LIAM CHAI

Since I started learning spanish I have understood the ‘do one thing at a time’ advice much better.

Our thoughts of what we think makes us happy change so often. One day we think we should start learning an instrument, the next we are into kickboxing. A week later we might take up writing, or enroll in a new course at a college.

We begin these things with good intentions, with excitement and with the thought that we will complete them. Yet most of the time we don’t.

About three years ago I said to myself, “wouldn’t it be awesome to learn how to play the piano?” I told my friends about this idea and they told me to go for it, so I did. I didn’t have enough money to buy a proper piano so I bought a keyboard from Argos. When I got it, I practiced diligently for three whole days. It’s still sitting in my attic.

Most of us are lured onto paths that we never follow to the end. We are lured in by marketing, influence from peers or the prestige of following such a path.

We get lured in, we tell people we’re gonna do it this time. Then we get lured into another activity, and we tell people we’re gonna do that too. At the same time we’re already doing x, y and z.

As magnificent as we think we all are, we’re not.

Have one focus. This has only really just hit me. If you really want to learn how to draw, make that your focus. You don’t have to make it your focus for the rest of your life. But make sure you make it a focus. They say it takes thirty days to form a habit, so make it a focus for thirty days. If at the end of that you don’t feel it is a habit, make it a focus for another thirty days. 

Have one focus, and when it turns into a habit, you can begin another focus.

Let’s take a habit everyone physically has to do – taking a poop. You should be pooping at least once a day, and let’s say it takes a total of ten minutes from entering the toilet to leaving it.

If one day you were gifted the superpower of not needing poops and instead had the opportunity to practice a skill (let’s say playing the violin). You would probably be a really good violinist by now.

The thing is, the ability to create habits is an actual superpower.

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step – Lao Tzu

If you can say, “yes I would like to learn this new skill. I will make it into a habit so that I can practice it for a long-time without it feeling like a chore.” Then you have an actual superpower.