Tiny Habits, Big Progress
We’ve all been there... We get back from an intensive Spanish immersion course (at Na’atik obviously) and we are super-confident, super-motivated, and determined to keep up our new skills and to practice, practice, practice. And then life gets in the way. The reason our language immersion programs are so successful is that you’re forced (in a gentle, friendly way) to speak Spanish (or Maya!) at every opportunity. You have to in order to be able to communicate. But once you’re home it’s easy to fall back into your native language and generally, there are fewer people around you speaking your new language resulting in fewer opportunities to practice.What if we told you there’s a way for you to practice and keep up your new language skills? That even when you’re not motivated there’s a way of keeping on track? That you don’t need big actions to achieve ‘big’ results? This new theory introduces “micro habits”.The theory coined by BJ Fogg, a social science research associate at Stanford and author of the book Tiny Habits, relies on the idea that if you create a habit it will become second nature and you’ll just end up doing the work without thinking. These small bite-sized habits are much less intimidating and you’re much less likely to give up. How do you decide on your tiny habits? There are three things you need to know:
Make them tiny – and keep them tiny too. Learn one new word. Or practice one sound. Or read a newspaper headline. Or one exercise from your textbook. It’s easy to get over-excited and do more (and we’re not saying don’t) but the key to this is consistency. On average it takes over two months to form a habit so take small (or tiny) steps.
Tag your new habit onto an existing habit – for example, “after I brush my teeth I will practice a word with a rolled r sound”, “in the gym I will listen to one song in Spanish”, “when I get into bed I will write one sentence about my day in Spanish” or “when I put the kettle on to boil I will say a sentence to myself in Maya”. These existing habits give you a trigger, a tangible reminder or prompt which makes it easier to embed into your routine.
Reward yourself – the final stage in Fogg’s tiny habit methodology is doing a little celebration every time you complete your tiny habit. You may feel a little silly but telling yourself “well done!” out loud or doing a little victory dance every time you achieve that habit releases positive feelings that trick your brain into wanting to do it again.
Remember you don’t have to create 20 new habits all at once. Start small and once they become second nature you can add more - after all even baby steps are a step in the right direction. Getting started is often the hardest part but once you’re in the habit of doing something it’s easier to build on it. For example, instead of one sentence, write two sentences and before you know it you’ll be able to write a whole page with ease. Why not try implementing some tiny habits into your day!
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The best way to experience the Mexican lifestyle is in person, with a Na’atik Immersion experience. Not only do you live with a local Mexican-Maya family, sharing home-cooked meals and free time, but also receive expert instruction in your chosen language at our school. Best of all, every immersion experience helps fund our subsidized and free local education program, helping local students to access opportunities and make their own futures.