How to Choose Empowering Habits

Written by Jess

Our dreams inspire us with hope, our actions give us the wings to fly - Adèle Basheer

This is the vibe you want every time you think about habits. Because it’s exactly what habits are - the actions that give you the wings to fly!

Yes, habits are the automatic behaviours and actions that form almost half of your everyday life. But they’re so much more than brushing your teeth or drinking enough water, and habits become your super power when you choose to harness them.

In Part 1 of our Habits Series, we take you through an easy 5-step process for how to choose empowering and meaningful habits that best align with your top priorities. Ready to fly? Let's go!

Step 1: Check in with what’s most important

While there are loads of routines and rituals we're told we ‘should do’ ...before you get lost in the noise, take a big breath and pause.

The first step is to zoom out and shine a light on what's important to you, and the areas of life you want to see blooming.

Because ultimately you want to engage in life-affirming habits that will lead you to achieving your goals and your why – not anyone else's.

ACTION STEP 💡 
Step back and ask yourself:

• What areas of life are important to me right now?
• Where am I thriving?
• What areas need my attention?
• What areas of life do I want to see blooming?

🖍 To help you brainstorm and create a beautiful visual, download the 'Life in Bloom' printable.

📚 For folks with an Intrinsic Diary Planner, flip to the ‘Life in Bloom’ pages of the Discovery Journal. Whether you’re doing this for the first time, or redoing it now in a different season of life, this exercise is a powerful way to reveal a snapshot of your current satisfaction and fulfilment in life.

Step 2: Decide on your destination

Now that you know where you’re thriving and what life areas need some love, the next step is to decide on your destination.

By getting clear on your goals, you’ll know where you want to go, and the version of yourself you're ready to embrace. And from there, it'll be easy to hone in on the habits that matter most!

ACTION STEP 💡 
Ask yourself...

What goals would help me feel aligned and fulfilled in each of these life areas? Your goals might be things you want to accomplish by the end of the year, or a dream you're working towards achieving in the next 10 years.

Once you’ve written your list of goals, answer these questions…

• What feels most important to me right now? 
• What one or two goals do I feel most inspired to focus on now?

 📚 If you’re an Intrinsic Diary user, pop your goals into your Monthly Planner. This helps you move through the year with clarity, knowing exactly what to devote your time and energy to each month.

Step 3: Turn your dreams into achievable steps

Now for the fun part! Aligning your habits with your goals.

ACTION STEP 💡
Take the goals you've decided to focus on, and for each one ask yourself:

• What is the one habit I can implement now that would move me closer to this goal?

As you think about which habit to choose, consider these tips:

• Make your habit fun-size: small, easy to pick up and deliciously achievable! Starting small and growing slowly are signs of strength in the world of habits, and will mean you're far more likely to stick to these routines.
• Get specific: When our habits aren’t specific enough, we end up creating mental blocks to getting them done. For example, if wellbeing is a life area you want to focus on, and your goal is to meditate more, instead of making your habit 'meditate', be more specific. 'I meditate for 2 minutes every morning when I first wake up'. 
• Build upon existing habits: Is there a current habit that you consistently do, that you can now build upon through the power of habit stacking? For example:
  You want to drink more water → When you pour yourself a cuppa every morning, build upon this habit by finishing one glass of water while you wait for the kettle to boil.
  You want to incorporate more mindfulness into your life → When you drop the kids to school each morning, build upon this habit by being present and have everyone in the car say at least one thing they notice on the drive.

Step 4: Commit to your habits - one by one!

Look at you go - a habit master in the making! Now it’s time to give yourself those wings to fly.

The trick is - don't overload yourself! We know how tempting it is to write a list of 10 habits, because you're feeling so empowered and motivated to achieve your goals. 

Instead, you’re going to set yourself up for success by choosing one or two habits that you can nail this week, and embed into your daily life. Then you can keep adding on from there. 

Step 5: Track and celebrate!

Habits become automatic when they are repeated over and over. And one of the best ways to celebrate this and keep yourself accountable, is through tracking your progress.

And remember, it's about progress over perfection!

Everyone faces setbacks and challenges with sticking to new habits. See any obstacle as an opportunity to get curious and use our practical strategies for getting your habits back on track. 

ACTION STEP 💡 

• Use a Habit Tracker to write down the habits you’ve chosen to work on. It will fuel your happy hormones when you tick off your habit each day, and will motivate you to keep going.

📚 Don't be fooled by the simplicity of habit tracking – not only is it a visual record of your accomplishments, each tick gives you a hit of dopamine and motivates you to keep going to hit that habit streak! This is exactly why we include a Habit Tracker in each weekly spread of our yearly Diary Planner. 

And most importantly….

Make sure you celebrate your wins and the knowledge you gain along the way!

Check in with yourself about how good it feels to be working towards positive change. You’re making your goals and dreams come to life… and becoming the best version of yourself each day you show up!

Our yearly Diary, Planner + Guided Journal is filled with pages of life-enhancing tools and strategies to help you on your quest for habit success. Throughout the Diary, you’ll discover what areas of life are most important to you right now, have space to record your goals, and celebrate your habit streaks with a Habit Tracker built into each weekly spread. Sign up to our VIP Waitlist, and be first to know when our 2025 Diary Collection is released!