“A bad habit never disappears miraculously. It’s an undo-it-yourself project.”
We all know how hard bad habits can be to break. If you have a habit that’s holding you back, attempts to quit can be downright draining. Building willpower to change a habit is a challenge, and we often can’t change more than one habit at a time. It can be much more effective to make small changes incrementally over time.
Part of this is due to the traditional approach we take with bad habits. We try not to do them. Don’t have that cigarette, don’t pig out on that pint of ice cream, don’t hit the snooze button. One problem with resisting temptation is that it keeps temptation front-and-center in our mind. If I say “Don’t think about a double cheeseburger,” what does your mind picture?
One strategy for breaking bad habits is the “positive displacement” approach. Regardless of how we spend our time, one thing is certain: We all have the same 24-hours in a day. If you have a habit you’re trying to break, consider planning an alternative activity during the time you usually act on the bad habit. For example, if you snack at night in front of the TV, consider shifting your workout to the evening hour. If you find yourself wasting time in the morning on the internet, why not head to a coffee shop without WiFi?
Shutting down a bad habit by activating a good habit in its place is far more effective than simply resisting. You can also use the urge to act on the bad habit as your cue to act on the “good” replacement. This tactic can also help you work on your business as well, especially if you displace a bad habit with something like writing appreciation emails to clients, engaging in a little cold calling, or scheduling time to listen to that business audiobook you’ve been meaning to finish.
Start small and grow from there. The power of positive displacement is real. The hour’s going to pass one way or another… how will you choose to spend it?
