Appreciating the Spirit of Consistency in Students!

Special Congrats to the Select Few!

I MA & II MA English | Atomic Habits

One habit that I always admire in a person is their consistency, especially when it comes to working on good habits.

Nothing gives greater joy and happiness to a teacher than to see their students staying committed and consistent in their duties and responsibilities.

Consistency could be defined as ‘the quality of always behaving or performing in a similar way’.

‘You get what you repeat’, seems to be the mantra that highlights the essence of Clear, James Clear’s inspirational book on cultivating good habits, titled, Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones, published in the year 2018.

Too often, we convince ourselves that massive success requires massive action. Whether it is losing weight, building a business, writing a book, winning a championship, or achieving any other goal, we put pressure on ourselves to make some earth-shattering improvement that everyone will talk about,

says Clear, and adds up to say that, our habits transform us for the better, slowly yet steadily!

Clear gives this clue and cue with his premise –

1% BETTER EVERY DAY!

This post would like to acknowledge, appreciate and celebrate a few of our students who are consistent in their atomic habits.

First and foremost, today a student from the II MA Class had got an appointment [five days ago] to meet me at 10.20 am today, in the Office.

She was there on time, as she had promised, with a book in hand. She also gave a very engaging review of this book that she’d read during the holidays.

I was in awe and admiration at the consistency that she’s strived to cultivate over the past semester as far as her reading and writing are concerned.

Almost every other week, she’d update me on her reading schedules and her research.

After finishing a few chapters, she’d update me on her progress in her reading. Likewise she was able to complete book after book during her precious spare time.

Today, she gave me a novel and said, she’d read through the entire book.

I asked her, ‘Have you gone through the entire book?’

‘Yes, sir. I did. And I also tried connecting this author with yet another author’, she said.

Apart from the fact that she’s consistent in her reading, she is quite consistent in her writing as well.

I was so happy to see this commitment to consistency in her.

A heartful of blessings for you kiddo!

Secondly, yet again, today, I got messages from two students in the MA Class, that they wish to be part of the Digital Detox Challenge, promising to stay away from their tech gadgets for 12 hours – say from 6 pm to 6 am, some from 7 pm to 7 am, etc.

So far, four have joined [names withheld for the duration of the Digital Detox] 😊 the Digital Detox Challenge and I’m so proud of them all.

Well, the Digital Detox Challenge is a Challenge that I had announced in the PG Classes [I MA & II MA] for students who have the resolve to stay away from their mobile phone for a minimum of twelve hours a day, and to use the time thus saved and gained, on creative, academic and intellectual pursuits.

Once a student promises to join the Challenge, they just have to message their teacher about their resolve, and that’s it! 😊

The Challenge stays for a minimum duration of three months, to help them focus on the finer aspects to life, living and literature.

To such students, the teacher would give suggestions on how to utilize their 12 hours in meaningful, rewarding ways.

Thirdly, I was going through a few Vlogs done by our students, which are highly original and creative in every way! Some of them I’ve displayed it on my WhatsApp status as well. A few I’ve displayed here, to the right of our blog. More to follow soon.

Fourthly, special appreciation to all of you who’ve presented papers / published articles in journals. Some students have shown consistency even in their visit to the library, or in presenting papers in Seminars. Special kudos to you all.

Finally, special congratulations to those of you who have started reading your newspaper on a daily basis. Some of you even share your newspaper reading with me. Thank you so much. Kindly bear with me if I’m not able to respond immediately to your ‘reading snapshots’.

I can just say that, I’m so proud of you all.

Coming back to Clear and his Atomic Habits,

Clear says that, the same way that money multiplies through compound interest, the effects of your habits multiply as you repeat them.

Although they might seem to make little difference on any particular day as such, the impact they deliver over the months and years could be really really amazing!

Hence, it is only when looking back two, five, or perhaps ten years later that the value of good habits and the cost of bad ones becomes strikingly apparent,

he opines.

And for this, Clear has yet another positive premise –

It doesn’t matter how successful or unsuccessful you are right now. What matters is whether your habits are putting you on the path toward success.

Adds he –

Accomplishing one extra task is a small feat on any given day, but it counts for a lot over an entire career.

Knowledge compounds. Learning one new idea won’t make you a genius, but a commitment to lifelong learning can be transformative.

Furthermore, each book you read not only teaches you something new but also opens up different ways of thinking about old ideas.

James Clear gives much emphasis on the internal (intrinsic) motivation as well!

Intrinsic motivation!

Interestingly, the book is subtitled, ‘An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones’.

The ultimate form of intrinsic motivation is when –

a habit becomes part of your identity.

The more pride you have in a particular aspect of your identity, the more motivated you will be to maintain the habits associated with it.

For example –

If you’re proud of how your hair looks, you’ll develop all sorts of habits to care for and maintain it.

If you’re proud of the size of your biceps, you’ll make sure you never skip an upper-body workout.

If you’re proud of the scarves you knit, you’ll be more likely to spend hours knitting each week.

Once your pride gets involved, you’ll fight tooth and nail to maintain your habits.

True behaviour change is identity change.

You might start a habit because of motivation, but the only reason you’ll stick with one is that it becomes part of your identity.

Anyone can convince themselves to visit the gym or eat healthy once or twice, but if you don’t shift the belief behind the behaviour, then it is hard to stick with long-term changes.

Improvements are only temporary until they become part of who you are.

The goal is not to read a book, the goal is to become a reader.

The goal is not to run a marathon, the goal is to become a runner.

The goal is not to learn an instrument, the goal is to become a musician.

What inspiring lines from Clear – James Clear, ain’t it?

In this regard, we are so proud of you, our dear students. Keep up the spirit.