A habit can be your best friend or greatest nightmare. Bad habits are like annoying exes that you can’t seem to shake off. Good habits on the other hand are like building blocks to greatness – the better you get at forming good habits; the easier it will be to achieve your goals and aspirations.
This post will focus on those good habits that you want to sustain. These are the New years eve resolutions or promises you make to yourself. When people fail at sustaining these habits, it is often shrugged off as way to difficult. This is unacceptable! Let’s delve into the real reasons why forming good habits is just so damn difficult….
Forming Good Habits Should Be Realistic
You wouldn’t skip grade school and go straight to college would you? Then why would you take a big chunk of a challenge without first moving in incremental steps. Habits should follow a similar trend. For example: if you want to create the habit of reading more books – then set a 20 page limit each day and gradually increase this as opposed to setting tight deadlines like a book a week. Setting huge deadlines that put you under pressure will make you burnout and you are more likely to push it aside when vital tasks come your way. The key is to start small and then sustain.
It’s Not Really What You Want
So you have seen a friend who has started a great habit of meditation and so you want to follow suit. The problem is you can’t seem to have the same success…. Do you wonder why? The reason is really simple: You don’t want it enough. As with all habits, there is usually some “why” stringed to it. For e.g. you want to make a habit to exercise 5 days a week…. Ask yourself why? If the why is strong enough, this will be an indication of a habit that is worthwhile pursuing. The best advice is to focus on the “why” and you will never fallback on a habit.
The Key To Forming Good Habits Is Consistency
We are all human and the end of the day we all falter. But here’s the thing…. If a habit is not religiously followed, it is really simple to fail at sustaining it. Don’t make the mistake of assuming its okay to skip gym 3 days a week and expect to develop a habit of training 5 days a week – it’s just not going to work. Another great tip is to practice your habit at the same place at the same time. This common environment will make it easier to remember a habit and stick to it.
You Create No Positive Pressure
Positive pressure can be defined as that positive force to motivate you when times get hard. This is usually from those close to you like family and friends. A great way to develop positive pressure is by telling those close to you that you want to develop a habit and that they should help you to adhere to it. In this ways when those close to you see you failing, they will be quick to remind you not to give up. This in turn creates a atmosphere of positive pressure to constantly keep you on track in maintaining your habit.
There you it is, some simple reasons why you fail at forming good habits and some great counter-intuitive approaches to overcoming them. The next time you decide to create a good habit, read through these steps and you will surely be more successful in you habit building endeavor.
To learn how to live life consciously and with a clear perspective; read this ultimate guide: A Mindful Approach To Self Actualization
