It takes 21 days to form a habit

The new year is approaching and 2020 has probably made us rethink some old habits which we would like to get rid of. The best way of breaking your bad habits is by replacing them with positive ones, so why not use the opportunity to create, and most importantly, stick to some new habits which you’ll thank yourself for. 

Follow these tips to make sticking to your new habits a little easier:

Keep it consistent 

Develop a routine with your new habits. It’ll train your memory to remember that you do a certain thing at a certain time and place, so eventually you won’t even have to think about it!

Be decisive

When you know it’s time to do something, be decisive! Decide that you’re going to do it and just go for it. Ummiming and ahhing may keep you from following through as it’ll give you time to make excuses, rather than deciding you’re going to do something and just doing it and never looking back - which leads us to our next tip...

Don’t make excuses 

Let’s be honest, some days we are not going to want to get up at 5am, go to the gym or save money. Whatever your new habits are, it can definitely be tempting sometimes at the beginning to skip a day and say ‘I’ll start next week’. Truth be told, it’s really all in the mind - try to train your mind to remain disciplined and not give in to temptation. When you do mess up and feel like you’ve lost momentum, just think about the outcome you’d achieve if you consistently stuck to your habits and where you'd be a year later.

Start small 

Don’t overwhelm yourself with a million new habits to begin with- it’ll become hard to remain consistent and once February hits we’ll probably go back to our old habits. Instead, start with a couple small and attainable habits you would like to focus on. Once you’ve become accustomed to it, then add more into your routine. Remember, it’s all about taking baby steps! Just because you can do anything doesn’t mean you should try to do everything all at once. 

Tell others about your new habits 

When trying to stick to a habit, it’s important to have people around you who will keep you accountable when you don’t feel like sticking to your habits. Telling your close friends and family what you’re trying to do can help them keep you reminded and motivated (cause, spoiler alert, we won’t always feel motivated all the time).

With these tips in mind, we hope that you’ll be able to stick to your new habits and make 2021 your best year yet! Having said, remember to be kind to yourself if you mess up sometimes or skip a day. Every day is a new day, so don’t beat yourself up over anything - just keep moving forward rather than spending time dwelling on what you didn’t do!