Week 4

Day 22: Making progress.

Studies have shown that it takes about 21-45 days to form a habit. I can't say for sure if you fall on the faster end of the spectrum, but by now you have certainly made significant progress in forming a habit out of your daily reading. My one question for you today is: how does it feel? Reflect on your progress in your journal.

Day 23: Reading as a gateway.

So far this month, I hope you have been able to uncover a bit about how and why you do the things that you do each day. What you are doing is not easy. You may have had an inconsistent week or two, and that’s okay! We can make some last minute adjustments so that you finish out the month strong.

The goal at this point is to understand ourselves and how we form habits better through this reading practice, and how what you’re learning can be applied to anything else you have ever wanted to be consistent at.

Essentially, this reading ritual serves as a gateway into other rituals.

Answer these questions in your journal:

How do you feel when you follow through on your reading for a day? Can you describe that sensation in your body, your spirit? How has it influenced your decisions or mood for the rest of your day? Become familiar with this. Be friends with this. Think about this feeling when you begin to commit to other rituals and be discerning in your actions if you aren’t getting the feeling?
What has this reading practice stirred up in you, if anything, about potential other rituals to incorporate into your life? Has this experience given you more confidence and faith in yourself to pursue ritual? Map out the action steps you would need to take, based on this reading experience, to make it happen. (Remember that these can be small! One of my favorite rituals, drinking a cup of tea, rose out of my reading practice. It is a simple act but has been very transforming for me.)

Day 24: The roots of our motivations.

Remember when we explored the root of our motivations in Week 1? I'm curious if you have a greater understanding of that motivation now that this workshop is coming to a close. Reflect back on what you wrote three weeks ago. Notice if any further insights have developed since then. When you read the note you had written to your future self, do you feel aligned with the person you thought you'd become by the end of this workshop?

You might feel unchanged from the person who wrote that note three weeks ago, but take another moment to pause and reflect—I'm willing to bet you are carrying yourself with more clarity, more attention and intention, than you were in the beginning of this workshop. The shift may be subtle, but its effects are profound.

Furthermore, I bet you understand the root of your motivation much better now. I want you to try to pinpoint the specific value you have for this root so that you can use it to your advantage.

Answer these questions in your journal:

Can you name 4 aspects that are at the core of your reading motivation? For example, mine are: confidence, relaxation, education, and health. Reading enhances all of these aspects, and my other rituals have to enhance some (or all) of these aspects in order for me to commit to them.
Expand on the 4 aspects you've chosen: why are they important to you? Why do you value them?
What other rituals enhance these aspects?
Would you say that these 4 aspects are a kind of "code" you could adhere to when choosing whether or not to commit to other rituals? If not, go back through the list and find more accurate ones.

Day 25: Symbiosis.

A ritual feels like a symbiotic organism: the ritual itself relies on your wellbeing, and your wellbeing is also greatly improved by the ritual. I personally find this symbiosis beautiful. Once we really incorporate a ritual into our lives, we reap the benefits. All we have to do is keeping doing the thing that makes us feel good!

This same concept can be applied to how two separate rituals relate to each other. I hope I haven't lost you! Basically: while all of your rituals benefit you, some rituals can actually benefit other rituals. For example, say you have two rituals. One is reading and the other is baking bread. You benefit from both of these rituals independently. But what if one ritual enhanced the other? This could look like listening to an audiobook during the act of making your dough and shaping your loaves. It could also look like enjoying a slice of toast while you read. This is different from the concept of "habit stacking" in that I'm not asking you to combine two rituals for the sake of efficiency or momentum—I'm asking you to think about how rituals you already have might be enhanced by other ones.

My question for you today is:

Where in your life can you improve one ritual while simultaneously improving another?

Day 26: Revisiting your priorities.

You've revisited this Priority Grid a couple of times throughout the month. Now is the time to repeat the exercise from week 1. Draw two grids, then write out today's priorities in one, and write out your ideal list in the other. Compare them to the pair you created three weeks ago.

Answer these questions in your journal:

What do the differences and similarities between both pairs signify to you?
What has this reading practice stirred up in you, if anything, about the other priorities written on your grid?
If there are any priorities still on your grid that don't match up with your ideal version, create an action plan to help you get to a place where you're living out your ideal.

I hope the Priority Grid is a helpful tool for you moving forward! Writing out this grid is another ritual of mine—it's a nice way to get grounded and focus your intentions in the morning or before a big task.

Day 27: Know thyself.

It's the second-to-last day of this workshop, and by now you've probably figured out that Avid is much more focused on mining the depths of yourself than it is focused on daily reading. Sure, yes, you read everyday for an entire month, but it's through the lens of reading that you gain so much more than a new ritual. You gain self-awareness. You gain the knowledge and confidence to incorporate any ritual you've ever dreamed of into your life.

It's the old "teach a man to fish" adage, but with reading :)

To drive home that fact that you are so much more self-aware, I want you to reflect on a few things in your journal:

When you first signed up for Avid, what was your reason?
Now that you've (almost) finished Avid, has that reason shifted or deepened? How? Why?
List out the things you've learned about yourself in the past month.
Finish this sentence: My name is ________ and I read everyday because ___________________.

Day 28: Witness your shifts.

Today is the last day of this workshop. Congratulations! You successfully committed to yourself and your reading practice for a full month.

I hope you have been able to gain special insight into what a reading ritual—and what ritual in a general sense—means to you. By looking closely at what it is that motivates you, questioning your preconceived notions of what rituals are, finding the right balance so that your rituals remain sustainable, and showing up day in and day out, you should come out of this workshop with a deeper relationship to yourself.

As you wrap this workshop up, I want you to take some time to truly witness your own shifts. How have you changed in these past four weeks? How has your relationship with ritual shifted?

Answer these questions in your journal to close out the workshop:

How has your idea of ritual and groundedness changed since committing to your reading? I used to think that I couldn’t ever have rituals because I didn’t fit whatever lifestyle/personality/socioeconomic requirements I believed one needed to be a grounded individual. Has your belief/programming shifted at all now that you know what ritual feels like? Where else in your life do you feel limited based on a belief system like this?

I hope these last couple of questions help show you that a) you are always capable of ritual, and b) you're free to let go of any preconceived notions that you are in any way unable to commit to a ritual. You have proved to yourself this month that you can! Go celebrate yourself!

Alyssa Natoci