The Power of Habit

I haven’t blogged in awhile. I haven’t read a blog in 2 days. Haven’t tweeted or even checked twitter in that long, either. Combined, these things have me feeling quite uncomfortable. And I’m not exaggerating when I say that. It feels weird to go an extended amount of time without doing those things. I don’t care for it one bit.

For me, learning has become a habit as deeply engrained as my affinity for late night snacking.

It’s obvious that blogging, reading blogs, checking twitter, and tweeting have become deeply engrained habits for me. Like many habits, both positive and negative ones, breaking them or having them interrupted can be a struggle. Some people get fidgety, restless, and wracked with anxiety when they try to stop biting their nails, or when they have to miss a few days of exercising, or when they quit smoking. I feel those things when I’m not blogging, tweeting or learning.

Personally, I think these are great habits to have. And even though life and work gets in the way sometimes, which it has lately, I return to them and all is right with the world once more. The critical question, though, is this: How do we help other educators develop these habits, too?

This is a question I haven’t quite figured out yet. Over the years, I’ve put forth a lot of effort trying to “connect” educators. I’ve tried to help others get hooked on learning, too. It’s not quite as easy as it seems to me it should be. And, yes, that can be frustrating. But I welcome the challenge. And while I’m getting closer, I might not ever solve this puzzle. But I’m certainly not going to stop trying. And when I figure it out, I promise I’ll blog about it. (So make sure you subscribe!)

NOTE: If you find habits as fascinating as I do, you should read The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg. It’s not geared toward educators specifically, but there’s definitely content that applies to our work. Stay tuned for a full review here on this blog. 

photo credit: thekellyscope via photo pin cc