Everyone has unhealthy habits. As long as you’re a living being, you definitely have something you need to work on. These bad habits can be quite damaging. They could cost you your health, marriage, and job, and even cost you your life. You may be struggling to drop bad habits. What could you do to succeed?
Change Is Possible
Behavioural scientists say that bad habits, like good ones, are learned and developed over time. If that is correct, then bad habits can just as surely be unlearned. Do not be deceived into believing that the habit has become part of you and you can never change. Think about the benefits of breaking the old pattern. Make a list of how changing your behaviour could improve your life. Focusing on the benefits of changing our negative behaviour can motivate us to change. For example, if you have the habit of staying up late watching TV, focusing on the positive effects of getting enough sleep could be a motivator. If your bad habit is flirting, think of how much time you’d have for yourself if you were faithful to one person and quit sneaking around.
Of course, ridding ourselves of bad habits that may have dominated our lives for years will be difficult. We should not underestimate the struggle ahead of us. There will certainly be setbacks and failures. But rest assured, things usually get easier with time. The more you work at it, the more your new behaviour will become a part of you.
Recognize and Admit Bad Habits
Do not give excuses for yourself and say this is not a bad habit, everyone does this. Once something is not right, it is not. Wide acceptance doesn’t make it right. Ask yourself, ‘Do I really benefit from this habit? Is it annoying to others? Does it affect my health, financial status, well-being, family, or peace of mind? How much better off would I be without it?’
Replace the Bad Habit with something Positive.
Bad habits will not just be thrown away. They have to be replaced. A person’s life cannot be empty. Therefore, good habits will have to replace bad ones. For example, do you spend too much time on the Internet, perhaps looking at unwholesome material? Then schedule that time for wholesome reading, study, or exercise.
Identify Triggers
Certain scenarios trigger us to react in certain ways. When you find yourself engaged in a habit you are trying to quit, try to reflect on the chain of events and what really happened that caused you to make the choice you did. Try to avoid the triggers, react to the trigger in a different way, or build a new healthy habit. After identifying the triggers, these three-step process helps:
A Moment of Awareness
Try to think ahead of time. Envisage situations that expose you to unhealthy habits. Be aware and don’t let it take you by surprise. This requires very strong mental preparation and conscious effort.
The Ability to Resist Urges.
Not everyone has the ability to resist urges. Actually, no one does. We need to cultivate self-control. It is a very vital quality if we want to succeed in life. We can develop the ability to hold ourselves back from doing what we think isn’t good for us. No matter how long you have indulged in such behaviour, it is possible to hold yourself back.
A Replacement Behaviour
As said earlier, something has to replace that unhealthy behaviour we want to drop. So it simply is replacing unhealthy behaviours with healthy ones. In order to succeed in dropping old behaviour, new ones have to be developed, to put our time to good use. Try to learn a skill or a trade. Travel if you can, learn a new language, and put your time to good use.
Monitor your Progress
Each day reflects for a few minutes on your progress. If you have a relapse, determine what circumstances led up to the problem. Try t think of what you could have done differently. Never give up, no matter how long you try, and no matter how many times you fail. Even if you’re making little progress, that’s fine. Progress is progress.
Enlist the help of Others
Tell friends and family that you are attempting to break this habit, and ask them to remind you when you seem about to fall back into it. Talk to others who have successfully beaten the same habit. Be balanced and realistic. Do not expect immediate success. Some habits that took years to develop may die hard.
