Do you have a habit that you would like to kick? Many of us do, but you might not know that if you change your habits, it can actually fuel a much more rewarding life.
This might sound impossible, but I am going to share five steps that you can take to stopping your bad habits, and creating new ones to do nothing but help you.
Change your habits
Habits are hard to break – this is why we call them a habit. It is something that you can’t not do. they’re so entwined in your day to day life that you can think at some point that they are a large part of your life. Habits can become outdated, however. And you’ll find yourself in these negative spirals.
For example, biting your nails might keep you occupied and distracted in an uncomfortable social situation, but isn’t it really just pulling you away from the situation rather than you doing something to make it less uncomfortable the next time?
This is why it is so important to change your habits for the better. You can do this to ensure that any habits you do have will align with what you want for yourself and your future.
Step 1. What to change?
This is a basic suggestion, but first try to uncover your bad habits and accept that something needs to change here and now.
Step 2. Why do you do it?
What is the motive for your habit? For example, it could be distracting you, it could be giving your short-term happiness, or it could be creating the illusion that it makes things easier for you.
Step 3. What are the positives and negatives?
Take your habit and dissect why you need to change your habit and also why you started it in the first place.
Working this out will allow you to see why you have clung to this habit for so long, why it is so hard to shake off and also how it is affecting you now.
Step 4. Consider life without it
In an ideal world, you could wake up one morning and that bad habit would just disappear. This can’t happen, but imagine if it did. How would that look? What would you do with your time? How would others see you without it and importantly, how would you see yourself?
This picture will create a new, positive identity for you to work towards.
Step 5. Creating new habits
Once you’ve accepted that you need to shake off your bad habit, it’s time to create new ones. The best way to get rid of a bad habit is to substitute it with a new one, but this time you can choose.
So, how do you see yourself with these new habits and what are you doing?
