Regularity is the doctor’s cure for everything. I woke up with that phrase in my head. As I was going to the bathroom, it rang in my ears like some ancient melody from a long-forgotten tune. It was just what I needed.

I read a book called The High 5 Habit by Mel Robbins. She recommends, or rather, prescribes, as a good doctor would, waking up and doing a few things, just a few, not 200, to set your day right. Get your autonomic nervous system, your spirit gears and all that jazz running in the right direction.

It's centered around high-fiving yourself in the mirror at regular intervals. When you wake up, when you go to bed, and I forgot when else. (I just high-five the hell out of myself now; wherever I’m at—in the car, in the bathroom, in the kitchen).

And there’s a few other techniques she recommends that I won’t get into here. I suggest you read the book. Why not? What else are you gonna read? The directions for some Ikea bookshelf named Sklarg?

But it’s regularity, a habit, something you do on a regular basis that forms the backbone to a new life.

I need more coffee to really get that clear. I’ll be back… 

Pt 2.

Ok. I’m back.

One of my “regular” habits is making coffee the night before—rather, getting the coffee maker primed and ready to crank out the joe the next morning. When I regularly get up around 4:30 or 5:00 am.

Then I regularly stumble out of bed—but not before doing a few things Mel Robbins told me to do when I wake up.

I put my hands on my heart and say, “I am safe…I am loved…I am ok…”

Then I get up and go to the bathroom—but I don’t do anything in the bathroom before I high-five myself in the mirror.

(Don’t quote me on this stuff. Read the book or search out the official techniques for yourself)

What I’m trying to impart here in this humble blog post, is rather than forming habits that tear yourself down, make you fearful, ashamed, despondent, depressed…why not form habits that keep you propped up, ready to fly, ambitious, positive, and moving forward in the directions of your deepest desires and dreams?

(Wow, that’s pretty good for 5:05 am and only half a cup of joe…)

Regularity is what sets your algorithm working for you. If you regularly focus on what’s good in your life—rather than continually focusing on the negative, the lack, the fear, the woe is me and everything in this horrible universe—you might build yourself a new life. One that you’re really happy with.

(I’m just sayin’ that I notice I always have a choice in each moment. To stay as positive and proactive as possible…or to let myself stay habitually negative and ungrateful. It’s the former that I want to regularly do as much as possible.)

Training your internal perception muscles to see the good, see opportunities, see the blooming life before you—to actually see the beauty in the eyes of your loved ones, watch them cut a carrot and notice their beautiful hands, their smile, see your newly washed car and be happy you have a car—rather than continually comparing yourself, your face, your life, your bank account, your possessions to someone else’s—if you regularly do this, you’ll train your internal muscles to begin to regularly see these things everywhere (Mel covers a technique to help with this as well).

And if you regularly eat foods with fiber, healthy foods, fruits, vegetables, foods that work to help your body be healthy, then you’ll be more “regular” in that thing we call a room with a bath but in actuality is really a “toilet” room, not a “bath” room, since most of the time you’re using the toilet and not the bath and some don’t even come with a bath, just a shower, and some don’t come with nothin’ but a damn toilet.

And the last thing you’re doing in that room is “resting” – far from it—so why call it a “restroom.” (Unless you’re working at a very high stress job and the only way to get a break is to regularly go to that room and “rest” a little…)

I hope I’ve shed some light on building good habits. I hope I don’t come across as one of those preachy people always telling other people what to do, how to live their life, how to be happy.

I really don’t know what works for other people. I didn’t write a book about it. But I was skeptical at first to read Mel’s book. I had enough of those “self-help” books.

But my wife got it for me as a Christmas present. And if there’s one thing I’m regular at is appreciating and using the gifts she gets me. If you know what I mean.

So I gave it a shot. And for a few weeks I dropped off the horse and started regularly getting up and letting my mind drift off into complaining, and fear thoughts, and woe is me melodies…the first thing after getting out of bed.

So I said, “Wait! Why are you not high-fiving yourself in the mirror like Mel prescribed?”

And then I did.

And then I realized it needed to be more regular in this habit.

And all through this missive here I’ve regularly been criticizing this blog post.

We’ll cover that damn internal critic in another post.

But for now, there you have it. Be careful with that internal critic.

It stops you from your own beautiful creative flow.

And if you do that regularly enough, you’ll not feel so good, will you?