Get ready to succeed in your habit creation (or habit stopping!) with these tips
What’s a habit of yours you wish you could stop?
What habit do you wish you could start?
Most people have habits that serve them, and some they’re unaware of detract from their well-being and calmness.
For example, I used to eat more than my fair share of chocolate from my desk at precisely 2 p.m. every workday. It always sounded good at the time, an energy pick-me-up. But it never made me feel better beyond that first bite. Once I became aware and intentional about wanting to change this habit, the work began to figure that out. I did a deep dive into the psychology of habits and no longer succumbed to the draw of my afternoon sweet tooth.
My clients share that they wish they’d get up earlier to work out, others want to quit smoking, save more money, call their parents more, use a daily planner, stop using their phone before bed, or start stretching.
A crash course on creating a new habit
Guess what? Habits are one of my favorite subjects and a fundamental way I’ve increased my calm and happiness.
My book has a whole chapter dedicated to habits and how healthier habits can aid in calm. Forty pages just about habits!! But here’s the thing… at its core, creating a new habit can be broken down into four steps.
- Inspiration.
What, or who inspires you? Create a new habit in alignment with your values or a role model you admire and want to be more like.
- Intention.
Build an infrastructure that supports it (i.e., coupling when you connect your new habit with another activity or task you do already). Create ways to make it easy for you to do it – like replacing your old tradition with a new one is more accessible than creating a new habit from scratch. Have a growth mindset, and see this change you’re making as a learning opportunity.
- Action.
Start small to set yourself up for success. Your habit is a recurring investment in your savings account toward what you’re “saving for” and building towards. Bit by bit, you’ll add to the account until you reach your goal. Your habits are micro-investments toward your future self.
- Repetition.
Don’t make not doing it the norm. The more you do your new habit, the more natural it will be. After a month of solid habit-doing, you’ll feel weird NOT doing it.
Free excerpt on habits from Chaos to Calm
I’m excited to offer a free excerpt from Chaos to Calm: Five Ways Busy Parents Can Break Free From Overwhelm.
In this excerpt, you’ll learn how to:
- Choose a new habit
- Replace ones that aren’t serving you
- Ensure you stay on your habit train (and what to do if you fall off)
Plus, my handy tracker will help you, you guessed it, stay on track!
To read more on parenting with the five pillars of calm, pick up my book, Chaos to Calm: 5 Ways Busy Parents Can Break Free From Overwhelm, and sign up for my Own Your Calm newsletter!
Reach out, I’m here for you.
