We kicked off the new year with reflecting on Building Healthy Habits together with IPWS Activator of the Month, Elizabeth Schieffelin, Founder of Lizzy’s All Natural, Holistic Health Coach, and 2018 Women Leadership Award Winner.

Our sold out event brought together 40 professional women and men at Kartel Wine Bar, discussing in small groups after Elizabeth walked us through the science behind habits and how they are formed. She also gave us practical and valuable tips for making lifestyle changes and creating habits for a healthier and happier 2019.

So how do we go about forming a healthy habit? A few of Elizabeth’s tips include:

• Show, don’t tell: Use environmental design practices to make your cue as obvious as possible. For example, If you seek to hit the gym before work, keep your workout clothes out by the door ready to go.
• Shift your mindset: Focus on building identity-based habits. Think of your new habit as a part of your future self and not as a sacrifice. Think “I am a morning person!” vs. “I really want to be a morning person”.
• Focus on the start: Focus energy on the first 1-3 minutes of your new habit. If you want to form a habit of making a green smoothie, get the blender out as a first step.
• Whenever you want to change your behavior, ask yourself: How can I make it obvious? How can I make it attractive? How can I make it easy? How can I make it satisfying? Know what you want and take a few small actions to set up the environment and frame yourself the right way.

A big thank you to Elizabeth Schieffelin for kicking off the new year as Activator of the Month! And thank you to Kartel, our sponsors, and everyone who joined for the evening. Save the date for our next IPWS Thought Activator coming up on February 20th – tickets will be available soon!

Photos by Jenna Ohrnberg

IPWS Sponsors