Habits are powerful, but how powerful?
So powerful they can carry you through challenging situations and prevent you from throwing in the towel! They are the steps you naturally take when motivation runs low or dry.
Ready to gain such power? Learn what habits are and just how to change and improve them for a happier, healthier you!
What Are Habits?
According to Merriam Webster, habits are “a settled tendency or usual manner of behavior” and “an acquired mode of behavior that has become nearly or completely involuntary.” Essentially, habits are what shape our lives as we need them to be.
Habits come in all shapes and sizes, including the good, not-so-good, and needed habits. Good habits are essentially those that align with personal goals while not-so-good habits tend to go against ambitions. Needed habits are ones we namely need, including driving a car to get to work.
How to Change & Improve Habits
Habits might be deep-rooted, but they are not cemented nor fixed. Sure changing and improving habits takes effort and time, but it does not have to be so complicated or even radical.
Use the following scenarios and tips to change and improve habits for the better.
Write Down Your Current Daily Habits & Patterns
First, write down habitual behaviors you do each day, including good, not-so-good, and needed habits. Take the example scenario:
You snooze through your alarm a few times after a long night of watching television and hustle to work. While driving to work, you stop by a local bakery for that daily donut and grocery store for a lunch’s footlong sub sandwich.
As the afternoon rolls around, you open a box of cookies and indulge in a handful or two. On the way home, you bypass the gym after forgetting workout clothes once again and decide to grab a burger at a fast-food chain instead.
Once home, you turn on the television and binge watch a show, only to realize it’s midnight and another day starts too soon…
The day described above is a series of habits, in which some are “better” than others. Mapping out your day is helpful in determining if those habitual behaviors align with the person you want to be or become.
If certain habits are misaligned with a healthier lifestyle, including daily donut runs and skipping the gym, an opportunity presents itself to change behaviors for the better.
Introduce/Change Habits One at a Time
“Biting off more than you can chew” can feel overwhelming, which is why we recommend making small changes one at a time. With the above scenario, small steps and changes may include:
- Setting the phone across the room so you are less likely to crawl back into bed after getting up to turn off the alarm
- Changing the driving route to bypass the temptation of a daily donut run
- Packing workout clothes the night before and/or keeping an extra set in the car
- Practicing meal prep or using a meal prep service to stay equipped with meals that nourish you
- Turning off the television at least an hour or two before bedtime
- Tie habits with an existing thing you do such as packing a lunch while that morning coffee brews
Each simple and small habit you create, the larger the impact. Likewise know true change does take time, so allow yourself patience and grace.
Overall, aim to put your healthiest and best foot forward while recognizing daily patterns and adjusting as needed to best suit your goals and lifestyle.