The Power of Habits: Taking Control of Your Future

When life doesn’t go as planned, it’s easy to external aspects. But the truth is, our outcomes are often shaped by something far more personal: our habits.

Years ago I had to terminate employment for someone I worked with for a while. They had gotten to a point where they angered many people in the organization and acted like an unprofessional brat when things didn’t go their way. Despite our repeated attempts to correct the behavior and let them know of the seriousness, they kept falling on bad habits, responding with anger and conflict instead of understanding and improvement. When we let them go, they blamed everyone else, stating it was other’s stupidity that caused their reaction, so they shouldn’t be accountable for it. .

Habits are the building blocks of our future. Success isn’t about occasional bursts of effort; it’s about consistent, intentional actions that align with our goals. A missed promotion, a faltering relationship, or a personal setback might seem like bad luck, but often, they’re the result of patterns we’ve created. Too often we are programmed to find the external aspect that can become a scapegoat. While this seems to absolve us of accountability, we still own our response, good or bad. Typically these become ingrained, habitual responses. The only way to improve is to take accountability, and then learn how to take control of the systems and habits in your life.

By acknowledging our role and focusing on the habits we can control, we gain the power to change. Transformation doesn’t happen overnight, but every small, deliberate step creates momentum. When you align your habits with your vision, you can design a life that moves you steadily toward success.