Let’s talk about forming new habits. We all have moments in our lives when we want to create new habits. Maybe you want to get in the habit of eating healthier and drinking more water. Or, perhaps you want to be more physically active. You might want to make a change at work, in relationships or spiritually. We have many areas in our lives that could use improvement and be made easier if we created new habits. Creating new habits helps you open doors to dreams you have for your life.
Creating New Habits
Getting into the habit of doing something is often easier said than done. We seem to acquire bad habits without any effort, but getting into a “good” habit can be a little more challenging. As moms we tend to put others first and neglect ourselves. But, by taking care of ourselves and learning new, healthy habits we providing positive role models for our family. The same goes if you manage your own business and have fallen into bad habits. Changing a few habits can help your business become more successful.
Let’s break it down into a three step process. That makes it easy to follow until the new behavior becomes true habit. That way it becomes something you do automatically without having to think about, like brushing your teeth.
Decide What You Want To Do
The first step is to decide what you want your new habit to be. Be as specific as possible. Instead of telling yourself you should exercise more, make detailed steps. Say something like “I will go for a 30 minute walk every day”. Half the battle is making the commitment to the when and what you’re going to do.
Remind Yourself To Get It Done
Once you start your new habit it, your motivation and excitement will help you along. But, a few days later you’ll have the urge to slip back into old habits. Maybe it’s raining and you don’t really want to go out and walk. Or maybe your day just gets away from you. This is when it’s important to have a daily reminder. Set an alert on your phone or add the new habit to your daily to-do list for a while. Consider having a partner to keep each other motivated. It’s okay if your goals are different, but it’s great if you both can create your habit together. Look for a support group, like on Facebook, if you don’t have good prospects near you. Commit to checking up on one another and cheering each other onward, especially on the tough days when you feel like quitting.
Make It Part Of Your Routine Until It Becomes A Habit
Which brings us to the last step. It takes some time before a new behavior becomes a true habit. Until then, a routine will work to your best advantage. Even before the new behavior becomes automatic, a routine will help you get it done without having to spend a lot of willpower or relying on daily reminders. Make that daily walk part of your after-dinner routine, or change from grabbing a snack at the vending machine at work at 10:00 in the morning to bringing healthy snacks from home.
Just like your bad habits were a part of your routine, your good habits can now take their place. And, before you know it, your new habit seems natural to you.
One last, but important, tip. Don’t try to create too many new habits at once. Habit changing is stressful. You’re working your mind and emotions hard while you’re creating new thought patterns. If you create a long list of several new habits to begin all at once, you may become overloaded and fail. Instead, pick one, get it started. Then, when you have that new habit formed, pick another.
