Forming habits is challenging work that requires focus and patience. However, it can be made a little easier by understanding which triggers help adhere to new behaviors and not give up.
Time
Perhaps the most common way to solidify a new habit is through time. For example, you want to start waking up earlier than usual, say at 7 a.m. That specific time becomes the trigger for your new habit. Interestingly, it sets off a cascade of other beneficial changes: getting up earlier, brushing your teeth afterward, getting dressed, making a cup of tea, and so forth. Essentially, by adjusting your wake-up time, you’re not just changing your alarm settings but your entire morning routine. And this presents an opportunity to make it more productive and healthy. There are several other ways time influences your behavior. You may notice that you automatically engage in certain activities at different times of the day: snacking, taking smoke breaks, checking messages during lunch breaks while taking a break from work tasks. These behavior patterns can be the foundation of both harmful and beneficial habits. In many cases, your behavior patterns are signals of how you’re feeling. For example, indulging in a heavy snack in the afternoon might be a way to alleviate boredom from monotonous work. Smoking might provide a sense of connection with coworkers. The key is to understand the reasons behind habits that occur at certain times so you can replace harmful behavior patterns with beneficial ones. It’s about replacing harmful habits rather than eliminating them. And time-based triggers make it easier to incorporate new endeavors into your established routine — you just need to stick to a specific schedule to automate them.
Location
If you’ve ever walked into the kitchen, seen cookies on the table, and eaten them simply because they were there, then you know firsthand how location can influence human behavior. The environment is one of the most powerful drivers of mindless and harmful habits. In many cases, they’re simply reactions to where we live and spend our time. However, location-based triggers aren’t just something we react to; they’re something we can create. According to psychologists David Neal and Wendy Wood, new habits are actually easier to establish in new places. Their theory is that we subconsciously attribute certain behaviors to specific locations. For example, we might comb our hair in the bathroom, take pills in the kitchen, or hang keys on a hook in the hallway. So, when developing a new habit, it’s worth assigning it a specific location. For instance, when you enter the gym, you can prepare for your workout by storing your clothes in the same locker and heading to a specific corner of the room. No, it’s not as exciting as it might seem. But even if it feels a bit mundane, it’s worth enduring for the sake of the greater outcome. That outcome stems from setting a location trigger: you enter the gym, follow the same routine, and after a few weeks, you notice yourself doing it automatically. And when there are days when you really don’t feel like working out, the location trigger helps overcome that, making it easier for you to start your workout.
Previous Event
Many habits are reactions to some event in your life. When your phone buzzes, you pick it up to check who sent you a message. This is an example of a habit triggered by a previous event. Based on such a trigger, it’s easy to form new behavioral patterns. You’re not replacing one action with another; you’re complementing what’s already familiar to you, so you experience less internal discomfort. For example, every evening when you sit down for dinner, you can reflect on which event of the day you can praise yourself for and be grateful for. By repeating this action day after day, you’ll notice how it becomes automatic, and your self-esteem and sense of self-worth grow. It’s worth noting that the smaller the habit you add to the previous event, the easier it will be to incorporate it into your life. So perhaps it’s worth breaking down your new endeavor into several smaller parts and gradually adding them to what you’re already practicing.
Emotional State
Emotional state is often the culprit behind many harmful habits we tend to cling to. When feeling sad, we might head to the fridge and eat everything in sight, and during moments of boredom, we might add unnecessary items to our online shopping cart. Unfortunately, while emotions are a common behavioral signal, they are difficult to control and use to form beneficial habits. If you want your new behavior to evoke only positive feelings, you need to consciously set yourself up to experience them. In other words, you must simultaneously be in a state of mindfulness and emotional control. It may not be easy, but with practice, it’s achievable. Next time you feel stressed and sense tension building up in your body, try doing a simple breathing exercise. Use the negative emotional state as a trigger for behavior that will help you cope with it.
Other People
Surely, you have habits that you maintain “for company.” The thing is, the people you surround yourself with have a significant influence on how you behave and feel. It’s not surprising that you pick up good behavior from some and harmful behavior from others. It all depends on the triggers you’re exposed to while interacting with those around you. That’s why it’s important to be selective when forming your social circle and to timely distance yourself from those who encourage bad habits. Let’s face it: it will be difficult to resist fast food and opt for healthy meals if your friends drag you to a fast-food restaurant every time you meet and order burgers and fries. So, it’s worth considering surrounding yourself with people who have the habits you want to have yourself.
