Forming New Habits

A new year always brings about an opportunity to step back and evaluate how we want to begin another season of life. New Year’s resolutions are a common time to make health goals and lifestyle changes. At the root of most New Year’s resolutions is a habit change, and habits are a big part of our overall wellbeing.

There’s a significant amount of psychological research behind the process of habit formation and change so we can be confident that for most people habit change follows a similar cycle. Here are a few simple ways to identify a potential need for habit change. These 3 tips come from Charles Duhiggs best-selling book, The Power of Habit.

1. Pinpoint a trigger or cue for a certain behavior

2. What is the action you take, or the behavior itself

3. What is the outcome or benefit from the behavior

Once you identify a habit you’d like to change use this structure to solidify your desired result. An easy way to remember the components of habit change according to author James Clear is 3 R’s: Reminder, Routine and Reward. Establish a reminder for your new habit, make it part of your daily routine and reward yourself along the way. Enjoy the journey of establishing new habits in the New Year!