Habits: What They Are, and How to Form (or Change) Them

Introduction:

Every single person has habits that they’ve created, consciously or unconsciously. Those habits can be healthy and productive, like going to the gym in the morning, or setting the dishwasher at night. They can also be destructive to our health and wellbeing. This article breaks down the science behind habits; it provides tips on how to form ones that improve your life, and change the ones that don’t.

What Are Habits:

Habits are behaviors we’ve repeated so long that they have become automatic.

Habit formation is comprised of three factors: frequency, consistency, and context. The behavior is repeated over time in a similar situation, setting, or conditions.

Building a habit initially requires a lot of effort; it requires conscious attention, intention, and execution to become ingrained.  Once ingrained, the behavior becomes automatic; we will experience an urge to do the thing even when we are not paying attention.

The amount of time it takes to build a habit varies from 18 days to six months.

The Science Behind Habits:

The term “habit loop” was coined by researchers at MIT in the 1990’s. It refers to the cycle that cements and reinforces habitual behavior.

A habit loop is comprised of three parts – the cue (trigger), the response (the behavior), and the reward. The reward reinforces the behavior, which helps the habit stick. Our systems are highly driven to continue behavior that is experienced as rewarding. It is a subconscious process, and the repetition creates the habit.

How to Form Healthy Habits (or Change Unhealthy Ones): 

Identifying the habit loop is the first step to successful habit change. Determine the habit you want to build instead and identify an intentional replacement behavior or response to replace the current habitual response. Being responsive to entails learning to highlight and adjust default reactions and habits that interfere with behaviors conducive to our goals.

Here are prompts that can help identify and shift different parts of the loop.

• What is the cue, situation, or trigger?
• What is my current response when that situation/trigger occurs?
• What do I gain from my current response?
• How does my response cost me?
• How can I change my response to serve my goals?
• What reward will I receive from changing my response?
• What is the consequence of changing my response?
• What support do I need to help sustain these changes?

With unhealthy habits, there is often a short-term instant gratification gain that has long-term negative consequences. We are often avoiding temporary discomfort, but then we end up creating long-term discomfort by repeating the behavior. Unwanted habits can be broken by controlling the cues that trigger behavior. For example, changing circumstances or frequency can shift context cues and disrupt the habit pattern.

Part of the work of building or shifting habits includes managing the thoughts and emotions that come with interrupting the habit loop to build resilience in service of long-term goals. Check out our blog for tips on how to manage thoughts or emotions more effectively.

Are you a caring adult invested in transforming the lives of young adults for the better? Become a certified life coach through the Youth Coaching Institute. Click here to learn more about our live trainings and other offerings.