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Do Your Habits Serve You?
Do your daily habits bring you closer to a life you love, or are they quietly holding you back?
Most of us drift through routines that feel automatic, never stopping to ask if those small actions align with our values and goals.
But habits, both intentional and unintentional, shape our daily experiencesâand they can either energize us or silently drain our vitality.
To fully evaluate your habits, you may first need to uncover deeper patterns or limiting beliefs driving them. Start by exploring how to rewrite your inner stories for clarity and direction.
Taking a step back and asking yourself, âDo my habits actually serve me?â is one of the most powerful actions you can take to create a life filled with joy, passion, and purpose.

Table of Contents
What Does It Mean for a Habit to Serve You?
Habits that serve you are actions that align with your values and add something positive to your life.
They energize you, move you closer to fulfillment, and reflect the kind of person you want to be.
Habits that donât serve you, on the other hand, feel automatic, exhausting, or meaningless, leaving you stuck in a cycle that doesnât bring you joy or growth.
Signs Your Habits Serve You:
- They make your day more joyful or intentional.
Example: Meditating for 5 minutes grounds you before a busy day. - They align with your long-term goals or core values.
Example: Saving $50 per week brings you closer to financial freedom. - They connect you to yourself or others.
Example: Scheduling a weekly phone call with a loved one strengthens your relationships.

Signs Your Habits Donât Serve You:
- They leave you feeling drained or stuck.
Example: Mindlessly scrolling on social media for hours zaps your energy. - They block progress toward your goals.
Example: Constantly saying âyesâ to everything takes time away from what matters. - You do them automatically, without pleasure or intention.
Example: Grabbing fast food on the go feels routine but doesnât nourish your body.
For years, I thought procrastination was my superpower.
Waiting until the last minute, staying up for 27 hours to finish a task, running on adrenaline and anxietyâit felt like a badge of honor.
I convinced myself that as long as the work got done, the process didnât matter.
But over time, I realized something important: the things I truly enjoyed? I couldnât wait to start them.
The things I âshouldâ be doing, on the other hand, caused me to drag my feet and produce mediocre resultsâall while telling myself, âI donât care how good it is; it just needs to get done.
This was a moment of clarityâI was stuck in a cycle that didnât serve me.
Procrastination wasnât a superpower; it was a habit keeping me from creating meaningful fulfillment.
Learn more about the triggers of procrastination.
Sometimes, we hold onto unhelpful habits like procrastination because of guilt or fear of change.
Learn how to move past guilt and regret to make space for habits that nourish and serve you.
3 Reflection Questions to Evaluate Your Habits
To start identifying whether your habits are useful or draining, ask yourself these reflection questions:

1. How Do I Feel Before, During, and After?
Does the habit energize you, or does it leave you feeling depleted?
When I reflected on my habits, I realized the adrenaline rush from procrastination gave me a false sense of value.
But when I thought about how I felt afterwardâdrained, frustrated, and often dissatisfiedâit became clear that this wasnât serving me.
The habits that truly aligned with joy left me energized, proud, and fulfilled by the process itself.
2. Does This Habit Align With My Goals or Values?
If your goals include personal growth, financial freedom, or emotional maturity, do your habits reflect those priorities?
For example, if one of your goals is to become a better communicator, explore a resource like Kaley Chuâs Speaker Training to intentionally build skills that align with those values.
3. Am I Doing This Out of Habit or Joy?
Habits done on autopilot often lack the mindfulness that brings fulfillment.
What would it look like to bring more intention to your daily actions?
For more guidance, learn how to take pleasure-led action and make every choice a meaningful, joyful one.
How to Build Habits That Align With Fulfillment
Once youâve identified habits that drain you, the next step is to focus on replacing them with intentional actions that bring you joy.
Hereâs how you can start:

Anchor Habits to a Positive Intention
Replacing a draining habit starts with focusing on the feeling you want to cultivate. For example:
- Instead of mindless snacking, try enjoying a warm cup of tea while reflecting on what youâre grateful for.
Morning coffee used to be something I rushed through while scrolling emails.
But when I anchored it to intention, sitting with my journal and savoring my first sip became a moment of peaceâan intentional way to start my day with clarity.
Tapping into intuition can help you identify what feels right for you.
Learn how to trust your intuition for clarity on which habits you want to buildâstart with pleasure, not pressure.
Break the Cycle of Draining Habits

One of the hardest parts of letting go of unhelpful habits is breaking the cycle of comfort they create. But breaking that cycle is where the biggest breakthroughs happen.
For me, saying ânoâ felt impossibleâI tied it to my self-worth.
I realized the habit of overcommitting wasnât just exhausting me; it was leaving no space for things that actually brought me joy.
The first time I said ânoâ to something unimportant, it felt terrifyingâand then freeing.
With every âno,â I had more room to build habits that reinforced my priorities.
To move forward, it may require confronting fears or insecurities tied to those habits.
Learn how to overcome your fear of confrontation and step into habits that serve your highest self.
Stories Shape Intentional Habits
The stories we tell ourselves about our habits matter.
If youâre constantly saying âI donât have timeâ or âThis should be easier,â it frames your habits as burdens rather than opportunities for growth.
By framing your habits in joy and alignment, they feel lighter and more purposeful.
Sharing your story, both with yourself and others, anchors your progress in alignment.
Kaley Chuâs Speaker Training teaches you how to shape and share your narrative authentically while building momentum and meaningful change.
Let Your Habits Reflect the Life Youâre Creating
Your days are full of moments that define who you are becoming.
When your habits align with your goals, they feel purposeful, energizing, and deeply satisfying.
Reflective Journal Prompt:
Take a few minutes to reflect:
- Whatâs one habit I can adjust today to better reflect my joy and values?
- If my life felt fully aligned, what small actions would my mornings, afternoons, and evenings include?
Every habit is a story you tell yourself about who you are and what matters most to you.
Make sure itâs a story that feels good to live.
Not sure if your habits are serving your bigger vision?
Download my Daily Task Evaluation Template to uncover which habits truly support your growth.

Do Your Habits Serve You?
The habits we embrace shape how we experience life.
By asking yourself whether your habits add to your joy or diminish it, youâve taken the first step toward transformation.
Focus on nurturing habits that reflect your values, bring you energy, and guide you toward fulfillment.
Build Life-Aligned Habits Through Pleasure
Fulfillment comes from the habits and routines you choose every day.
Start celebrating small wins, aligning your actions with joy, and creating the life you wantâstarting now.
Inside the Pleasure-Led Entrepreneurs membership, youâll explore tools, prompts, and community to help you rethink daily actions and align your habits with fulfillment.
Join the Pleasure-Led Entrepreneurs today.

DJ is a lifestyle enthusiast and founder of Pleasure Led Life, dedicated to helping others embrace a low-demand lifestyle filled with joy, balance, and personal fulfillment. With a passion for living authentically and prioritizing what truly matters, DJ shares practical tips and insights to guide you on your journey to a more pleasurable, stress-free life.