Creating New Habits: 5 Top Rules for Success
This post was originally published in 2021
It’s been a long year, full of lockdowns and social distancing.
Now that things are starting to get back to normal I’ve decided that I want to make some long-term changes to my life.
Have you realized that you need to create some new habits too?
I know that I need to eat healthier and lose a few pounds. I’ve never been big on working out, I even failed gym class in high school 🤦🏽♀️. Personally, I would much rather sit under a tree and read a book than work out.
But, I know in order to achieve my goal I have to change that habit and start moving more.
What changes do you want or need to make?
Do you have an end goal in mind and what can you do to make sure that you achieve success?
Here are five rules that will help you create new habits successfully.
1. PLANNING
Success habits don’t just happen by accident. They are created by design.
Creating a plan will increase the chances of you successfully creating a new habit.
Think of the plan like a roadmap. Include your starting point, the final goal, and all of the steps along the way.
Don’t forget to note down potential stumbling blocks and how you will overcome them.
Many people include a vision board in their planning. This is a great way to see what your goal looks like in reality. Put it somewhere that you will see it regularly so it can reinforce the goal you want to achieve.
2. FOCUS
You must be committed to your goal of creating a new habit. If you’re not committed, then the chances of success reduce dramatically.
It’s important to believe that you will create your new habit and to be able to see yourself doing it.
Write down a positive statement that affirms you have created your new habit.
For example, if you want to create the habit of waking up early, you could write, ‘I wake up at 5:00 am every day, refreshed and ready to start my day. I use my extra time to journal for 20 minutes and eat a healthy breakfast. I spend 30 minutes reading a motivational book. I know that it helps improve my knowledge and will inspire me. Before I start my work I make sure that I plan my day and that I know which tasks are important for helping me achieve my goal.’
3. Know Yourself
Self-knowledge is crucial to creating new habits, as well as eliminating old ones.
You need to understand your strengths and weaknesses. It’s important to know where you are right now, where you want to be, and what needs to change to get there.
By knowing yourself you can create a growth mindset. This ensures that you understand that taking action is important.
By taking action you create change which leads to success.
4. PRACTICE
Habits take 21 days to become routine. This means that you need to ensure that you build time into every day to practice your new habit.
To make sure that you complete the full 21 days, you need to identify any potential stumbling points that may cause you to want to skip a day.
Knowing what might interfere with your daily habit practice ensures that you can put in place plans to overcome it.
Having a positive mindset is key. If you are committed to creating the new success habit and understand why it’s important to your overall plans and goals then you will be more able to overcome stumbling points and make sure that you practice your new habit every day until it becomes a routine part of your daily life.
Using a habit tracker can help keep you accountable. This Printable Habit Tracker Bundle has 8 different options for you to choose from.
Simply print them out and add them to your planner or bullet journal.
5. REWARD
When you set out to create a new habit you have your plan for how you’re going to achieve it and what your life will look like once that happens.
Don’t forget to build in a reward.
Make it something that you really want and value. It doesn’t have to be big and expensive but it does have to be important to you.
By planning a reward for when you’ve successfully created your new habit you will be more emotionally invested in creating the habit.
Write down your reward or get a picture of it and put it somewhere you will see it every day. This will reinforce your desire to succeed and strengthen your motivation to achieve your goal.
By using these five rules you will be creating a positive mental attitude towards creating your new habit successfully.
Don’t try to create too many new habits all at once. It’s simpler and more realistic to work on one new habit at a time.
I’m so happy you stopped by today! Thanks, ❤️
BEFORE YOU GO:
Here are a few journaling posts you might like:
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