We all know how exciting it is to start a new habit.
Today were going to be the jot down of person who wakes up early!
Packs their lunch before work!
Goes to the gym!
We also know how exciting it is to experience something that pulls us away from the daily grind.
Today, we get to sleep in!
A coworker suggested we try the new pizza place!
Theres nothing wrong with skipping the gym now and then, of course.
(Rest days are just as important as workout days.)
Look at you, starting a new money-saving habit!
But that emotional response is not going to be quite as strong on day 17.
Thats because the process of creating a habit also numbs your emotional response to that habit.
Theres a reason this happens on Day 17 and not Day 70.
With that in mind, heres whats worked for meand heres what hasnt.
Streaks work for a lot of people, but they dont work for me.
I dont care about competitionthe only person Im playing against is myselfbut I do care about accountability.
(And I have, in case you were curious.)
After all, I put it on the internetand that means it has to be true.
Breaking records
The great thing about lifting weights is that the weights keep getting heavier.
How many books have you read this year?
How much money have you saved by packing those lunches?
Get excited about each record you break, and youll be more likely to break the next one.
Neither does the idea of rewarding myself for going to bed on time by letting myself stay up late.
(Or rewarding myself for going to bed on time by letting myself buy a second candy.)
In other words, the reward isfeeling happier about my life.
The other reward, as I mentioned earlier, is turning those habits into part of my long-term identity.
I am a person who has kept up a yoga practice for over ten years, for example.
