One of the main ways I managed to instill good habits in myself is to both use optimal paths to good habits, and closing optimal paths to sub-optimal habits. The trick is to make a good habit easier than it is annoying, and a bad habit more annoying than it is preferable.
Examples:
Hydration—I simply place a 2l water bottle by the apartment door every evening. It becomes impossible for me to leave the house without picking it up, and once it is in my hand, Im so much more likely to drink from it and take it with me than forget.
Exercise: I bought dumbbells to work out with, but consciously made no place to put them. I just place them on my gaming chair, so it becomes impossible to use the PC without lifting the dumbbells. But the moment they are literally in my hands, it is easier to just pump a few curls than not.
Exercise/commute: I’m trying to unlearn driving everywhere, and bike whenever I can. I just place my car keys in my bike’s frame pouch. This way I cannot leave the house without touching my bike, and once I do, its easier to just hop on it and ride away.
Diet: I always struggled with weight, and the one “simple trick” that actually worked for me was brushing my teeth ASAP after dinner. Since my teeth are already brushed, and it would be annoying to do so again, Im much less likely to snack after dinner. If the urge to snack is really strong, I just use some mouthwash, which not only makes me even more disinclined to soil my super-clean teeth, but no snacks taste good when my mouth is super minty/mentholly.
Waking early: the path to a sub-optimal habit is to hit snooze on the alarm and go back to sleep. Breaking the habit was as easy as placing the alarm clock in the bathroom, so I would have to walk across the entire house to turn it off, and once I do, Im already where I need to be to brush my teeth and shave, so might as well do so.
They reason why these are working is that all those habits are relatively weak, and a small tweak to how annoying would they be, means all the difference. Its basically weaponizing my own laziness/procrastination against itself. The goal is to make myself spend extra energy walking around and looking for things needed for my bad habits, and the things needed for the good habits to be always in my path.
One of the main ways I managed to instill good habits in myself is to both use optimal paths to good habits, and closing optimal paths to sub-optimal habits. The trick is to make a good habit easier than it is annoying, and a bad habit more annoying than it is preferable.
Examples:
Hydration—I simply place a 2l water bottle by the apartment door every evening. It becomes impossible for me to leave the house without picking it up, and once it is in my hand, Im so much more likely to drink from it and take it with me than forget.
Exercise: I bought dumbbells to work out with, but consciously made no place to put them. I just place them on my gaming chair, so it becomes impossible to use the PC without lifting the dumbbells. But the moment they are literally in my hands, it is easier to just pump a few curls than not.
Exercise/commute: I’m trying to unlearn driving everywhere, and bike whenever I can. I just place my car keys in my bike’s frame pouch. This way I cannot leave the house without touching my bike, and once I do, its easier to just hop on it and ride away.
Diet: I always struggled with weight, and the one “simple trick” that actually worked for me was brushing my teeth ASAP after dinner. Since my teeth are already brushed, and it would be annoying to do so again, Im much less likely to snack after dinner. If the urge to snack is really strong, I just use some mouthwash, which not only makes me even more disinclined to soil my super-clean teeth, but no snacks taste good when my mouth is super minty/mentholly.
Waking early: the path to a sub-optimal habit is to hit snooze on the alarm and go back to sleep. Breaking the habit was as easy as placing the alarm clock in the bathroom, so I would have to walk across the entire house to turn it off, and once I do, Im already where I need to be to brush my teeth and shave, so might as well do so.
They reason why these are working is that all those habits are relatively weak, and a small tweak to how annoying would they be, means all the difference. Its basically weaponizing my own laziness/procrastination against itself. The goal is to make myself spend extra energy walking around and looking for things needed for my bad habits, and the things needed for the good habits to be always in my path.