Living Consciously .......why is nothing easy!?

I've spent the last year trying to live more consciously which was prompted by how our lives changed during the first lock down in 2020. Given the time that has passed you would think I would have managed to make this an embedded habit, but shite me.....its still freakn hard and I'm realising, somewhat begrudgingly, that this is always going to take work. Ahhh its a journey!

The below was the first entry into my journal .........

31 August 2020

It will be the 1st September 2020 tomorrow [genuine genesis factor right there - I could work out that 1 September came after 31 August!] - first day of Spring in what has been a very "unique" year.

The time we've been gifted has meant space for me to enjoy a slower way of life. (I'm aware that what I have seen as a gift others rightly view as a curse). I've saved 10 hours of commuting a week, during March/April lock down I got to enjoy lunches and dinners around our table with my husband and all our children - everyday. Morning coffees brought to me as I start work at 7am - in a room with plenty of space which has become "my" office (and sometimes only rolling out of bed 10 minutes earlier!)

Because of the heightened awareness of staying well in lock down I ended each working day with 20 minutes on the exercycle (well that was the intent - the reality may have achieved a B+). I got into a rhythm of waking without an alarm, I felt better and I'm trying to ensure that these positives continue. Just the time reclaimed from commuting alone has given me the equivalent of an extra day a week.

I consciously made the decision to learn so I started knitting, making soap again and preserving. Less and less time spent watching - TV, Netflix

Less and less time spent scrolling - Facebook, Instagram

More focus on living

Less on mind numbing consumption

And so with Spring I intend to start a year of creation.

Continuing the beauty of slow

Utilising the brilliance of technology

Getting back to seasonal flow

Living to the beat of my natural rhythm

Well that was 13 months ago now, and though I would love to say that a year of focusing has created an automatic habit, I would be lying. I still catch myself heading to the couch to binge on Netflix after dinner. I still have spent far too many hours scrolling Facebook, not exactly sure what it is I'm looking for. But there is one difference - I am now conscious of this.

Just last week I caught myself continually picking up my phone to scroll Facebook. I would have checked it every hour most days! I recognised the habit and so removed the app from my phone. I've still got it on the i-pad but just removing it from the device I always have close to hand is what made the difference to re-break that nasty little habit. Boredom was the problem and Facebook was the way I could ignore the problem. I don't subscribe to the belief that social media is bad, evil or destroying humankind - like anything, it's the way we are using and why we are using that is the problem.

Being conscious has helped me identify a number of "problems". Boredom surprisingly accounts for most of my "bad habits".

Bad Habit = An action which is repeated that doesn't help me create a life I actively participate and thrive in.

Unfortunately some of my bad habits are also super fun so that's where I blissfully apply the moderation rule. Life is too short (work out the number of weeks you have left, assuming you reach your ideal age - it will put the shits up you!). Life should be fun and full of things that are joyful and its okay to do something just for the pure bliss of it - not every action needs to be goal or purpose oriented!

Moderation rule = for those bad habits that are fun - do them sporadically.

If any bad habit is undertaken more than sporadically, or is causing a negative impact that the fun doesn't outweigh, that's when I need to get real with myself and consciously focus on replacing that bad habit - like I said earlier, this isn't easy and takes work uggggh. I'm still pleased that I am mostly still enjoying the beauty in slow, I learnt heaps in relation to seasonal flow (more on that to come I'm sure) but living to the beat of my natural rhythm? Well lets just say the "rhythm" is still being composed but there are times where I am certainly dancing!

Would love to hear how you recognise bad habits and some of the tricks that have worked for you. Or is there a bad habit that you just don't seem to be able to change? Let me know by dropping a comment below or sending me a note

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