BurnsHabits are those things that you do without thinking, things like setting the alarm, cleaning your teeth, doing the, laundry, and feeding the dog. Things that should be habits are activities that you either want to do for an extended period of time, or activities you want to do frequently even if only for a short period of time.

The most significant consequence of NOT making these things a habit is that they simply won’t get done. It takes energy to remember and then motivate an action. Habituated actions are far less energy consuming. To create a new habit there are only a few steps that need to be followed, and these are steps we all possess the power to do. 

1. You have to decide what you want to be a habit. It is important that you be as specific as possible. A habit of drinking more water is too general, whereas a habit of drinking 6 glasses a day is easier to install. 

2. You have to set up triggers to help you remember the action at the time you want to do it. For the first few weeks you will need to use external triggers or reminders to make it easier to remember what you are supposed to do. Alarms, notes, calls from friends, rubber bands on your wrist, padlocks or obstacles are all external triggers. Rituals also support remembering; do it in the same place, at the same time, and in same surroundings at least for the first few weeks. 

3. Once you have remembered to do the action you have to be able to motivate yourself to do it. Installing new behaviours requires repetition over time. How much repetition and for how long depends on what it is you are trying to install. For simple habits like getting up earlier, making lunch for your children the night before, or saving small change, you would do the entire action every time. For more complex habits like going for a one hour walk every morning, or preparing food at home instead of always eating out, start small. Get into the habit of starting first and then build on the action. Keep your walk short in the beginning for example, say ten minutes, and do that every day for a couple of weeks until that habit is firmly installed. Then expand up to the one hour walk.

Installing a habit is not energy free. It costs you the commitment to the action for the few weeks that it takes. It is a 'whatever' it takes to not miss it commitment. If you do miss it don't beat yourself up though, life is long and there is more than enough time to get it right. Just make the next attempt now, not later. And remember, an action that you do every day will take only two to three weeks to install but an action that you will only do once a week can take up to twelve weeks to install. Good luck.

Go to http://www.stephanieburns.com/articles/article06_habit.asp for more on Installing a New Habit and Breaking an Old One.