How to Quickly Start Developing Good Habits

People lean toward the familiar. We repeat what we already know, over and over, often without thinking about it. The catch is that familiarity doesn't sort behaviors into helpful and harmful for you. A habit can settle in just as easily when it's bad for you as when it's good. Building the useful kind takes attention and a bit of effort, and there are a handful of methods that make the work go faster.

Give yourself a reward. When you're pushing through a change, small payoffs keep your motivation up and keep you from quitting halfway. The trick is choosing rewards that don't undo what you're building. A night out drinking might sound like fun, but it won't do you any favors if you're trying to live healthier. Pick something that moves you forward instead: a short trip to a place you've never been, or an item that genuinely makes you feel good about where you're headed.

Ask for help before you need it. Nobody builds a new routine entirely alone, and knowing when to lean on other people is part of staying on course. Say you're working on your weight and fitness. Tell the people close to you what you're up to, so they don't offer you the exact thing that pulls you off track without meaning to. Once they understand the goal, they can back you up instead of tempting you.

Picture the payoff. Spend a minute imagining the good that your new habit brings. Quitting smoking? See yourself breathing clean, running without gasping for air. Trying to get more done at work? Picture finishing your tasks a day early, every day. That mental image carries real motivating weight, and it's there to pull on when temptation shows up.

Write out a plan for each habit, one at a time. If smoking is the target, your plan names a quit date and lists whatever aids you'll use to get there. If fitness is the goal, you'll be sketching meal plans, booking a physical with your doctor, and putting together a workout routine you can actually keep. The specifics matter more than the intention.

Figure out your triggers and guess at the obstacles ahead. New habits are hard, but naming the things that could knock you off before you begin makes staying on track far easier. Weak moments come for everyone, and they usually arrive because the groundwork wasn't laid. Sit down and list the habits you want to start. Then jot down, for each one, the obstacles and triggers you can foresee. Carry the list around and use it.

Commit to it. Changing your life for the better is not easy, and you have to actually be ready. Go in unsure and odds are good you'll drift back to where you started. This is where some honest self-examination comes in. Take a week or two to work out what will keep you going, because that's what builds the self-discipline and willpower you'll draw on later.

Begin with something tiny so you don't drown in it. Decide to take the stairs instead of the elevator twice a day. It's a minor shift, but minor shifts lead to larger ones down the road, and your health improves in the process. Once a good habit has woven itself into your day, it runs on autopilot. That's when you turn your attention to the next one. Repeat the loop until the bad habits are gone and healthier, more productive behaviors have taken their place.

Rosemary Kitchen. Resource: Ciotti, G. (2015). How to Build Good Habits (and Make Them Stick). Retrieved on March 19, 2015.