Habits Are Better Than Resolutions. Here's Why. - Little Shoots, Deep Roots

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Many years ago, I made a New Years Resolution to get healthier by exercising every day. Wanna know how long that lasted?

About 4 days. 🤣

Resolutions are a fun way to dream about our life goals and changes we want to make, but there’s a reason January 17th is “Ditch New Year’s Resolutions Day”.

Resolutions tend to be impractical and unsustainable.

You know what is very practical and super sustainable?

Here’s why:

1) Habits are the building blocks of our lives.

From what you eat for breakfast to what you do as you drive your kids to school, habits impact everything about our lives.

“Our habits show clearly what we worship, and our lives reflect what’s important to us.”

Shelly Wildman, First Ask Why

2) Our brains love to check things off.

Our brains are literally wired to create habits, because automatic behaviors simplify things for our brains. You can’t check off “help my child grow spiritually” but you CAN check off “pray the Lord’s prayer together”. This might sound like empty ritual, but it doesn’t have to be. Our habits become what define us and create the rhythms in our lives.

This check-off-ability also creates accountability. Your kids can’t say “mommy, did you help me grow spiritually today?” But they CAN say “mommy, did you say the Lord’s prayer with me today?”

3) Little habits are easy and sustainable

Habits come naturally once you’ve created them because you’ve literally created a rut in your brain. The simpler the habit, the faster it becomes a habit.

4) Little habits are stackable

Add together more than one New Years Resolution and we tend to end up quitting even quicker because it’s just too much.

However, when you keep your habits simple, you can add one after the other and it creates a life rhythm.

For example, I know many families that began with a 15-second Biblical blessing at bedtime that slowly stacked into a much longer time of spiritual growth.

5) Little habits are flexible

If you forget to work on your New Years resolution all day, you might be tempted to throw in the towel.

However, with a little habit, you can say “let’s do it right now” or “I’ll do it first thing in the morning” because it’s SO easy and quick.

6) Little habits create long-lasting life change

Because little habits are easy, sustainable, stackable and flexible, they actually help you create true life change. They’re not a dream, or a goal or a resolution.

They’re life-changing.

Ok, so all that is great, but HOW do you actually start spiritual habits in your family and how do you know where to start?

You get to pick your freebie.

🌱 1) Grab the Start Little Guide, which identifies many tiny habits you could start as a family and walks you through how to start them. >> DOWNLOAD HERE <<

OR

🌱 2) Take the 7-day Blessings Challenge, where I teach you how to start a single, 30-second habit. >> JOIN HERE <<

OR

🌱 3) Watch my 1-hour free training to identify the sustainable, step-by-step way to give your kids a foundation of faith. >> REGISTER HERE <<

Ready, set…choose!

Then let me know which one you picked in the comments!

Growing with you,

Christie