Time
We are a routined species that operate in 24 hour cycles. As a result we often behave in particular ways depending on the time. For example, On waking I immediately drink a glass of water, have a coffee and brush my teeth; every day 365 days a year. I’m sure you have similar patterns of behaviours based around what time it is.
This is an obvious example but there are more subtle ones you can pick up on with a little bit of mindfulness. For example, I’ve identified that most days around 2pm I’ll crave something sweet or carb based. For others it might be something like a cigarette break?
Time can be used to your advantage. If you’re aware of upcoming cues based on the time of day you can start to replace these with more meaningful and positive behaviours.
For me evenings pose the most challenge. It’s when I’m most relaxed and open to unnecessary snacking. In the past, if I’m not mindful I’ll easily work my way though a pot of Pringles and a large tub Haagen-Dazs ice cream (Pralines and cream; every time).
To prevent this I’ve learned developed a love for colouring in. The intricacies and calm nature of the task relaxes and distracts me from my indulgent thoughts. With ease I can now override temptation, although this did take practice to start.
Location
My example of walking in to the house and feeling peckish is the perfect example of location based cues. James Clear argues that location is the strongest driver of mindless habit and therefor one of the hardest to identify.
There are several studies into this that clarify how location and environment can impact habit, both positively and negatively. This is also known as choice architecture. Simply put it’s the theory that a certain environment can impact you’re behaviour, and that many environments already have hard wired behaviours attached to them. I used to spend hours sat in my parents lounge growing up to which I often drifted off for a nap. Now whenever I go and visit and sit in the lounge I always feel sleepy. This happens every-time. For me this is an example of a location habit.
Two studies which demonstrate this can be found here. (HWK-1) & (HWK-2)
Like all habit cues they can positively or negatively impact you. New locations are unique as they offer a blank canvas to create positive habits. Whereas well known locations require a “rewiring” approach.
To harness location and create new habits you need to create new actions that generate memory and become instinctive.
When I go into my mum and dads lounge now I make sure I engage in some kind of activity or conversation, if I start to feel sleepy I stand up or leave the room momentarily. Down get me wrong a nap here on Christmas Day is lovely, but when you have two small children to keep an eye on its less than ideal.
The goal is to replicate an actions that encourage your participation in tasks that benefit.
It might be that you always eat your lunch in the kitchen and not the lounge. When you’re done you clean up and exit the kitchen. This indicates you’re done. Leaving the room will overtime reenforce meal time is over and signal new tasks. This can help prevent overeating and unnecessary weight gain, as a result.
Preceding Event
Plenty of habits result in response to something happening. For example, I’ve worked with people who every time they finish a tough phone call, proceed to go outside for a cigarette break. The call triggered a “need to smoke.” There are hundreds of example habits like these.
You can use a preceding event to build in new positive habits. To increase my social connections with friends and family I make sure I call at least one person when I get in the car. Even just fro 5 minutes. I’ll use entering the car as a stimulus to reach out to friends or family.
Think about how you might use a preceding event to support your own habits for improvement. You are limited only by imagination. One of my clients who receives lots of parcels does 10 press ups after every delivery as part of his exercise targets.
Emotional State
This is a common one for bad habits in particular. Author James Clear explains this is a hard area to develop positive new habits, often because you need to be emotional and aware. Think about when your particular angry or upset, perhaps low or depressed. Its hard to think and act productively in these moments. It can be done but much harder to implement a new habit.
Practicing mindfulness with regards to your emotional state can help deescalate emotions and prevent bad habits from arising as a result. One simple but very effective way do to this would be to control your breathing.
Once completed you’ll likely find you’re much calmer and more able to refrain from actions or behaviour that may have impacted your progress.
Other People
The people you surround yourself with impact who you become. A study conducted in 2007 found that if your best friend becomes obese you’re 57% more likely to do the same, even if they are hundreds of miles away.
Jim Rohn explains, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”
Therefore it’s likely that the best course of action is to surround yourself with positive like minded people who share goals and targets similar to you.
Personally I’ve experienced both positive and negative sides of this coin and find the notion to be true; anecdotally of course.
This becomes harder when you have to be with people you know aren’t necessarily conducive to your own goals. This doesn’t mean they are people that knowingly wish to sabotage your efforts (it’s also possible they do know). For example it may even be family or friends who have a different perspective on life.
Learning to stay true to yourself and mitigating conflict or peer pressure can help. Be prepared however for people who challenge, sometimes aggressively or in a mean manner. Remind yourself of what’s important to you. Buckling to become something you’re not will likely lead to negative results later down the line.
The ones who want to see you happy and succeed will understand even if it takes a while. You’ll figure out those who don’t soon enough. When you do avoid them whenever possible, or wear your invisible cloak of armour to prevent them from penetrating your resilience and killing your goals.
Having an understanding of cue types can help your pick the right one to support new habits your trying to develop.
Clear explains ” The key to choosing a successful cue is to pick a trigger that is very specific and immediately actionable.”
What works for you may not be right for the next person. Habit creation, cues and triggers are highly individual. get creative and assess what works and what is less effective. Keep practicing and eventually you’ll develop a system thats right fro you and your individual pursuits.
