Building Good Habits

Do you often indulge in bad habits such as overeating, binge-watching, sleeping late or not sleeping at all? Sometimes making active changes to these habits can change your entire day, year or life. Good habits are the basis of our success and achieving goals. These good habits usually require discipline, self-control and a will to be better.

I was a subject to these bad habits, and if I am honest, I still am to some. Getting rid of bad habits is a challenging task, and it is easier said than done. In the past, I used to try and get rid of these habits and go cold turkey. That worked, but only for a certain amount of time as those bad habits slowly crept up. There I was again binging on food and Netflix, and sleeping at inhumanly hours. What I needed was a solid strategy to build up my discipline and self-control overtime.

Removing bad habits

I started off by analysing my week and seeing how much time I spent on different activities. Then I listed out my topmost time-wasting activity, i.e. Instagram. I asked myself, “What benefits am I seeking from Instagram, and why am I using it so much?”. The answer to me was clear. I was not seeking any benefits. I was using it so much due to the constant dopamine rush I received when I refreshed the explore page.  So I decided that I would limit my usage from 5 hours a day to 1 hour a day. I implemented a strategy that I would ask myself “Is there anything useful on here every time I opened Instagram?” If not, then I used to count to 3 and close the app. If there was something useful, then I would look at a maximum of 5 posts which were informational and then close the app. This reduced my craving for Instagram significantly, and my usage dropped to 40 minutes a day.

Many of you may be wondering what the purpose of the last paragraph was. I was trying to tell you that the first strategy to remove bad habits is to analyse yourself and create a system that best suits you. Do your research. Find your most significant time wasters and then take action. Stick to the decision you make and if you feel it is beneficial, then continue it. If you think it does not suit you, then go back and see what you did wrong and adjust accordingly.

“Let today be the day you give up who you’ve been for who you can become.”

-Hal Elrod

Building good habits: Desire, Planning and persistence

I have always wanted to be the person who sleeps early and wakes up early. In December of 2020, I started this habit of sleeping at 10:30 pm and waking up at 6:00 am to go to the gym. Let me tell you, I have never felt more energetic and overall happy in my life. The reason was, I was getting the required amount of sleep my body needed while following the natural circadian rhythm. I was finally doing what I wanted to for years.

How did I do it, you ask. Well, it required 3 things; desire, planning and persistence. I had a BURNING DESIRE to sleep early and wake up early. I knew what I wanted and why I liked it. Therefore, it wasn’t hard for me to do it when the time came. DESIRE comes from within. When you want to build a good habit, you should initially focus on one. This habit should be something which you really want to do over and over every day. This is how your BURNING DESIRE will come out. The next thing you do is plan everything for the habit; The things you need, what time, how much time it will take and etc. For me, it was as simple as buying melatonin tablets (not sleeping pills), setting a suitable bedtime that allows me to take 30 minutes to fall asleep still giving me 7 hours of sleep, and what I wanted to do in the morning which motivated me to wake up. Then it’s just a matter of following the routine every day or week whatever you decide, but the crucial point is PERSISTENCE. If you do not follow through with the habit with your desired schedule, it won’t be considered a habit. FOLLOW THROUGH. That’s how you build habits, there is no trick to this, this is all mental toughness and discipline. You have to tell yourself every day that you have to do this, that you have to follow through, and that you will not give up. Be strong and watch how your desire automatically pushes you towards reaching your goal.

Bad habits take up time. They serve only one purpose, and that is to prevent you from being your best self. Bad habits can be overcome if you discipline yourself and have self-control. Replace your bad habits with healthy and good ones and trust me; you will thank yourself in the future. Your mind, body and soul will feel so much better. You will be happy with yourself and be better for everyone around you. Make a change to yourself, be the version you always wanted to be. Be the person you envisioned as a child. Be great!