How to Form New & Healthy Habits – 4 Easy Steps to Follow
Self-improvement is not just about kicking bad habits, but also creating new, healthy habits. It feels like there is always more we could be doing. We create these big goals to change our behavior, but that motivation can fade quickly. Don’t worry – we’ve got some tips that will make it easier to form healthy habits.
FOCUS ON ONE HABIT AT A TIME.
When you find the motivation to make positive changes in your life, it is easy to get swept up in that feeling. A lot of times, this makes you want to implement multiple behavioral changes at once. Trying to change yourself in one day is never going to lead to long-lasting improvements.
Focus on developing one habit at a time. You have to start somewhere and focusing on one new behavior will help increase the success of forming a new, healthy habit.
MAKE YOUR GOAL ATTAINABLE – START SMALL.
When picking the one new habit to start with, pick something that you can realistically add to your routine. It’s good to dream big and shoot for the moon, but when you are adding healthy habits to your life it is better to start small.
If you want to eat healthier breakfasts, don’t set a goal that you will make a fruit smoothie every morning before work. If something unexpected happens and you’re running late (like that ever happens) and you can’t make your smoothie one morning, you’ve already “failed”, and it might give you an excuse not to try again. By setting a smaller goal of making smoothies twice a week for breakfast, you can start to develop a habit, and work your way towards increasing that number.
TRACK YOUR PROGRESS.
We’re not saying you HAVE to start a bullet journal or create a chart to put on your fridge. We’re saying you need to hold yourself accountable. This may mean creating a support group of people who know your goals and will check-in with you. It could also mean sharing your habit-forming behavior publicly, whether that be on social media or on a chart for the whole family to see. This adds pressure to stay on track and will help you succeed.
GIVE YOURSELF TIME.
Changing your behavior is hard. Eventually, you won’t have to actively remind yourself to add this healthy habit. At one point in your life, you either had to remind yourself, or have your parents remind you to brush your teeth every day. Now, without thinking about it you brush your teeth every morning. Be patient and give yourself time to get to that point with each new healthy habit you want to implement in your life. You’ll get there!
We know adding new healthy habits to your life can be difficult. You are changing routines and forcing yourself to actively think about and be aware of your day and your actions. With starting small, focusing on one habit at a time, holding yourself accountable, and with repetition, creating new habits will get easier and easier, until they become second nature. What is your next habit on the road to self-improvement?
For more self-improvement tips, check out our other blogs:
HOW TO INCREASE YOUR CONFIDENCE AT WORK.
TIPS TO GET THE MOST OUT OF ONLINE CLASSES.
SEE ALL.
Looking for more resources on starting healthy habits? We’ve got you!
