The Definitive Guide to Breaking Bad Habits

Break Your Bad Habits for Good

It’s helpful to understand how bad habits get started and why they’re so hard to break. But it’s not enough. You’ve also got to know and put into practice the strategies that allow you to finally stop the habits that continuously interfere with your goals.

Strategy 1: Acknowledge it.

It’s hard to change something if you don’t realize what that somethingis. Be aware of the times you spend procrastinating, grabbing a “healthy” protein bar instead of making lunch, pressing the snooze button, or any negative behaviour you want to change.

ACTION STEP: Write down when and where your habit typically takes place, and what triggers it to start.

STRATEGY 2: Make it more difficult.

I once had a client who couldn’t stop binging on nuts. The simple answer to that is to stop buying them! According to James Clear, one of the leading authorities on habit building (and habit breaking), you’re less likely to complete a bad habit if it’s more challenging to do. So, if you always sleep in, put your alarm in the other room. If the TV takes up too much of your time, hide the remote. If you can’t stop eating nuts, get them out of the house.

ACTION STEP: Brainstorm 1-2 ways you can make your current bad habit harder to do.

STRATEGY 3: Reframe your situation.

Reframing is a strategy I use all the time with my health coaching clients. Say you want to exercise more and getting up early is the only way to squeeze it in. Changing your mindset from I have to wake up early to work out to I get to wake up early can be a total game changer when it comes to breaking bad habits. Same goes for ditching your quick toast-for-breakfast routine for a more leisurely meal of eggs and bacon. Try saying, I get to enjoy an epic protein forward breakfast instead.

ACTION STEP: Jot down a habit you want to break, using the I get tostrategy to reframe it.

STRATEGY 4: Hold yourself accountable (or work with an accountability partner).

There’s a big difference between people who say they want to change their bad habits and those who actually do. When you hold yourself accountable for your actions, you’re telling yourself that you’re worth it — that this change is important enough for you to make it a priority. I’ve been working with an accountability partner to help me break my habit of mashing the snooze button. Because my partner and I have the same goal, we help each other stay accountable.

ACTION STEP: Get clear on what habit you want to break, the reasons you want to break it, and how you’ll hold yourself accountable.

STRATEGY 5: Replace it with a good habit.

Knowing that stress and boredom are the two biggest elements for starting (and continuing) a bad habit, it’s crucial to have a good habit in place for when those two feelings come on. Say, for example, you’ve got the habit of dealing with work stress by mindlessly scrolling through Facebook. What if you went for a quick walk around the block or did a short breathing exercise? By replacing the habit you want to break with one that gives you the same, or similar benefit, you’re more likely to stick with it.

ACTION STEP: Notice the emotion that triggers your bad habit. Then, think of a positive behaviour to do instead to alleviate that feeling.

How to break bad habits (recap)

• Acknowledge it
• Make it more difficult
• Reframe your situation
• Hold yourself accountable
• Replace it with a good habit

What bad habits are you trying to break? What strategies have you used that worked — or didn’t work? Tell me about your experience in the comments below.

The post The Definitive Guide to Breaking Bad Habits appeared first on Mark’s Daily Apple.