Making Time For Pleasure
How often do you come home from work and do the same things over and over again? I'm very guilty of this, and my big habit is to sit on the couch, put on a tv show, and browse my phone for 2-3 hours and not do anything.
This behavior doesn't feel pleasurable; it feels more like numbing. It doesn't help make room for connection with friends, reach towards your goals, or bring joy.
Do you need more time for joy or pleasure in your life? How do you find more enjoyment and satisfaction out of your life? I've taken more notice of this recently and have taken active steps to reduce mindless TV and phone browsing, and to think about the things that please me. To start, I identified different activities that I could do that would bring me pleasure that would not be my usual ritual. Right now my running list is the following:
Work on my business (at least 2 nights a week)
Spend Tuesday nights with friends
Game night with my partner
Read a book
Take a restorative yoga practice
Once you identify your activities, it's important to schedule them. I place them in my calendar so they are protected from other events that could potentially push them out. Another strategy is I've removed cues that make it easy to fall back into a bad habit. For instance, I'll have no "tv nights," put my phone away or do things in a different part of the house.
As a culture, we rarely take time to notice what pleases us. I find that naming something a pleasure practice gives it more permanence, fun, and priority. When I started, I did begin with three items, but now my time is much more dedicated to pleasure. I currently have scheduled activities that give me enjoyment and satisfaction five nights a week.
Action steps on how to get more joy and pleasure in your life:
List three things that bring you pleasure
Remove old cues for habits you want to break
Create a new prompt to remind yourself of the action you would like to do and schedule it.
