We are ruled by our environment more than most of us like to admit.
Consider the things that you do without thinking, those deeply ingrained habits.
Like, brushing your teeth in the morning or plopping on the sofa & turning on Netflix after work.
I’m here to teach you how to design your environment for success.
We don’t often think a lot about how much our space can impact us.
But we respond to cues in our environments without even realizing it.
The environment you are surrounded by on a regular basis can determine your default actions.
But don’t worry because little changes can bring about big differences.
Quick Access
Habits
Your habits, by nature, keep you doing the same things that you’ve always done.
For better or for worse.
Habits are those tiny choices you make without even thinking.
Your life is basically the result your habits. Think about that.
We can fall into patterns with our habits without even realizing it.
So you probably want to instill good habits and get rid of the bad ones, right?
Then you want to design your environment to reflect that!
Make it Easy
When we’re talking about how to design your environment for success, we’re talking about making it easy.
Willpower won’t always work, so you want to make things easier for yourself.
If you want to start living a healthier lifestyle you need to modify your environment to support that.
That means stocking your kitchen with healthy nutritious foods of course.
But it also means getting rid off all of the junk food and sweets.
Because, lets be honest, if they are in the kitchen you’re probably going to reach for the junk food and sweets before the healthy stuff.
The easiest thing to do to stop eating junk is to not buy junk.
It’s something so obvious and yet so accurate. You are most likely buying the junk food that you are eating.
Personally, I have a weakness for potato chips.
I may not have been thinking about food, or even hungry but.. If I see some chips, I’m probably going to eat some chips.
They’re also really cheap and I love a good cheap snack.
Can you relate to that?
Make it easier for yourself and don’t fill your environment with temptations that are the opposite to your goals.
Make it Obvious
Can’t seem remember to do the thing?
Put the item it requires out in the open and make it obvious so that you can’t miss it.
Put your floss next to your tooth brush, put your guitar on a stand out in the open instead of packed into it’s case, leave your book on the table, your notebook and favorite pen out on your desk…
The easier and more obvious it is the less likely you are to forget to do it.
It’s a super simple concept, but a powerful practice.
Prepare
Rig your environment to your favor.
Sometimes it only takes a little bit of resistance to change your mind.
As humans we are wired to want to take the path of least resistance.
Scientific studies show that we tend to grab at the low hanging fruit, instead of climbing to the top to get the highest hanging of fruits.
What does this mean for you?
You want to cook healthy, but none of the vegetables are washed or chopped so it’s easier to just grab something from the freezer.
And that’s what you do.
But if you already prepped the veggies in advance, it’s so much easier to make them in the moment.
The less you have to work the more likely you are to follow through.
But this can also work in the opposite way.
Make it more difficult to succumb to your bad habits
Have your environment support the habits you want to continue and hinder the habits that you want to stop.
Actionable Examples
I couldn’t write a post on how to design your environment for success without giving you some real, actionable things that you can do today!
- Set your workout clothes as the only option for you to put on in the morning.
Make sure you put on real shoes too. No slippers, no excuses! - Can’t remember to take your supplements or vitamins?
Put them somewhere you can’t miss them – like next to the coffee maker or your toothbrush. - Wash and chop your fruits and vegetables as soon as you’ve bought them.
That way when you go to cook, they’re already prepped and you have a little less work to do to get them from the refrigerator to your dinner plate. - Log out after every social media session if you want to spend less time scrolling.
You could also delete the app after every session.
That way you’ll have to log back in, or reinstall the app, every time you want to use it again. - If you want to drink less soda (or drink more water) don’t keep soda in the fridge!
If you can’t get rid of the soda entirely because of someone you share your home with, try seeing if you can push the soda to the back of the fridge.
Out of sight can almost be as good as out of mind.
Instead try keeping your water out on the counter-top, or at the very front of the fridge where you can’t miss it!
- If you want to stop watching so much TV, you can try taking the batteries out of the remote, or unplugging the TV once you’re done watching it.Putting the batteries back in and plugging in the TV are only minor inconveniences but sometimes that’s all it takes.
- If you want to read more put your book somewhere you’re definitely going to see it.That could be on your bedside table, on top of your desk, wherever you can’t miss it.
- If you’re staying up too late and you have a smart home or even just a basic outlet timer – you can set them to dim or turn off completely at a certain time.If you don’t have either of those things, try setting an alarm that lets you know it’s time to wind down.Commit to turning off technology and getting ready for bed when the alarm goes off.
Conclusion
Change is difficult.
People often fail in their attempts to make a change in their behavior because there is no change in their environment.
If you’re trying to change, you might as well make it easier for yourself to do so.
Which is why you need to know how to design your environment for success.
Adjust your environment to make it easy for yourself to follow through with your good habits.
As well as make it easy for yourself to not give in to your bad ones.
Give yourself the best chance.
Work smarter not harder.
Hopefully after reading this you know exactly how to design your environment for success.
Let me know what your favorite tip is below!
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