Back in the habit (Not the movie)
Bad habits... how do you break them?⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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We’ve all got them. And we all know that they can be hard to change sometimes. But the good news is, habits have a cycle, a feedback loop, and our brain loves routine. So once you figure out which parts to intercept, you can change a habit without freaking your brain out too much. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
The habit cycle goes like this - ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Trigger > Action > Reward⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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▪️Some examples of triggers- ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Time of day, a person or group of people, an activity, a location, an emotion, a preceding event. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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▪️Examples of rewards - Socializing, a sugar hit, a change of scenery, the feeling of relief. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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If you want to change a habit, you must recognize the triggers, the rewards and change what happens in between. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Example - ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Trigger- it’s 5pm and you’ve finished your work day ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Habit you want to change - Trash tv and a bottle of wine. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Reward - The feeling of relief, relaxing and marking the end your work time. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
New habit -⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Same trigger, same reward, different action. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Let’s say you swap out the trash tv and bottle of wine and replace it with taking a bath and listening to your favourite music, or sitting down with a cup of tea or home made cocoa and hearing about your husbands/kids/friends/families day. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Take notice of where you want to improve and what things are setting these actions off. Figure out what rewards you are getting as a result and start to brainstorm how you might be able to get that same reward with a healthier or more productive action.
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We’ve all got them. And we all know that they can be hard to change sometimes. But the good news is, habits have a cycle, a feedback loop, and our brain loves routine. So once you figure out which parts to intercept, you can change a habit without freaking your brain out too much. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
The habit cycle goes like this - ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Trigger > Action > Reward⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
▪️Some examples of triggers- ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Time of day, a person or group of people, an activity, a location, an emotion, a preceding event. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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▪️Examples of rewards - Socializing, a sugar hit, a change of scenery, the feeling of relief. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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If you want to change a habit, you must recognize the triggers, the rewards and change what happens in between. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Example - ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Trigger- it’s 5pm and you’ve finished your work day ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Habit you want to change - Trash tv and a bottle of wine. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Reward - The feeling of relief, relaxing and marking the end your work time. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
New habit -⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Same trigger, same reward, different action. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Let’s say you swap out the trash tv and bottle of wine and replace it with taking a bath and listening to your favourite music, or sitting down with a cup of tea or home made cocoa and hearing about your husbands/kids/friends/families day. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Take notice of where you want to improve and what things are setting these actions off. Figure out what rewards you are getting as a result and start to brainstorm how you might be able to get that same reward with a healthier or more productive action.