7 Simple Ways To Get Rid Of Bad Habits Forever

You know, sometimes, I really ponder on the irony of human existence. On the one hand, we like to do whatever it takes to make our lives better and to achieve our dreams and desires. But, on the other hand, we engage in activities that are detrimental to our lives and goals! Also, we find it really hard to let go of these habits, even though we are aware that they are damaging to everything we are trying to become.

I am sure you are already aware of all your bad habits (or at least most of them). You might have even tried to get rid of them. But as Benjamin Franklin once said, “It is easier to prevent bad habits than to break them.” We all know how true that is. Thankfully though, science has done a lot of research into this and now, we have many proven ways we can use to get rid of those pesky bad habits. Let’s take a look at them down below.

1) Be Aware of Your Habits

The very first thing you need to do is to become aware of your bad habits. A lot of the time, it might be that you regularly engage in a harmful activity (like eating too many chips), and you don’t even realize it. How can one beat something if one doesn’t even know that there is something to beat in the first place!

So, it’s a good idea to take stock of all your activities and actions during the day. When you’re grocery shopping, be conscious about what you buy and why. In a research study, it was found that people who read food labels but didn’t exercise lost more weight than gym-goers who ate indiscriminately. This happens because when you are aware of what you are doing, the thinking part of your brain can step in and tell you to stop (if it is detrimental).

2) Get Encouragement From Others

We, humans, are social animals. And so, other people’s opinions matter a lot to us (even though we don’t like to admit it). You can use this to your advantage to get rid of a bad habit. A study conducted at the University of California showed that using social media can help people quit smoking. In their study, around 42% of the smokers managed to quit due to the encouragement and support that they received online. This is quite impressive!

The reason this happens is that social media provides a great way for people to talk about their addictions and habits. They can seek help and support from fellow addicts and even boast about their successes. This constantly motivates them to do their best to curb whatever bad habits they have. Who would have thought that social media (which is a bad habit on its own for many people) can be of help!

3) Form An Implementation Intention

This is a neat little trick that can rewire your brain bit by bit. It involves using an “if-then” strategy to replace a bad habit with another positive or neutral one. Let’s say you are going to be attending a party where you know alcohol will be served. If you’re trying to quit drinking, you could go to the party with a planned response when someone offers you a drink. It could look something like, “If I am offered a drink, I will ask for a juice instead.”

Research on this strategy dates back to 1999. It shows that people who use the implementation intention strategy can potentially double the odds of achieving their goals. You can use this in any scenario and for any habit. What you are essentially doing is reacting positively to a trigger instead of giving in to your cravings. This little thing makes all the difference.

4) Say “I don’t”, Instead of “I can’t”

This is another one of those simple methods that look silly and ineffective at first glance, but end up making a lot of difference. In this method, when you are offered something that you are trying to curb (like alcohol, cigarette, sugary candies, etc), you should respond with “I don’t drink alcohol,” “I don’t eat candies,” etc, instead of “I can’t eat candies.”

The former is an empowered refusal while the latter makes you think like you are bounded. This small shift in perception leads to a world of difference. This was confirmed in a research study published in the Journal of Consumer Research. In it, two groups of people were asked to repeat the phrases “I don’t,” and “I can’t” respectively when presented with chocolates. Then they were asked a series of questions that were not related to the study.

After the questions, when they were leaving, they were given an option to choose from two complimentary treats. One was a chocolate bar and another was a healthy granola bar. The researchers discovered that the people who had repeated “I can’t” early on chose the chocolate bar 61% of the time. Those who had said “I don’t” early on chose the bar only 36% of the time.

4 Simple Habits That Help Me Win The Day

5) Practice Meditation

Meditation is an ancient spiritual practice that has been proven to have a plethora of health benefits. Those who have practiced it swear by its life-changing effects. It is also quite useful to help you get rid of your bad habits. First of all, it reduces stress, helps you stay in the present moment, makes you aware of the self, and develops a state of peace and serenity within you. In such states, you are better equipped to make good decisions. This includes warding off bad habits.

This effect of meditation was confirmed in a study where heavy drinkers who engaged in meditation (and other exercises), began drinking much less than before. So, if you find yourself giving in to your cravings or indulging in other harmful activities, it is a good idea to spend half an hour daily just meditating in silence. You might start noticing the difference within a week or so.

6) Try To Focus On One Habit At A Time

It is highly likely that you don’t have just one bad habit. It’s quite normal to have tens of them actually. So, in your bid to live a better life, you might feel motivated at first to get rid of all your bad habits at once. This wouldn’t be such a great idea. If you have ever tried multitasking before, you might already know that you end up doing a bad job at each of the tasks. The same applies to habits as well.

Charles Duhigg, the author of Power of Habit, says that if you try to transform everything at once, the whole exercise can be really destabilizing. It makes total sense, doesn’t it? Even if the change is positive, it might leave you very dissatisfied. So much so that your limbic system might revolt and you would end up back to square one. So, the best thing to do is to tackle one bad habit at a time.

7) Get Adequate Sleep

A lack of sleep could be one of the reasons why you develop a bad habit in the first place. You see, if you don’t get enough sleep, it is likely that you will experience elevated levels of stress. And research is clear that stress does lead to increased addiction, poor lifestyle choices, and bad habits. Therefore, it is a wise idea to manage your sleep schedule.

If sleep is something you struggle with, check out my popular article 10 Ways to Get Better Sleep, or my book notes on Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker, PhD. so you are getting the most out of every snore!

Just getting an hour and a half of extra sleep can lead to positive results. A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that participants who slept for 90 minutes extra reduced their sugar consumption per day by 11.8 grams. That is a huge improvement if you ask me!

To Wrap It Up

Since habits influence so many of your decisions, it is crucial to see that you adopt more good habits and get rid of as many bad ones as possible. Your very future might be at stake here. Sure, it will be tough at first, but think about everything it will lead to! You owe it to yourself to do everything you can to achieve what you have set out for. Don’t let your own self be your biggest impediment!

If you have some bad habits that you want to break, you should immediately start following the proven methods mentioned above. In just a matter of a few weeks, you will start noticing positive changes.

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