I must make a confession, while I sit here thinking about what I am going to say and
agonizing over a good opener, I bite my fingernails. I know it's a dirty habit, I don’t need you to tell me again, but in this instance, it was a perfect example of what I am about to write about. Habits. We all have them, both the good and the bad. In this particular instance, biting my fingernails is a bad habit in response to stress. In fact, about 45% of our day is controlled by our habits (Neal, Wood, and Quinn, 2006). Waking up, eating breakfast, brushing your teeth, getting dressed, and going to work are all parts of your routine and habits. Some habits are formed when an action is repeated over and over, becoming automatic. For example, brushing your teeth and washing your face before bed.
Others are created when there is a cue or trigger stimulating a response, resulting in a reward (Mazar and Wood, 2018). Examples of this include smokers getting a nicotine high after smoking their cigarette, or a runner getting a runner’s high after going the distance. Learning the psychology of habits will help you leverage the system so you can make the desired changes you want.
There are different types of habits, but for the sake of this article, we will classify them into habits born of repetition or habits born of reward. Habits born of reward are often associated with a dopamine release in the brain, and it's these types of habits that are harder to break because our brain conditions us to keep doing them (Wein 2012). Luckily humans have the ability to plan long-term and can exercise willpower to overcome these habits. We can also use strategies to help us change our current habits and make new ones. You can avoid the cues or triggers so the response is not initiated, as well as swap certain habits with others (Wein 2012). For example, if you substitute that dessert with a piece of fruit, you still get that sugar, but not all of the processed ingredients. If you are trying to develop new behaviors, you can use your understanding to make habits that will last.
So, how can you hack the system and make it work for you? We will use James Clear’s “How to Build a New Habit: This is Your Strategy Guide”
Keep it small and realistic: To begin with, identify which habits you want to make or change, then set small, realistic goals for yourself.
Instead of saying “I am going to eat healthier,” say “I will substitute butter with olive oil” or “I will only eat out once a week.”
Utilize the compound effect, and slowly build onto your goals. By implementing small changes consistently over time, you will ultimately end up with significant gains.
If you start off with the goal of studying for 30 minutes every day, add one additional minute every day. Eventually, you will be able to study for longer!
Break down your big habits so they are more manageable.
Using the example above, when you get up to an hour or more of study, break it down into two, thirty-minute study sessions, or four, fifteen-minute study sessions. This way it is more manageable and you can maintain your focus for longer.
“Never Miss Twice Rule”: Missing one day is acceptable, but don’t miss two days in a row. Consistency is key!
Patience: Stick to a sustainable pace otherwise you will get burnt out.
Since it is Feel Good February we want to help students focus on their health and wellness. Going into exam season is stressful, but put that on top of all of the day-to-day stressors of COVID, finances, relationships, and many others and it is easy to become overwhelmed. Now is the time to make self-care a habit. Self-care looks different for different people, but choose what works for you and make it part of your routine. Here are some examples of how you can incorporate self-care (Mind 2017).
So now that you have a general understanding of habits, how to manipulate this system to your advantage, and have some ideas for healthier habits to form, what will you do? What habits will you form? D you have what it takes to break the chain? Let us know in the comments!
References
D. T. Neal, W. Wood, and J. M. Quinn, (2006) ‘Habits: a repeat performance’, Current Directions in Psychological Science, 15(4th ed.), pp. 198-202. Available at: https://www.jstor.org/stable/20183111?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents (Accessed 31 January 2022).
Mazar A., Wood W. (2018) Defining Habit in Psychology. In: Verplanken B. (eds) The Psychology of Habit. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-97529-0_2
H. Wein, (2012). Breaking Bad Habits Why Its So Hard to Change [Online]. NIH News in Health. Available at: https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2012/01/breaking-bad-habits (Accessed: 31 January 2022).
J. Clear, How to Build a New Habit: This is Your Strategy Guide [Online]. James Clear. Available at: https://jamesclear.com/habit-guide (Accessed: 31 January 2022).
(2017). How can I help myself? [Online]. Mind Charity. Available at: https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/mental-health-problems-introduction/self-care/ (Accessed: 31 January 2022).
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