“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence , then, is not an act, but a habit .” – Aristotle

Let’s face it fellas – e verybody dislikes change. But if your life sucks and you dislike where you are currently in any area of your life, change is the only medicine that’s gonna work!

Most of what we do every single day is habit. We repeatedly do the same things over and over, and thus we stay in the same place and get the same results, over and over! The only way to change the results you are getting, is to change the actions you are taking. That’s an iron clad fact of life.

While change may be uncomfortable to begin, it is necessary if we want a different outcome or if we want different circumstances. The good news is that the mind will learn new patterns and assimilate them in quite a short period of time, provided we take control and form the habit. The great news is, because of its’ innate ability to form habits, within a very short space of time the effort required to keep these new habits up lessens, until they are simply a part of your existence (just like your current habits already are).



When I first started to work out and eat at exact times, it was a massive chore. My body just wasn’t used to it, and my mind would come up with all sorts of negative self-talk and loser excuses. “Come on man, you’ve done a 12 hour shift today, cut yourself some slack and have a cheeseburger” or “you know, over training will lead to burn out, it’s better to listen to your body and rest when you need” and “you only live once! Have a beer and enjoy yourself for christsake!”



Many readers will identify with that and are aware of that negative self talk in their own minds.



What did I do to change it? I recognized my inner weakling and I simply ignored him. I didn’t even attempt to overcome the negative nonsense within, I just plain and simple got down on the floor and started doing pushups. Before I knew it, I’d pushed out several sets of 50 and was done. I did this day after day, week after week, until the Negative Norman inside me had all but faded away and died.



Then something interesting happened. It started to be that I couldn’t NOT do my daily exercises. Due to the fact I had trained at roughly the same time every night, my body had learned a new habit, and if I didn’t train, the same adrenaline and dose of brain chemicals would be released in anticipation of physical exercise, and I would get all hyped up and aggressive. I HAD TO work out or I would be in an absolute foul mood and couldn’t sleep. It had become a habit my brain had learned, and now I couldn’t ignore it.



So recognize and use the power of habit. The fact that habits are very difficult to break is a massive advantage when we have good habits. Given this natural fact, what are the best habits to learn in order to take our lives to new heights and live as a the better man we all want to be?



I’ve identified the 5 habits that changed my life for the better. These habits are so ingrained into my psyche now that they are truly automatic and it would take an immense effort to break them, not that I would ever want to. Learn them yourself, and you’ll be moving steadily towards your dreams and goals, and living as a better man.



1) Daily exercise – This is the one that is most important. Not only will this give you a daily dose of feel good chemicals for free, not only will it improve your health and possibly make you live longer, and not only will it make you sexier, but it will cause you to build a strong, self disciplined and confident personality that will lead to success in all other areas of your life.



What exercises you do depends entirely on your own goals. I have no desire to be a 270lb beef-cake, so I don’t focus on bodybuilding so much. I swim, skip and do an entire body weight workout routine. This gives me a lean muscular physique and makes me feel great about myself. What you do depends on yourself, but make it a daily habit and don’t buy the myth of over training. If you really do feel like you need it and are exhausted, pick one day a week and rest. No more!



2) Get your fuel right – If you aren’t eating right, you are literally disabling yourself. Your body is a machine, and what you put into it matters more than you can imagine.



Most people I talk to don’t have even a basic knowledge of nutrition. It’s no wonder half the world then is in disgraceful shape, sickness is rife and people are depressed and feeling like sh*t most of the time.



You need a balanced diet of quality slow-release carbohydrates, lean sources of protein and good mono and poly unsaturated fats. You need to start learning to see your body as a processing factory, with each cell within it as a worker with a job to do.

Imagine the red blood cells which carry nutrients to your muscles and vital organs as trucks carrying precious cargo. Would you feed those trucks junk, dirty fuel that will burn out in a matter of minutes, or would you feed them high quality, long-lasting fuel which goes all day and is replenished regularly? I know what my choice is.



Get educated about food. Then start a nutrition program that is right for your goals. If you want to bulk up, you need lots of high quality protein. If you want to slim down you need less sugary carbs and saturated fats. Learn what these things means and start living in a way that empowers and strengthens your body.



Everything about you is chemical. Your moods, your health, all of it. Food is chemistry. Learn how to harness the power of scientific principles and watch your body morph and transform before your eyes, your moods brighten and your energy levels stabilize.





3) Meditate – If you aren’t taking daily quiet time to clear away mental clutter and regain and refocus precious energy and attention, you are missing out.



Meditation gives a person improved awareness and alertness, greater mental clarity, better memory and recall, reduces stress and calms a person down, enabling him to deal better with the daily stress of living.



Think of meditation as de-fragmenting your computers hard drive. As all computer users know, the instrument runs 10x better and more efficiently after this process as all the clutter has been organized and compacted. The mind will respond in the same way.



If you don’t have time to sit quietly for 20-30 minutes each morning or night, there are plenty of other techniques you can use while walking, eating or even exercising.



4) Read – He who does not read is failing to take advantage of the greatest resource available to man. Everything that has ever happened, anything that you wish to learn or know more about is written in a book somewhere. There isn’t a subject in the world someone hasn’t written a book, a paper or a website about. Why would you not tap into this treasure trove of limitless information?



I personally aim to read one book per week, and it’s always related to my goals. I devour content on exercise, self-improvement, knowledge related to my industry

/career, biographies and autobiographies as well as books on financial trading and management.



Every day I aim to learn one thing I can use to my advantage. If you can do the same, you’ll be on the fast track to success in your chosen calling.



5) Make a To Do list – This is a very simple yet very powerful little trick you can use to make your days more efficient and productive.



Every day when you wake up, write down a list of tasks you will complete under the heading: STEPS TOWARDS DREAMS FOR TODAY. The tasks you write down should be somehow linked to your goals or things you wish to accomplish, and should be realistic and manageable. You need to do this on a daily basis, and then every single day do not go to bed until this list is ticked off and completed.



This will help you clarify, organize and review the actions you are taking and you’ll soon learn what’s useful in terms of producing results and what is a waste of time. Start out with three or four items, and do not let yourself off the hook under any circumstances. Before you know it, this will be second nature and you’ll be striding forward towards the life you have imagined in your vision.



That’s it guys. As I always say, nobody is going to do the work for you. Nobody is going to spend his time and energy achieving your goals when he could be working on his. Only you can do it. Invest the time into positive habit formation and it will pay off dividends for the rest of your life!



Desire. Decide. Persist.



G-Freedom