The first thing I do when I wake up is make my bed. Not because it’s a habit, but because it feels unpleasant if I don’t.
Seeing a disordered bed gives me a disordered mindset. US Navy Admiral, William H. McRaven said that making your bed in the morning will give you a sense of accomplishment. And perhaps I do feel that, but it also just feels icky if I don’t do it.
On Tim Ferriss’s podcast, Michael Lewis said he feels rotten if he goes a day without exercising, that his body forces him and he’s glad because of it. Lewis is a writer who sits behind a desk all day, not an athlete, yet he feels like crap if he doesn’t exercise.
I feel like my breath smells awful if I go a morning without brushing my teeth. It feels icky if I don’t brush them, so I do it.
Recently, I started feeling icky if I don’t sit down and type out a post every morning and publish it. It feels like my day hasn’t officially started if I don’t publish something.
Habits are meant to be a routine or set of repeated actions you do subconsciously. It’s true that a behavior sticks with you if you do the same thing over and over again. What isn’t talked about is the uncomfortable feeling you get when you consciously choose not to complete your habit.
You feel terrible if you don’t do what you normally do.
I call it the ickiness effect: the feeling of disgust when you aren’t doing something, so you do it to get rid of it.
I feel icky not cleaning my room and taking out the trash, so I do it.
I feel icky ordering too much fast food, so most days I cook something for myself.
I feel icky if I don’t drink enough water each day, so I drink a lot of water.
If I feel icky not doing something, then I do something to get rid of that feeling. Focusing on that feeling when creating my desired habits has been more useful than I imagined.
If there’s something you want to be doing, but your mind and body won’t allow it, find a way to make you feel icky for not doing it.
Here’s my inspiration for the day.