Why is it that negative habits are easy to form and hard to break, whilst positive habits can be difficult to form and easy to break? Habit stacking, otherwise known as habit chaining, shows you how to build better habits that stick, one step at a time.
WHAT IS HABIT STACKING?
Habit Stacking consists of grouping together small activities to create routine. You do this by linking a new habit to an existing habit that is a firmly established part of your day. Your existing habit then acts as a trigger for your next habit which improves your chances of success.
Tip:
Start in the morning. Many of us have existing habits associated with morning routine such as making the bed or cleaning your teeth.
Here’s how start habit stacking:
1. Start with your morning routine, pick one habit to add
2. Write the rest down and save them for later, we are only focusing on this one small habit
3. Find your cue, the existing habit you can link your new habit to
4. Practice integrating your new habit into your routine
5. Reap the rewards of your new habit
Once your new habit becomes effortless, you can start adding in the next one.
THE BENEFITS OF HABIT STACKING
-
Increases the success rate of building better habits
-
Improves self awareness by identifying the changes you would like to make
-
Helps you to prioritise which habits you need the most
-
Reinforces self belief by showing that over time you can achieve what you put your mind to
-
Then, there's all the benefits that come with the habits you build
5 BOOKS TO HELP YOU BUILD BETTER HABITS
Here are 5 of our favourite books by the very best in building habits through atomic habits, or habit stacking.
Atomic Habits
James Clear
Tiny Habits
BJ Fogg PHD
The Power of Habit
Charles Duhigg
Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before?
Dr Julie Smith
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
Stephen R Covey
