Habits to Stop the “Monkey Mind” from Running Your Life

Is your ‘monkey mind’ standing in the way of your goals? Discover the 3 simple, science-backed habits—checklists, vision boards, and intentional journaling—that I used to transform mental chaos into a productive, vision-led life.

The Struggle of the Monkey Mind

Working independently since 2011, I’ve often been overwhelmed by the number of things that demand my attention. As a full-time employee, one has many advantages. There are teams, departments and multiple options. But for self-employed people, the options dwindle. Life becomes chaotic, as you wade through multiple dimensions of the work on your own. It took me 10 long years to stop my monkey mind from jumping task-to-task, often leaving a lot unaccomplished and even more messy.

Over the last few years, I’ve spent days learning new media, failing, falling, and trying to force digital routines that didn’t always stick. I was living moment-by-moment, rather than thinking long-term. To reclaim my focus and make my goals—both professional and personal—livelier and rejuvenating, I committed to changing my habits and style of working. It took time, but here are my three pillars of finding calm, clarity and productivity:

Habit #1: Using Checklists to Beat Overwhelm

Given the chaos of trying to finish everything in one go, I decided to make a content calendar. All to no success. That was when I decided that I needed to shift my strategy and pivot to a step-by-step approach.

To prioritise my steps, I began to make checklists. My checklists started with simple things: daily, weekly, monthly tasks.

Eventually, work began to roll out smoothly. My daily chores became lighter, leaving me enough time for leisure and then all this became a habit to manage my time better. It was so like breathing, an automatic response.

Checklists clarified my steps. I developed the habit of making wiser choices, sticking to them, being consistent and disciplined, and not collapsing during challenging times.

Habit #2: Mapping Success with Vision Board

The simple power of vision boards to manifest and achieve your goals

My journey with vision boards began in 2025 and to my surprise, I found it very powerful. Now, I make vision boards for all my goals. I reviewed my #Vision2025 and saw that I had ticked off all the boxes, except one. Mentally, thanking myself for the newfound discipline, I made #Vision2026. I’ve kept my goals small, things that I can focus on and accomplish within a few months or one year.

Achievable Goals to keep me charged:

Writing: Add more humour and expression to my work, letting go of emotional weight.

Health: Learn a new form of exercise and lose 5 kg.

Environment: Shift to a greener location and revive my Nature Journal.

Travel: Explore Nagaland, Tripura, Manipur, and Mizoram, and all the places that I am invited to.

Skills: Upgrade my videography and relaunch my podcasts. Learn a new language.

Organization: Catalogue my photography and create a light, achievable content calendar.

Habit #3: Rewiring the Brain Through Journaling

I used to write a diary during my schooldays, but unfortunately had to let those go to scrap. The habit began again in 2012, when I learned Shamanism. I began to record my journeys. Those also saw a catastrophic end.

But last year, something changed. I began to pen daily. And at the end of the year, I realised that all that I had written made sense. It was my life unfolding before me, the way I perceived things, the things I really wanted and the path to achieve them.

Initially, I used a ball pen to write. But lately, I have transitioned to an ink pen. That has manifold benefits. For one, it’s better for your handwriting, slow and clean, more aesthetically appealing.

Also, pen-to-paper has neuro advantages. Neuroscience proves that penning your thoughts, from brain to hand, helps in rewiring your brain. This is referred to as neuroplasticity and the “encoding hypothesis,” which suggests the brain processes information differently when written by hand compared to typing.

Progress Over Perfection

Nothing is achieved overnight. But with the right productivity habits, you can turn a chaotic mind into a disciplined one. By prioritizing my day with a checklist and visualizing my future, I’ve finally moved into a routine that brings the results I used to only dream of.

Along the way of changing habits, remember to be kind to yourself. Replace panic with discipline. And at the end of the day, pat yourself on the back, knowing that you are making a change that comes with practice.

And do let me know what is one habit you’re starting now?

Resources for Your Journey

If you found this helpful, here are a few ways we can stay connected and keep the momentum going:

Listen to the Podcast: My podcast is getting a reboot! Subscribe on Spotify to hear more deep dives into nature lore and personal growth.
Visual Inspiration: Follow me on Instagram for glimpses of my Nature Photography and Travel posts.
Stay Updated: Don’t miss a beat (or a bird call). Check out my latest wildlife tales and travel updates here on the blog. Subscribe, Follow, Like, Share.
Download the Template: Need a head start? Use my Checklist/Vision Board to begin taming your own monkey mind today.