Time for a Change...of Habits?
To understand our lives is to be aware of our patterns or habits of thought and behavior. The meaningfulness of our present experience is an activity of habit—the experience of habit and living in the world can sometimes create a sense of tension and possibly stress at times if we are not particularly happy with our habits.
Whether the experience is comfortable or not, our self and environment are continuously being simultaneously transformed. Trusting, appreciating, sensing, thinking, and emotions are influenced by our habits in the process of distinguishing the meaning of things and experiences.
It is the result of an active collaboration between habit, interpretation, and reflection. One may not even remember what they have learned, were exposed to or came to understand, but can still be deeply influenced by the meaning each of us uniquely places on our experiences. Individuals may interchange truth and rationalization to avoid or escape the angst and foreboding created when the experience does not happily fit our habitual belief system.
Habits Don't Have to be a "Bad" Thing
Habits or patterns of behavior create a definitive picture of one’s world which can help individuals to understand the meaning of things within a design.
Patterns embody something greater that runs through all things and are part of the process which explains how the universe works and can be a vital source for solving life’s most remarkable difficulties.
As your brain creates explanations and envisions courses of action, networks of neurons are linked and begin to operate as the units that encode such beliefs and plans. Through repetition, these networks become more stable and connect with other networks into increasingly complex systems of explanation and guidance.
Established networks of neurons maintain consistent patterns, yet like the film frames that make up a movie, each moment is also a new creation. And like the Journey song, “The movie goes on and on and on and on”.
One’s sense of self is repeatedly reconstructed moment by moment, from the ground up, so continuously reconstructed that we are hardly aware we are being remade unless something goes wrong with the remaking. In the grander scheme of things, relationships within the big picture may reveal the vital importance of understanding our patterns of behavior or habits, and our relationships with others.
Sometimes we attach ourselves to a habit like a lifeboat in a sea of what feels like a chaotic life. It is no wonder that humans crave patterns. It can be a little crazy out there sometimes.
We are alive because of all the operating patterns (good habits) of our autonomic nervous system through our unconscious minds. We are part of every pattern in the universe.
We see patterns around us every day—in flower petals, sand dunes, pine cones, trees, mountains, and a blade of grass. Our buildings, our symphonies, our clothing, our societies — all affirm patterns. Even our rules, codes of honor, sports, traditions — we have many names for patterns of conduct. They assure us that life is orderly…even when the order does not make sense.
About the Author
For over 20 years, John Cane has helped over 100,000 individuals in areas of Self Improvement. John is a Certified Integrated Wellness Coach (Mind, Body, and Spirit), motivational speaker, and writer. John has six certifications in Personal Growth and Development. His Journal Books, ‘Important Things I Remember from My Parents’ are used in schools and as an aid for adults in gaining strength in self-identity in the United States and Europe. John is currently pursuing his Doctoral Degree in Psychology & Interdisciplinary Inquiry at Saybrook University, Oakland, California.