Using Habits to Achieve Our Goals
Year after year, millions of people make New Year’s Resolutions and many, if not most, fail year after year. Why? Change is uncomfortable. It’s interesting because most goals that people set are meant to make their lives more comfortable…saving more money or paying off debt, eating healthier, getting in better shape, quit smoking or drinking, spending more time with family and the list can go on and on. Something has to change for you to achieve those goals, otherwise you wouldn’t be setting it as an intention. For example, if someone is trying to save money or pay off debt, there has to be some change that happens in day to day activities. It might mean cooking more at home so that you can save money on takeout or eating out. It could be as simple as not picking up that Timmy’s on your way to work. But in either situation, you must be prepared and the easiest way to do it, is to change your habits.
The habits we have are comfortable so especially in times of stress, they are easy to fall back on. What exactly are your goals? Decide which habits you need to stop or do less of to achieve your goals. This could be watching television or binge watching Netflix or even time spent on your phone with social media or games. Determine which habits you need to add to your life or do more of. More importantly how you will find the time to do them? The simple solution might be replacing a bad habit with a good habit. For example, you can replace 1 hour of television watching with one hour of working out or going for a walk. If you are trying to eat healthier, you have to remember to make time for grocery shopping, cooking at home and this can replace the time spent sitting in a restaurant waiting for someone to make your food.
Once you have these new habits in place, when you hit times of stress, you will continue to strive towards your goals because it will be more comfortable to keep on with the new habits.
What habits can you stop? What habits can you start?
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