Creatures of Habit

A few weeks ago I went to my good friend Candice's for a trim. As I'm waiting for her to finish with another client I sat and thought about just how long I've been going to her. I came to the conclusion that I'd been getting my hair cut by Candice on and off (more on than off) for about 17 years. Crazy but true. (Maggie [my best friend] and I first met Candice when we were about 15 or 16 years old).

I remember when my ex and I were together and living in Texarkana and I got a girl out there to cut and color my hair. Even though my memory recollection isn't great, I don't think I liked it because after that I waited almost a year and a half before I got my hair cut just so that I could go to Candice because she knows what I like. I also don't think I've dyed my hair since then (I'm gonna call it the texarkana chainshear massacre...hahahaha; I like to think I'm funny but it wasn't that bad 😂). Needless to say I haven't gotten my hair cut by anyone else since.

Then I got to thinking how many other things in my life are like this. Well, I had my first dentist appointment in forever the other day. And would you know, I've been going to the same dentist since I was about, I'm gonna guess, 8 years old (but now that I type it out I wanna say I was younger when I started going there). That's 24 years, possibly more! It's interesting how habits make up so much of our lives.

From a job point of view, having the same job can be either a good or a bad thing depending on how you're looking at it. Obviously for financial and stability reasons having the same job can be a good thing. If you're looking to buy a house, having a job for an extended amount of time is a plus. However, if you have that same job for no other reason except being afraid of change, you're hindering more than helping yourself. Although the security of having a job may be there, the happiness may not be.

Now I'm not saying to go out and quit your job. Obviously we live in the age where bartering for goods is not really a thing anymore. Money is just a necessity (I'm sure there are those that are living off grid that may not require much but they still have to pay taxes, which requires money. So....anyway). Journal for a day, week or month about everything you do and determine what your habits are (good and bad) and decide what you should continue doing and what you should change. I guess what I'm saying is instead of going into "auto pilot" we all need to be mindful of the habits we make because your routine matters.

Morals of today's story:

• habits can cause tunnel vision

• lasting friendships are important

• don't let your habits run or ruin your life

• journaling is both beneficial and therapeutic

Thanks for reading. Follow along and grow with me.

-CJ