The 7 Keys to Breaking Bad Habits

Are you letting bad habits rule your life? I started learning how to change habits a few years ago. Since then I’ve switched to a vegan diet, began exercising every day, started writing new articles every day, began waking up earlier and trying some wacky experiments to improve my life. Here are some ideas I’ve found useful:

1. Reduce Stress. Bad habits often form as a compensator/coping mechanism for stresses in your life. Reduce/remove external sources of stress, so you don’t have to compensate for it. Eat healthy meals, get enough sleep, exercise. Don’t underestimate the stress of boredom — not being properly stimulated regularly is a stressful state to your body. This will help boost your internal resource in holding up a higher standard for yourself.
2. Optimize Your Environment. First of all, you need to set up an environment optimized for your habit change. Toss out all junk food, tell your family/roommates not to bring in any. Change your paths so you’re not driving/walking by places that sell junk food, and stop carrying loose cash so you’re not tempted to spend it on vending machines.
3. Prepare a Replacement. Don’t just drop a habit and leave an empty space where that’s used to being filled. Prepare an alternative, a better replacement. In case of food, treat yourself to healthier and more delicious snacks. Eat more of your big meals so you’re not hungry. Make it so that you have no reason to revert to your bad habit — you have something that makes you feel better and still fill the same void! Make this replacement easily available, so whenever you’re tempted, you can easily grab it.
4. Define a Time Frame. Of course, your overall goal is to change habits forever, but to aim for forever from the beginning is too overwhelming. There is a good reason why 30-day trial (another Pavlina-ism) has become a standard among PD/SI community. Pick a manageable time frame where that’s long enough to create a new groove on your path.
5. Remove Ambiguity and Make It Measurable. Along with a time frame, be sure to define your habit change clearly and set up metrics to make sure you can measure it. If you’re fighting junk food, write down the list of food that is getting banned from your life, or define what is “junk food” for you.
6. Make Yourself Accountable. Tell other people of your 30-day challenge and ask them to hold you accountable. The more people know about your habit change, the better.
7. Give Yourself a Reward. In addition to a replacement, prepare a nice reward at the completion. Make it something really good, something you don’t usually allow yourself to have. Make it available right on the day after you complete your time frame, and think about it everyday.