Leveling Up Your Habits

Habits are a BIG topic with my coaching and organizing clients. Our habits are either going to help us reach our goals (and in many cases reach them faster), or they’re going to delay or prevent us altogether from reaching our goals.

What habits and goals have already come to mind for you? Any supportive habits? Any that sabotage your progress? Maybe a couple related to the goals you set at the beginning of the year?

I’ve been revisiting some of the book “The Power of Habit” by Charles Duhigg lately. I’ve always found that it’s a great resource to return to as I’m considering my habits, especially when I’m working on new goals, or not making the progress I want.

Habits include everything from what we do when we get out of bed in the morning to biting our nails to mindlessly munching. Even driving to drop the kids off at school and driving to work or the store. 

Stop for a minute and consider: how many things have you done over the past couple days without actually thinking about it? Those are very well-established habits at work!

As the book discusses, we have what’s called a habit loop, which includes a cue, a routine and a reward. An example of a habit loop would be your morning routine. For example, the cue, or trigger, would be that it’s morning and it’s time to get out of bed. The routine would be that you go to the bathroom, brush your teeth, shower, get dressed and head to the kitchen to make some breakfast. The reward is that you feel refreshed (hopefully) and clean and are ready to go about your day.

So what happens when you want (or need!) to cultivate a new habit because you realize your current habits aren’t supporting you or your goals? Or when you need to develop a set of new habits to support new goals and your vision of the future?

For example, say that you have a habit of staying up until midnight scrolling on social media most nights even though you know you’ll be exhausted in the morning and likely less effective at work. Or getting up from your desk at work every afternoon to mindlessly grab a snack even though you’re not actually hungry. These are not necessarily the plan, but simply the routine you follow out of habit.

Once something becomes a habit, the pathways have already been established in your brain. In fact, those pathways will always be there. This is what makes it so hard to break habits. Think of the saying “it’s just like riding a bike”. Meaning that once you’ve learned it, it’ll come back quickly because the information is still there, even 20 years later.

In order to break a habit, you have to create a new habit to override the old habit. In general, cues and rewards remain consistent and it’s the routine that needs to change. Using the late night social media example, the trigger is that it’s getting close to bedtime. The reward is some time to relax before bed, see what your friends are up to, and find new recipes or project ideas to save. All reinforced with the reward of plenty of dopamine to keep you scrolling.

Of course, it’s the routine of staying up so late that needs to change, but it’s helpful to back up a bit further to more accurately pinpoint what needs to change. You already know how easy it is to mindlessly scroll, spending way more time that you planned, so it's reasonable to look at the routine around picking up the phone or opening the app.

In this case, you may consider cultivating a new habit of:

• Setting a timer to remind you to go to bed (and not ignoring the reminder)
• Checking social media earlier in the night
• Setting a timer on your phone to allow a specific amount of social media time
• Using the digital health feature on your phone that allows you to set a limit on daily usage for apps
• Keeping your phone out of arm's reach or in a different room at night if you tend to wake up in the middle of the night and grab your phone

You may also find it very helpful to clarify your goals that are impacted by the habit, and to pay attention to how much better you feel in the morning. Expressing gratitude to yourself can be a powerful tool in solidifying your new habit. For example, I always thank myself in the morning when I walk into the kitchen and remember that I made sure the dishes were done the night before.

In the case of the habit of mindlessly snacking in the afternoons, it could be helpful to explore the trigger and the reward in order to understand how to change the routine. 

If the reward you’re actually looking for is simply a social break or to stretch your legs after sitting some much, you could consider a new habit of taking a walk with a friend.

If the reward you're actually seeking is to reset your mind or to feel more alert when you're feeling sleepy, then consider these as a new habit:

• Going on a walk, even if it's in the building or on a treadmill
• Getting outside to spend a few minutes in the sunshine
• Closing your eyes for a 10-15 minutes to give your eyes a break from screens 
• Doing some stretches
• Bouncing up and down for a minute or two clapping your hands (Yes, it may sound weird, but I guarantee it will wake you up!) 

Chances are that any of these new routines will help you forget about that snack. The new reward will leave you feeling better and may even support your progress towards your goals.

This is your invitation to get mindful about your habits and to take a look at what you’re doing that could be sabotaging your progress towards your goals. 

You’re also welcome to schedule a call with me right here to really clarify your top goals and what habits will help you achieve your goals. Why not finish the year strong? You deserve to reach your goals.

Enjoy the journey,

Julie