TED Talk Tuesday and The Power of Habit with Charles Duhigg

We go to church every Sunday. Not because we're Type A about church or anything, but because if we ever took some Sundays off, then my kids would want to take all the Sundays off. They like seeing their friends at church and enjoy Sunday school, but sleeping in is pretty awesome too. So it's easier when going to church each week is just something we do.

This Sunday is my favorite Sunday: our Martin Luther King church service with our sister AME church in Boston. Amazing music and camaraderie and hopefullness. Can I get an Amen?

Anywho.

Some writing friends and I started a streaking club last week (which you're welcome to join) in the hopes of making writing each day just something we do. In that spirit, here's a great TED Talk with Charles Duhigg about how to create our own willpower. It's all about cues and rewards and planning our decisions ahead of time. This is a great talk, and one that I'm sure I'll refer back to in order to help create some habits for myself and my kids.



Fascinating at 3:30 when Charles Duhigg explains what happens in our brain when we are driving (or walking) and forget how we got somewhere.

And at 4:34 when he explains how to start a habit of exercise with cues and rewards.

5:39--bootstrapping your brain! :)

I laughed at 7:50--what 250 million dollars sounds like going up in flames!

9:33--the marshmallow test. Now we're getting into the good stuff!

And 11:30--when the scientist discovers that kids who can resist eating the marshmallow are more successful.

At 13:33 we learn how to to not eat the marshmallow. And how to be more successful!

Do you have new habits you're trying to create in the new year? How's your writing life?
Are you streaking?

Streaking and TED Talk Tuesday: Angela Lee Duckworth's Key to Success: GRIT

So I've decided to take up streaking this January.

Nope, not that kind of streaking. :)

Streaking, as in, trying to do things for as many days as I can in a row. In order to join the US Running Streak Association, one needs to run at least a mile for 365 days.

I think there is a lot of wisdom in that.

First of all, it's totally doable. On any given day, I can run a mile. But, have I ever run every single day of the year? Nope. Totally doable and yet totally a terrific challenge.

CHALLENGE ACCEPTED.

How does this translate to writing? Simply. I'm going to set the goal of writing every day for 30 minutes. Most days I'll write more than that. And I'm the first to admit that some days I need not to write--some days I need to think about a project. And on those days, I'll write something different. And think about the project that needs some air.

I don't think that this will burn me out like NaNo. (Don't get me wrong I LOVE NaNo!)

And, if I skip a day, I'll start the streak over. (But I'm not planning on skipping.) So, who's with me? Let's start a writing streaking club.

Let's call it the Writers' Loft Streaking Club--but anyone can join.

I'm not big about new year's resolutions, but I am big about beginnings. Let's streak.

To spur you on, here's some inspiration from Angela Lee Duckworth, who shares that it isn't smarts but GRIT that creates success.

You know, like the grit that you need to write (or run) every single day.


Can't see this TED talk via blogger? Click here.

Will you streak with me? :)