There is a quote that says, “People do not decide their futures, they decide their habits, and their habits decide their futures.” While we may not have complete control over what our futures will look like, we do have the power to make decisions that will propel us in the direction in which we want to go. 

All day, every day, we make small and seemingly insignificant decisions that we often do without thinking about. Many of these decisions become habits. They can be as small as checking your phone as soon as your alarm goes off or taking the time to moisturize your face before you leave the house for the day. 

If you think about it, every decision that you make is either helping or hurting you in some way. 

The key is to be aware of the small daily decisions you make and how they may affect you in the long run. From there, we can work to either positively reinforce the good habits or eliminate the ones that aren’t beneficial.

In the moment, it may seem a trivial decision or task, but ultimately how you do one thing is how you do everything. You may not have control over all of the chaos in your life, but you do have the power to take control of certain things.

Having that bowl of ice cream every night before bed may be a hindrance to your weight loss goals more than you are aware of. It may not seem like a big deal, but doing it every day will eventually make a noticeable impact. Doing something as small as switching to a healthier version or only eating it on the weekends might allow you to see the progress you have been looking for. 

The dangerous yet powerful thing about habits is that you don’t notice the effects of them until some time has passed. 

If you are doing small positive things in your life, they will eventually compound and you will be able to look back and see growth in certain areas of your life. If you are making negative or even neutral decisions throughout your day, you will either look back and be upset with where you are or discouraged that you haven’t seen any growth in your life. 

Here is the challenge. Analyze 3 small things that you do every day and decide whether those things are beneficial or detrimental to your growth. If they are beneficial, continue doing them and consider adding something else that would benefit you even more. (Example: If you already brush your teeth every night, make flossing right after a priority and habit stack those 2 tasks). If the decision is negative or neutral, consider how you could change or eliminate that from your day. (Example: Journal some gratitudes in the morning or get some sunlight/fresh air before you check social media). 

Every decision is significant. Be intentional in making the right ones, even if they are small. They eventually will add up and make a difference.