3 Steps to Making New Habits

Let’s talk about forming new habits for this school year. We all have times in our lives where we intentionally want to change our behavior for the better and create new habits for ourselves. This could be getting in the habit of eating healthier and drinking more water. Or it could be moving more and taking the dog for a daily walk. Or it could be work related, or spiritual. There are so many areas in our lives that could be improved and made easier if we created new habits.

Getting into the habit of doing something is often easier said than done. We seem to acquire bad habits without any effort, but getting into a good habit can be a little more challenging.

Let’s break it down into a three-step process that makes it easy to follow until we’ve internalized the new behavior and made it a true habit and something we do automatically without having to think about it, like brushing our teeth.

Decide What You Want to Do

The first step is to decide what you want that new habit to be. Be as specific as possible. Don’t just tell yourself you want to pack your lunch every day. Instead, say something like, I will spend 2 hours out of my weekend to meal prep every week. Deciding what your new habit will be and committing to when and how you are going to do it, is half the battle.

Remind Yourself to Get It Done

The next few days should be smooth sailing. You will be motivated and excited to get this done. Sticking to your new habit is not an issue. But a few weeks in you’ll notice that it is easy to slip back into old habits.

Maybe you have papers to grade and you don’t really want to go out and shop or cook. Or maybe your day just gets away from you. This is when it is important to have a daily reminder. Set an alert on your phone or add the new habit to your daily to-do list for a while.

Make It Part of Your Routine Until It Becomes a Habit

Which brings us to the last step. It takes some time before a new behavior becomes a true habit. Until then, a routine will work to your best advantage. Even before the new behavior becomes automatic, a routinewill help you get it done without having to spend a lot of will power or relying on daily reminders.

Make that weekly meal prep a part of your weekend routine, always to keep fresh fruits and veggies packed as a healthy snack.

Congratulations! Decide to create the new habit, practice the routine until it is second nature and you will be well on your way to forming a new good habit and creating a happier, healthier you this school year.