Habit making is the process of forming new habits, while habit breaking is the process of breaking existing habits. Both are important for maintaining a healthy and balanced lifestyle. Building good habits and breaking bad habits can be your key to success and mental freedom.
Habits account for most of your decisions each day, where about 43% of your behaviours can be classified as habitual.
When we form new habits, we are able to improve ourselves and our lives by incorporating positive behaviours into our daily routine. On the other hand, breaking bad habits can help us get rid of negative behaviours that might be holding us back. Both habit making and habit breaking require a lot of effort and dedication, but the rewards can be well worth it.
Within this article, we’ll be looking more thoroughly into the reasons you should build good habits and break bad habits. We’ll unpick the strategy you can take for doing this, before looking at James Clear’s Atomic Habits for guidance.
Let’s start off with looking at the benefits…
What are the Benefits of Building Good Habits and Breaking Bad Habits?
There are many benefits to making good habits. Some of the most significant benefits include:
- Improved health: good habits, such as exercising regularly, eating a healthy diet, and getting enough sleep, can help improve our physical health and reduce our risk of developing certain diseases.
- Increased productivity: good habits, such as setting goals, managing our time effectively, and staying organized, can help us be more productive and achieve more in our personal and professional lives.
- Greater happiness: good habits, such as practicing gratitude, cultivating positive relationships, and pursuing our passions, can help us feel happier and more fulfilled.
- Better self-control: good habits, such as managing our emotions, controlling our impulses, and resisting temptations, can help us have better self-control and make better decisions.
How can you Build Good Habits?
There are several steps you can take to build good habits:
- Identify the good habit you want to develop: The first step in building a good habit is to identify the specific habit you want to develop. This will help you focus your efforts and stay motivated.
- Set a clear goal for the habit: Once you have identified the good habit, set a clear and specific goal for it. This will help you stay focused and measure your progress. Read here to see more about how you can set yourself SMART goals!
- Create a plan to build the habit: After you have identified the good habit and set a goal for it, develop a plan to build the habit. This plan should include specific steps you will take to incorporate the habit into your daily routine. For example, if you want to develop the habit of exercising regularly, your plan might include setting aside a specific time each day for exercise, choosing an activity you enjoy, and finding a workout buddy to keep you accountable.
- Implement the plan and track your progress: Once you have developed your plan, implement it and track your progress. This will help you stay on track and make any necessary adjustments to your plan.
- Seek support: Building a good habit can be challenging, so don’t be afraid to seek support from others. This could include talking to friends, family, or a therapist, or joining a support group for people who are trying to develop the same good habit.
Overall, building a good habit takes time and effort, but by following these steps and staying committed, you can successfully develop the habit and improve your life.
James Clear’s Atomic Habits – The Ultimate Guide To Habit Making & Habit Breaking
“Atomic Habits” by James Clear offers practical advice on how to develop good habits and break bad ones. The book’s central idea is that small, consistent changes can lead to significant improvements over time. Clear argues that the key to achieving long-term success is not about making big, dramatic changes, but rather about making a series of small, atomic habits that gradually add up to significant results.
Clear provides several practical strategies for developing and maintaining good habits, including setting clear goals, tracking progress, and creating a positive feedback loop. He also offers advice on how to break bad habits, such as identifying the underlying causes and triggers of the habit, developing a plan to change your behaviour, and seeking support from others.
Clear offers several strategies – similar to our above list – for building and maintaining good habits, including:
- Setting clear goals: Clear recommends setting specific and measurable goals for your habits, so that you can track your progress and stay motivated. Around 83% of the population don’t have goals, where only 3% of people have written goals. Research has shows that you are 42% more likely to achieve your goals in they are written down.
- Tracking progress: Clear suggests tracking your progress with habits, so that you can see how far you have come and identify any obstacles that may be holding you back.
- Creating a positive feedback loop: Clear recommends reinforcing good habits by creating a positive feedback loop, where each successful repetition of the habit leads to a sense of accomplishment and encourages further repetition.
- Using small steps to build habits: Clear advises starting small and gradually increasing the difficulty of your habits, so that you can build momentum and maintain your motivation.
- Seeking support: Clear recommends seeking support from others when building or breaking habits, as this can provide accountability and motivation.
If you haven’t already, we’d highly recommend reading the book to grasp more of an understanding as to what habits you should break and which ones you should make! You can also get a Habit Journal which can help you along your journey.
Good Luck on your Mission to Breaking Bad Habits and Building Good Habits!
Have tips on building good habits and breaking bad habits? Give us an email at [email protected], or let us know on our LinkedIn or Facebook Pages!
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