Habit Stacking #SOSMagic

Habits. Things one does on a regular basis that require discipline. Discipline is something I do not have. 

A blog post I read this morning mentioned James Clear and the idea of habit stacking. Intrigued, I checked it out and my vision of forming habits completely changed.

In a very simplistic definition, Clear states that in order to build new habits, they need to be paired with a current habit, thus habit stacking. For example eating breakfast or taking a shower are regular habits. I never thought of those as being habits, but it makes sense when you read the article.

The reason why habit stacking is successful is because we have current habits already built into our brains, and we have had them for many years. By stacking a new habit to something we already do, we increase the likelihood of sticking with the new habit.

The article suggests making a list of  things I already do:

eat breakfast
open my computer at school
take a bath
eat dinner with Dave
wash the dishes

go to bed

What new habit could I stack onto one of these?

• While eating breakfast I could write in my notebook or make a to-do list.
• After I open my computer I could read a bible verse or write
• While taking a bath I could read 10 pages.

One of my favorite examples he gave was to place a book on the pillow after making the bed in the morning, stacking the behavior of reading right before bed. BINGO!

See how this is going? It really isn't about discipline at all. It is about connecting a new habit to one I already have.

Now, doesn't that sound easy? I'll let you know how it goes!

I’m joining an open community of writers over at Sharing Our Stories: Magic in a Blog. If you write (or want to write) just for the magic of it, consider this your invitation to join us. #sosmagic