Bad habits – who doesn’t have one? We all have a few things that we do that could either be improved upon, or just dropped altogether. But how, exactly, do we begin to change these bad habits? We’ve got some stellar tip that can help everyone start turning things around!
- Identify the underlying cause
When wanting to change a habit, it’s important that we start off with identifying exactly why. All habits have a function. Mindless eating can be a way to comfort yourself when you’re feeling down. Cruising the Internet for hours might be a way you avoid interacting with your partner or kids. Drinking too much may be the only way you know how to be social. If we want to break the habit, we have to come to grips with whatever function the bad habit is serving.
- Set realistic goals
Our bad habits have taken years to establish themselves. We’re not going to throw them off in an instant. Deciding on a realistic schedule that will work for us based on goals that you believe you can meet will make things a lot easier in the long run. For instance, let’s not try and go from zero days of exercise a week to seven. We’ll be bound to fail and then use our failures as proof that we can’t change.
- Write it down
There’s just something about writing down lifestyle changes on paper that makes them so much more real. Researchers have found that just writing out a goal and keeping it handy to look at every day (or as many times as day as we need to) can help us stay on track.
- Remember that things take time
Conventional wisdom is that it takes 28 days to get free of a bad habit.But bad habits are hard to break because they are Habits (with a capital H, so we know it’s serious). Remember: our brains have put our bad habits in the automatic category. And once there, it’s difficult to shake it free. Current research shows that most of us need about three months to substitute a new behavior for a bad habit. It all depends – and that’s okay!
Changing bad habits don’t happen overnight. It takes time, persistence, and dedication to making a change. Most people who end up breaking their bad habits try and fail multiple times before they make it work. We might not have success right away, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have it at all!
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One more thing! Remember… go out there and be Fearless! No matter what you set your mind to, YOU CAN DO IT! Did you download my free e-book yet? I know that you’ll love it!
Much love,
Rayven – Team #SheBecameFearless