2021 - create new habits to create a new world

They say it takes

**21 days to create a new habit**

**67 days to kick a bad habit**

**90 days to stabilise a habit into your life**

21 days or 3 weeks (3 x 7) seems to be a magic number… Back in 2017 I journalled about being "currently in day 13 of 21 of my reiki self healing in which I must do reiki on myself and report on it each day in a diary. If I miss a day I have to start at day 1 all over again!"... that was back when at least we could predict a little about what the next year would bring, we could make goals for ourselves, and we could plan (pretty confidently) where life would be taking us without having to consult a crystal ball...

Back then in 2017 I also wrote:

"I had to hand my report findings (or experiences) into my reiki master (teacher), along with a detailed report of my experiences from giving reiki healings to two other people. I am then able to obtain my reiki practitioners certificate…not long now!"

As 2021 approaches it will be 4 years since I became a reiki practitioner. In those 4 years I have not publically practised much, but privately I have. In those 4 years I have been mostly preoccupied with working on "my self". On me. And it has specifically been through the creation and forming of new habits and personal growth (which has come through change - sometimes not chosen and sometimes uncomfortable) that I have gained wisdom and welcomed in manifestation within the creation of these new habits and a new mindset.

Just recently I've noticed that this self growth has aided and encouraged my reiki and energy healing to become somewhat more powerful. I notice I am able to pick up and intuit energy much more easily and frequently than I previously could. I've put this down to the new habits I have introduced which, in turn, has helped to open up my chakras (particularly my higher chakras and my heart chakra - love) and as the heart (chakra) is connected and physically expressed through the hands, I have no doubt that this is why my hands are now more sensitive to energy...

So what's reiki got to do with creating new habits? Well, like I said, I used it as an example to show how it indirectly benefited or got better by the process of creating new habits for myself. Those two habits I created for myself back then, four years ago, was a daily morning meditation practise and giving up TV. Both have had a huge impact on my life. Regular daily meditation has been the backbone of my spirituality and my devotion to becoming a better human for the past 4 years now, it has been fundamentally life changing! and I'm so glad I gave up TV back in 2017! Despite it being terrible and not worth watching, I avoided all the programing of fear and drama being played out hour by hour by news reports particularly over this year just passing. I do know this because others have commented about my lack of knowledge or lack of worry and fear "Haven't you watched the news?" they say to me in shrill tones and looks of horror or surprise...

Now back to the benefits of reiki...having a reiki healing and giving yourself the gift of self healing isn’t all that bad really! when you’re starting out on the journey of creating a new habit you really have to think about the positive and what the benefit is, what's your goal or objective? What's your reason? Once you've established that and preferably written it down somewhere, concentrating and continually directing your thoughts to the positive reasons about why you're doing it and not what you're having to give up (the negative) is a good way to keep yourself on track.

Creating a daily (early) morning meditation practice took some commitment! It involved some adjustments of which I was pretty well conscious of at first…(i.e. having to wake up earlier to fit it in to my day uninterrupted!) but by concentrating on the positive, I understood that it would really benefit me and since I was training to become a Meditation Teacher I thought I had better learn to "walk the talk", or else I would be caught out as a fake! (Horror!)

Another words, I had to be accountable! Which also a good strategy to use when you are trying to create a new habit or even break a habit. So, go on, tell your friends, your partner, your kids or colleagues, so they can pull you up or better still, give you some positive morale around your desire to create a new habit (or break a bad one) and improve your life…For if they realise it or not, the benefit comes back to them. The happier and healthier we are, the more we can give and create positive energy around us – this benefits not only the people in our lives and around us, improving our relationships, as well as every other aspect in our life generally, but it sends a ripple out into the world and it lifts the vibration, thus it is healing the world. Love and positivity will always have an effect, we may not see it directly or it may not sit with us, but it is guaranteed that it will find a flow and go where it is needed.

What new habit/s are you thinking about creating for yourself this coming year?

Since I started my regular early morning meditation practice, I have developed and discovered a whole wealth of information and tools that have both complemented and assisted to develop my spiritual connection and practice more powerfully. These have included asana’s (yoga postures), mudras (hand poses) and pranayama (breathwork). Putting all these together in practice is to create what is known as a Sadhana. This is the name for an ancient Indian practice that combines these elements in a daily routine, which in turn invokes many positive effects on the body, mind and soul.

Yogi and Medical Doctor Dharma Singh Khalsa writes that from his own experience and research, having a sadhana or regular meditation practice is a key to higher living, and the benefits of the healing it creates for your body, your mind and your spirit is certainly epic if his book is anything to go by…check it out -Meditation as Medicine, Activate the Power of Your Natural Healing Force, by Dharma Singh Khalsa M.D and Cameron Strauth. I highly recommend this book as a meditation reference – or just as an insight to the power of self healing which exists within us all.

And in case you missed it, I haven't yet stated my intentions or resolution in regards to what new habits I will be creating and bringing into my life in 2021.

So here they are!

spending time in nature every day

engaging in (daily) exercise, and

more sleep between 8pm and 5am

These are all simple but powerful choices and I have made myself accountable here – to you all! so watch this space – I’ll be busy in the New Year trying to instate these new healthier habits I’ve just pledged to you all into my life…

And for the record, I am not starting until I feel like it! (which is probably mid to late January!!) January 1st 2021 might not be everyone's best day to start something new, and why would you set yourself up for failure? Have a plan about how you are going to do it and envision yourself doing it (envision yourself doing it daily when you wake up first thing in the morning and before you go to sleep at night. This will help your subconscious to absorb it into thought form and to then create this flow that follows into action...(the trick here is that you must envision it, but then you must follow the flow by actually physically doing it)

And if you find the year slipping away and you haven't started those intentions or resolutions you thought you would, do not despair or give up! Be kind to yourself. Remember the power is always in the present moment. February, or even June is a good place to start! As long as you choose to start and follow through by action, the universe will have your back and take care of the rest...and you may just be pleasantly surprised where a healthy new habit can lead you!

Love and best wishes for a bright and beautiful New Year. I look forward to connecting with you all in 2021!

Aloha blessings,

Natalie x