As part of an exercise in reassessing and realigning my values and actions, I challenged myself in July to go without three things that are a regular part of my life: alcohol, coffee and plastic. You can read about it here. The aim was to strengthen my perseverence in situations where convenience might hold sway over my honest preference of action. I wanted to take note of how and why I use each substance and going without something you’re used to is a good way of focusing your attention on it. Today is Wednesday 5 August and the challenge is over. I want to share with you what I’ve learnt over the past month.
1. Learning is more important than legalism
The original challenge took a couple of slight deviations. After day fifteen, I decided to relinquish the coffee ‘arm’ of the exercise. My husband and I had the chance to house-sit for friends who live next to the beach near some great cafes. After a bit of deliberation I decided to make the most of my impromptu holiday and enjoy coffee as part of it. Also, towards the end of the month, my husband and I had cause to celebrate, so I decided to have a glass of wine for the occasion.
Each time I bent my own rules, I wondered if it meant my challenge had failed. I had to go back to the reason for my month ‘without’ and remind myself that it was not at all about setting and sticking to a set of rules, but about becoming more aware of how and why I use certain things. It was so easy to fall into my own blame game and feel guilty for something that had no impact on the valuable things I was actually learning. I wonder if that’s why I often hesitate in trying something new or making a change: “I might fail so it’s not worth the risk”. I don’t want that attitude limiting the positive action I take in my life, so I’m glad I was able to shift my challenge as I needed and then continue to focus on what I was learning.
2. My ideal start to the day involves light, warmth, music and productivity
Before July, I would have told you that coffee was a necessary part of my morning routine, not for the drink itself, but because of the cafe environment I could be part of. I realised one morning, about ten days into the challenge, that it wasn’t about the cafe either but the ingredients of light, warmth, music and productivity. It just so happens that cafes often foster this environment (mind you, some don’t and these are the ones I don’t prefer!). Before July I would feel annoyed if I didn’t get my morning coffee at a great cafe and I felt it put a downer on my day. Now I can piece together each of those individual elements and be more creative about designing other kinds of great morning routines that I know I’ll love, with or without a cafe. And if I’m feeling a bit deflated one morning, I don’t need to rely on a coffee to fix it. I’ll look for a way to include light, warmth, music and productivity to improve my environment.
3. If it’s not coffee, it’s sugar and it’s expensive
I discovered that non-coffee drink options included many sugar-loaded alternatives. Also, it was on average $7 for a fresh fruit juice (if I decided on natural sugar), which wasn’t sustainable for my budget. I am putting out a call to all cafe managers to extend the sugar-free drinks you offer and to lower the cost of fresh juices. Coffee now seems like a much more viable option and I’m convinced it doesn’t need to be my obvious choice.
4. My focus on reducing waste will continue
Over the month, I became really concerned about how much waste my husband and I go through. We don’t have kids yet and that made me wonder how much our waste would grow over time with a bigger family. Each time I threw something in the bin, I was aware of where it would end up. It was a really helpful exercise and I’ve decided I’m not happy with my previous ‘waste management’ practice. The outcome is small but I’m excited about making some changes over the coming six months. I know these changes will reduce our waste and I’m trusting they’ll lead to bigger waste-reduction habits in time:
- Continue to reduce single-use plastic so that it becomes a habit, not a struggle
- Read up on composting and worm farming options and begin to reduce the amount of fruit and veggie scraps I bin every day
- Carry my own reusable drink bottle and coffee mug
Each of us needs to decide what actions work in with our values, our families, our situation
5. It’s not about comparison, it’s about me and my decisions
I was searching online for inspiration on plastic re-use and I found out that there’s a woman in the U.S. called Bea Johnson, who can bottle the yearly waste produced by her family. In one glass jar. When I first read that, my reaction was some thing like “Well I’ll never be able to do that so I should just give up now.” Comparison is such a negative force! Firstly, instead of admiring the amazing work done by Bea and her family, I became jealous. Secondly, I let my thoughts turn to the termination of my own positive actions. Eek! It’s been a very helpful lesson for me and I have since been able to put a check on other similar thoughts when I notice them. It’s time to retrain my thought patterns in that area.
There’s always so much that can be done in the area of waste reduction because the fact is it’s a problem we all live with. Each of us needs to decide what actions work in with our values, our families, our situation. As I mentioned in point four, I am in the process of setting my own goals in in this area for the next six months – and it’s not going to involve a single glass jar. It’s going to be the kind of change I estimate is achievable; enough to start making a difference. Waste reduction is now going to feature in my life goals – which is a first. That’s a solid start for me to build on.
By the way, please check out Bea Johnson’s blog Zero Waste Home, as it’s such a source of inspiration.
Are there any parts of your daily routine you would like to take more notice of? Are there any habits you have that you’d consider changing or adding to, to better fit with your values?
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