I wrote a blog earlier this month about how I tried out mind mapping for the first time. And one of the first thing I mind mapped was habits I wanted to add to my days.

Most of these are good habits that I’ve had on and off for a few years, but all that I knew would have a positive effect on my day to day.

I wanted to dig into how I could add them into my day, specific times that might work best, what my specific goal was for that habit, and the benefits to each habit.

So, I had a rough idea of what these habits were that I wanted to add, and the six I came up with were:

+ exercise

+ journal

+ meditate

+ hydrate

+ gratitude

+ wake up early

Now, these might seem like pretty general habits most people wanted to add, but today I wanted to share how I broke each down into something tangible for me.

So, the first thing I asked myself about each habit was what is my daily goal for this habit?

exercise = 30 minutes each day

journal = write in one journal each day

meditate = either meditate or sit quietly for 10 minutes

hydrate = drink 80 - 120 oz of water each day

gratitude = write three gratitudes each evening

wake up early = 6 am

I have to set specific goals, as I guess most people do, to follow through with them.

The next thing I asked myself was, what specific time of day could I fit this goal into. Another important step to actually getting it done.

exercise = a morning walk or run, bike or walk places, take the stairs

journal = morning pages first thing, normal journal late afternoon

meditate = either in the morning before work, or when I need a break

hydrate = all day obviously but a glass before coffee and breaking it up between hours

gratitude = first thing when I get into bed

wake up early = morning, duh

And finally I thought through different benefits I saw in each.

exercise = important to move my body each day, good way to take a break during the day, get out in nature, clear my mind.

journal = document things, brain barf, more focused, think through things, clear mind, less anxiety, free therapy.

meditate = less anxiety, calmer mind, free therapy.

hydrate = better skin, digestion and energy.

gratitude = more grateful and positive, less anxiety

wake up early = more productive in the morning, get my day started, get to have coffee.

I thought through each habit one at a time, starting in the center with “habits” and branching further and further from there.

I then made a list in Wunderlist where I could store all the notes in an organized, tangible fashion. And it’s nice to have them in an easily accessible place where I can go check in on them and get inspired again if need be.

I’ve been really good at journaling, daily gratitude and waking up early and not so great at hydrating, meditating and exercising.

And I think that’s an important note to end on. You’re not going to seamlessly add this new habit into your life straight away. You’re going to mess up. Hell, you might even forget about it. But that’s ok. Failure doesn’t mean you can’t keep trying.

Keep tweaking when you do it, how you do it and you’ll find the sweet spot in your days to add it to.

What are some habits you’ve been working to add, or maybe remove from your day to day life?