CONTENTS
Humans are creatures of habits, but, at least we have the power to change those habits if we know the right way to approach them! And the study of habits has become much more concrete in the era of big data, so whether you already have a good habit you want to keep, or perhaps you have a bad habit you want to change – there’s no time like the present!
A few illustrations of the directions that habits can go could be from the realms of treatment programs, the understanding of habits themselves, knowing how to use group pressure, applying new technology to the effort, and working to maintain balance and focus.
Treatment Programs
A specific target for the idea of understanding habits would be learning about success rates at treatment programs. Since many aspects of the addiction puzzle are related to habits formed along the pathway to the addiction itself, it makes sense that be reverse engineering the habits (both physical and mental) that got a person to that place, there would be a concrete (if still difficult) way to get them back.
Understanding What Habits Are
And when was the last time you looked up what habits really are? What makes them start and continue? Is it a different part of the brain that processes habitual information? How much does personality add to the mix? The recent research on these questions is absolutely fascinating, and the more you look into it, the more you’ll understand not only how the rest of the world operates, but also more about your own tendencies and how to alter and manipulate them in positive directions.
Using Group Pressure
When you use positive social group pressure, habits are much easier to change or replace as well. It takes a tremendous amount of energy in the form of willpower to start or stop doing something habitual, but if you can share that energy requirement among a group, everyone benefits.
Applying Technology To the Puzzle
New technology can also help with habits. You can install apps that work on time or location reminders, and that way you can create ways of supporting your desires by having alarms go off at certain times or in certain places to help keep you focused. Whatever it takes to nudge you in the right direction – those are the types of help you can give yourself.
Maintaining Balance and Focus
If you lose balance or focus, even the best intentions aren’t going to help you create and keep healthy habits. But if you put those two ideas at the top of your priority list, and then move downward toward the actual actions that have to take place, you’re success rate chances will go way up.
