solely to it being something predicated by their environment or external situation rather than also looking at the habits that they have allowed to settle deep within their daily lives.

Can you think of any now that may have been holding you back?

One common habit for many is having a plan… for… everything. The sheer thought of not having a set plan of steps will freak some people out. However, letting this go and breaking the habit of always trying to have everything planned out perfectly will help ease stress and disappointment when things don’t go according to schedule, which we all know happens.

I am completely guilty of this and have caught myself in that freak out moment plenty of times. There was a plan for my vacations, a plan for working out, a plan for my eating, etc. I was so entrenched in the habit of planning for everything. My internal rule was that without a plan nothing gets accomplished.

I am sure that sounds crazy to all those non-planners. Even to the planners you might think, “Hey, you’re a bit looney.”

I admit I was probably a little over-the-top, at times. It took me a while to get over that but I finally came to the realization that I could it let go. I’m not going to lie; it wasn’t easy to shed that habit. The fear of change definitely held a tight grip on me, no doubt.

However, once I did it was rather freeing and it allowed me to open myself up to new experiences. You may wonder, “Anthony, do you still plan things out?” The answer is kind of, I would call it more creating a strategy as opposed to the rigidness of a plan.

I mean, let’s face it, life is flowing and things change all of the time even though you may not want them to. Life is about learning to adapt and experimentation.

What are some old habits that have been dictating your life?

Now it’s your turn.

How does this quote inspire you?

Tell me about an experience where you recognized an old habit was no longer benefiting you. What did you do? Maybe it is still active in your life right now. Is the fear of change keeping them in place? If so, what is one thing you can begin to do to start shifting that?

Contact me or share your thoughts below in the Comments section.

Let’s get the discussion going.

Remember, you are not alone on this journey. Together we can become stronger individuals.

Educate. Engage. Evolve.