So, you recently decided to get your life together. Or at least, make some changes to improve your everyday life. The trouble is, you’re not getting the returns you expected.

It’s a common issue that becomes the source of discouragement, disempowerment, and demotivation. If a practice is supposed to be “good” for you, but it doesn’t do YOU any good, are you bad? 

Hardly. More likely, you’re the victim of one-size-fits-all thinking or one of these other reasons why your healthy habits aren’t working. 

You do it too infrequently to get the benefits.

The first thing people think of when we say something is done too infrequently to get results is the gym. And it’s true - you can’t go to the gym once a week and expect noticeable body changes in the next few months. But this also applies to things like meditation and journaling.

To be sure, some is probably better than none. But if you want more happiness, more calm, and clearer focus, you have to work at it every day. Or almost every day - skipping a day or two throughout the week isn’t a big deal. 

Remember that your daily meditation only needs to be ten minutes long. Writing down three things you're grateful for in a day can take two minutes. This small daily time investment will always pay off bigger than laboring over these practices for an hour on the weekends only. 

You’re working too hard at it. 

The main reason overthinking is so bothersome is this: it makes simple tasks difficult. If your “clean” new diet is leaving you constantly hungry, you’ve cut too many calories. If you have aches and pains that make it hard to walk or sit every day, your new exercise routine is too intense.

Maybe you want fast results, but intensity doesn’t breed longevity. You’re more likely to give up on something if you make it hard for yourself to continue.

You care too much what others think.

Our fear of judgment isn’t always easy to acknowledge. However, almost everything we do that is witnessed by others is carried out accordingly. In the gym, we only use certain equipment. We always roll out our yoga mats in the back of the studio. We write what we think others want to read.

This is far and away the easiest method to getting stuck. You’ll never move forward, think creatively, or live authentically if you’re always factoring in someone else’s opinion. Make sure this isn’t a subconscious barrier in your own progress. 

You’re trying to emulate someone else. 

Influencer culture has plenty of downsides, and this is one of them. On one hand, it’s great to be inspired and exposed to new ideas. But influencers are usually just showing one shiny, curated facet of their lives. 

Being unable to twist yourself into a pretzel, losing the will to meditate for an hour a day, not looking good in expensive workout leggings, quitting a cabbage-only diet on Day One - these are not failures. It’s just not for you. And it’s probably not for them, either.

You know what is for everyone? Singing bowls. Whether listening, playing, or both, Silent Mind offers a unique range with something for everyone.

Have any tips for picking up healthy habits? What’s been hardest for you to get into the habit of doing? Let us know below.