How to stay consistent with any habit?
Want to keep up with a new exercise routine? “I’ve been wanting to read more often, but I never make it past the first five pages of a book.” You know that feeling when you start something and then drop it? It’s frustrating and all-too-common!
After all, not everything will stick the first time you try it. In fact, most habits take at least two months before they become second nature. But how do you stay consistent with something long enough for it to become a habit?
In this post, we’re going over why consistency is so important. Then we'll dive into our top tips on how to stay consistent with any habit.
Let's get started!
Understand your why and set goals
Understand your why. To be consistent with any habit, you need to know the benefits of doing it and how it's going to make you feel. Write down your goals and reflect on them by asking yourself these questions:
Am I setting realistic goals?
Will my goal be measurable?
Is this goal time-bound? Why or why not?
Change your mindset
Change your mindset.
This is the most important step to making any habit stick.
Changing your mindset is not a quick fix, but it will make all other steps easier. Think about how you are thinking about the habit and then try to shift that thought pattern by asking yourself if there's another way of looking at it or framing it differently.
You can also use mental tricks like visualizing what success feels like or creating affirmations (e.g., "I am a winner!")
Stick to a schedule
The first thing to do is make a schedule.
You can use a calendar, or even something as simple as pen and paper will work. The most important thing is that you stick to the schedule! If you know that your best time is 10 AM on Sunday, then plan your habits for that time and make sure they don't conflict with other things in your life.
This way, if something comes up and you have to miss a day or two of exercising, it won't throw off the entire week for you. (However, if this happens for an extended period of time—more than a week—then re-evaluate whether or not this habit really matters anymore.)
Use reminders
Reminders can be a great way to stay on track.
If you've set up reminders to check off your weekly habits, you'll know that it's easier to stay consistent with any habit if you're reminded of it regularly. If a reminder isn't set, though, then you might forget about that habit altogether.
Luckily there are other ways that reminders can be used for consistency purposes besides just checking off habits - like finding the right time or place for your new routine and keeping yourself accountable in front of others.
Set goals and make them happen
Set goals and make them happen.
Make sure your goals are realistic.
Make sure your goals are measurable.
Make sure your goals are specific, not vague or general statements like “I want to lose weight” instead of “I will lose 5 pounds in 2 weeks” or “I will be on a weight loss diet until the end of June and then I'll maintain my new weight by eating healthy and exercising regularly afterwards.
Make sure you have a time limit for completing each step, like this: In one month, I will learn how to ride a bike without training wheels; In three months, I will get certified as an auto mechanic; In six months , I will complete 10 triathlons in 10 different cities across six continents ! The possibilities are endless! This way, you'll know exactly when each phase is supposed out so there won't be any confusion later down the road-and it makes breaking up large daunting tasks into smaller manageable chunks much more manageable too!
All of these things may seem complex, but the most important thing is to just take action. It doesn’t matter how big or small, as long as you do something towards your goal every day.
If you want to be consistent with your habits and make them stick, I encourage you to try all of these methods and see what works best for you!
You might not see immediate results but they will happen over time if you keep going at it.
Also, if you use CBD oil consistently, it can help you improve your focus, feel present, full of energy, and motivated. All of these things can help you with sticking with any habit.