Hello, friends, and happy new year!
Hello, friends, and happy new year!
Many of us are buoyed by the hope and fresh-start feeling of the new year to try to make some changes in our lives. Whether it's committing to bring your lunch to work, flossing every day, hitting the gym three times a week, or remembering to say kind words to your loved ones every day, a little bit of science can help those habits stick.
I had the pleasure of reading James Clear's Atomic Habits over the holidays and was startled to learn a number of tactics about forming and sustaining habits. Here are some tips that you can start applying now:
1. Habit Stacking: It's easiest to remember to do a new habit when it's stacked on top of another activity you already do every day. If you're trying to meditate every day and you already put the kettle on first thing in the morning, commit to meditating right after you turn the kettle on.
2. Specify a Time and Place for the Habit: Research shows that if you can say "On (x time) in (x location) I will do (x habit)" you are much more likely to actually do it. So before you go to bed, tell yourself: "Tomorrow morning right after I turn the kettle on (time), I will sit at the kitchen table (location) to do my meditation (habit)." Saying it out loud makes it even more likely to be successful.
3. Start Small: The most sustainable way to implement a habit is to start small. Clear recommends using a two-minute rule -- whatever portion of the activity you can do in two minutes is the best place to start your habit. So if you are trying to meditate, this could be just sitting down to focus on breathing for two minutes. Or, it could be putting on exercise clothes (one minute) and taking a one-minute walk. Or taking two minutes to pack fruit and nuts for a healthy snack the next day. By getting into a regular two-minute habit and showing yourself that you can commit to the daily two-minute activity, you will eventually become ready to expand that habit to a longer and more complete activity.
4. Transform Your Identity: Clear's research shows that if you change your identity to one of someone who achieves the new behavior, you're much more likely to continue that behavior. Consider the difference between "I don't like working out and I have to make myself go to the gym tomorrow" vs. "I am an athlete who prioritizes my fitness." Which of these identities is more likely to feel motivated and proud to sustain a gym habit? Each time you perform the habit, you prove to yourself that you are that new identity.
5. Make the Habit Irresistible: Following on tip #1 (habit stacking), give yourself a reward after completing your habit. Your brain will associate these two activities together and help make your new habit irresistible. The trick is to avoid self-sabotaging behavior -- so instead of allowing yourself a donut after you go to the gym, allow yourself a healthier indulgence like playing ten minutes of video games, taking a long shower with your new favorite soap, or another activity that you really enjoy that doesn't contradict your weight loss and health goals.
Remember that the results of habitual behavior take time to accrue. Going to the gym for one week won't transform your physique. Eating healthily for ten days won't bring down your cholesterol. Meditating four times won't turn you into the Buddha. If you can focus on the system (the process of doing the activity over and over) rather than focusing solely on reaching the goal (losing ten pounds), you are more likely to sustain the habit and achieve the desired end state. If you are able to make several small changes using these habit-sustaining techniques, you may find that in six months or a year, you're able to look, feel, and behave entirely differently than you do now.
I hope you enjoy these tips, and please let me know how they work for you! Find more at www.jamesclear.com, including downloadable chapters on habit-forming for parenting and for business.
May we all become more healthy, resilient, and full of supportive habits this year!
With love,
Janet
