9 habits that can transform your life if you practice them every day

Who doesn’t want to make their life better? Who doesn’t wish they were more responsible with saving money, being more productive, or going to the gym more regularly?

I know I do. But even if we know what we need to do, these seemingly attainable goals can still appear daunting.

The key, in my experience, is to start small. By starting with small but good habits, we can eventually build up to the lifestyle we want. 

After all, the smaller the change, the easier it is to achieve—and the easier it is to keep at it!

Here are 9 habits that can transform your life if you practice them every day. They will kick-start your journey to radical self-improvement.

1) Get up earlier

Yes, you can technically wake up at noon and go to bed at 4 a.m. every day. You’ll still get 8 hours of sleep and 16 hours of daytime.

But how much of those 16 hours would you consider productive hours? Evolution simply hard-wired our minds to work when the sun is out.

Changing your body clock is one of the hardest things to change, but again, start slow. Try setting an alarm just 30 or even 15 minutes before the time you usually wake up.

Then simply gradually get earlier and earlier.

The best thing about this is that you can take your time in the morning. You can lie in bed for a few more moments to think about the day ahead instead of rushing and stressing to get to work.

Or you can sit down to list what you have to accomplish today. Or you can make a hearty breakfast that energizes you throughout the day.

Trust me, the first time you wake up much earlier than you used to will leave you feeling like a boss.

2) Make your bed first thing in the morning

But when you get up, make your bed first.

I know, I know. We hate to admit it, but our moms did know best.

Think about it: if we can’t organize ourselves in the little things, how can we expect to execute the bigger ones?

Yes, I know it’s a hassle. I know you can just plop right back in whether the bed is made up or not. But we can’t deny that doing it still gives us a small sense of accomplishment. 

Various studies have also shown that cleaner, tidier living and working spaces always lead to better moods and, therefore, higher productivity.

By starting with a small win, you’re setting yourself up for the day.

3) List down your expenses

We all know we need to manage our money better. Spend less and save more; easy enough right?

For many of us, spending has become habitual. It’s not something we think too much about.

Thirsty? Just go to the nearest Starbucks. Want that cute little dress? Just swipe your credit card.

It’s only a few dollars, right? 

And yet we all know that even these small-time expenses inevitably snowball into big-time money sinks.

The game changer for me was creating a budget sheet where I wrote down each of my expenses to the cent. 

Looking at it every day helped me concretely see where my money was going. By visualizing it, I finally saw why I used to be left with so little by the end of the month!

But I just don’t list down my expenses. I list how much I’ve saved and invested too. I set a limit for how much I was going to spend a month, and I also set a goal for how much I would save. 

(Well, not that I didn’t have these before, but I rarely ever met them for the reasons above.)

Accounting for myself simply helped me hold myself, well… more accountable.

4) Apologize less

And thank people more.

Now, I’m not saying that you shouldn’t apologize when you truly need to. But if you’re anything like me, I say “sorry” way too often.

When…

• I have to say no to someone;
• When I need someone to repeat themselves;
• When I’m making even just a small mistake;
• When someone gives me advice;

…I used to say sorry all the time. 

However, language is a powerful thing. Even such a simple word can have profound effects on our psychology and our relationships.

Simply put, saying sorry can diminish our confidence and self-esteem. Women, in particular, are socialized to put others first.

A great alternative to saying sorry all the time is saying thank you instead.

“Thanks for waiting!” or “Thanks for the feedback!” are, in my opinion, far better things to say. Instead of expressing remorse and regret, you’re expressing gratitude.

You’re shifting the energy and atmosphere of the situation from something negative into something positive.

5) Be a good listener

Having people skills is arguably the most important skill you can have. It’s just as crucial for your professional life as it is for your personal one.

Being a good communicator allows you to form and develop relationships that will be fulfilling and beneficial. 

However, when people talk about communication, they often focus on the part where they do the communicating—not the part where they are communicated to.

Knowing how to listen well is just as important as knowing how to speak. After all, you can only know what and how to say it after you listen to—and understand—what the other person is saying.

In fact, it might even be more important the earlier you are in your self-development journey. This is because you need to listen and absorb information and advice from people you look up to or are working with. 

6) Control your social media usage

In today’s age, social media controls us, but if you really want to grow as a person, you need to control your social media.

And I’m not just talking about the amount of time you spend there—which is also important to moderate!—but also how you spend it.

The most important thing to do is to unfollow people and pages that don’t bring you legitimate value and start following those who do.

Start unfollowing:

• Accounts and influencers promoting highly curated and seemingly perfect lifestyles;
• Profiles that post content that may be entertaining (or even addicting) but are ultimately of low value;
• And people who you don’t really care for, like that cousin of your sorority sister’s ex-boyfriend.

These things will only distract you, urging you to watch other people’s lives instead of living your own. Worse, they might even make you feel worse about yourself.

Instead, follow accounts that inspire and empower you, like figures you look up to or YouTube channels providing valuable educational content for the field of work you’re in.

7) Exercise 

Exercising is one of the most important habits to develop. Not only does it ensure that you stay fit and healthy, but these positive effects also affect other aspects of your life.

First of all, if you’re sick or injured, then your life and productivity levels slow down to a crawl. Exercise protects your body: it doesn’t just strengthen your bones and muscles, but it also improves your immune system.

More than the physical, however, regular exercise not only improves our mood but also makes us build confidence and discipline. 

When your body looks and feels great, you’ll feel like you can take on the world. And if you can stay consistent with a workout routine, then you can stay consistent with anything.

Again, start small. If the gym intimidates you, look for a sport or exercise you find fun and build from that.

8) Drink water!

Is this really worth mentioning? You might ask.

Absolutely yes.

It’s another thing we tend to forget about our health. We all know of its great benefits: greater energy levels, clearer skin, cleaner digestive tract, detoxification—and yet very few of us drink enough water.

This is because we only drink water when we feel thirsty. And when we do feel thirsty, we only drink maybe a gulp or two of water. Very far from the eight recommended glasses a day, no?

Here’s a tip that helped me. Drink one glass of water when you wake up and each time you eat. That’s already four glasses of water, and you can drink the other four throughout the day.

This also helps us get less tempted to drink unhealthier beverages like soda.

9) Stop sweating little decisions

This is a tip that I don’t see anyone else promote: reducing our decision fatigue.

Decision fatigue is the fatigue we experience when we’re making too many decisions at once. You can simply think of it as another form of stress.

Most of us have busy, hectic lives. 

When we have to think of what to cook or what to wear or when to schedule the date with that guy from Bumble, in addition to the numerous high-stakes decisions we make at work, our minds inevitably get overwhelmed.

This makes us develop bad habits: ordering takeout instead of cooking or foregoing that workout session you planned.

The key is to minimize these instances of inconsequential decision-making. Meal plan or sign up for a week’s worth of gym classes, for example. 

By doing this, you can focus on the more important things. 

To conclude

Consistency is the key to success. Habits, small or big, are the pillars of a fulfilling life. 

It’s not easy to build habits. For most people, it can take up to weeks, months, or even years. This is why patience is just as important as effort and motivation when it comes to building habits.

Rushing yourself will simply frustrate you and wear you down in the long run. So be kind and patient with yourself. 

Don’t punish yourself for having bad habits right now or if your journey towards better ones is filled with setbacks and imperfections. Remember that it’s part of the journey. 

So take it slow and steady—that’s what wins the race, no?