How to Build a New Habit That Actually Sticks

Are you tired of starting a new habit only to give up a few days later?

Unfortunately, this is a common experience for most people.

The secret to building new habits is to follow a process that focuses on small, incremental steps.

And this video can help you do that!

What you’re about to see is a simple 9-step process about building habits that you can
immediately implement.

Now, in this video, I will describe a variety of tools and research related to habit formation. So if
you want to learn more about these concepts, then I recommend checking out the description
box of this video.

And if you want to see more videos like this in the future, then be sure to like this video and
subscribe to our channel.

Alright, let’s talk about how to build habits that actually stick.

Step 1: Focus on One New Habit

A concept known as “ego depletion” will be one of your biggest obstacles to habit formation.

Ego depletion is:

“A person’s diminished capacity to regulate their thoughts, feelings, and actions.”

Ego depletion impacts our ability to form new habits because our supply of willpower is spread
out among all the areas of our lives.

Because of this, it’s important to work on only one habit at a time. That way, your store of
willpower can be channeled into completing that one habit, increasing your odds of success.

So the question is:

“What one new habit do you want to form?”

Identify it now and learn everything you can about how to do it right. Become an expert in this
activity and do a deep dive to self-educate yourself about this activity. Then you can move on to
the next step.
Step 2: Commit to a Minimum of 30 Days
Some people say it takes 21 days to build a habit, while others claim it takes up to 66 days. The
truth is the length of time varies from person to person and habit to habit.

You will find that some habits are easy to build while others require more effort.

My advice is to commit to a specific habit for the next 30 days (or a month to keep it
simple).

During this time, focus all your energy around completing this habit.

Step 3: Anchor Your New Habit to an Established Routine

A habit shouldn’t be based upon motivation, fads, or temporary desire. Instead, you should
associate this habit with behavior that you already do.

To make this happen, we recommend using a strategy that comes from B.J. Fogg’s “Tiny
Habits” concept:

What he recommends is to “anchor” the new habit to something you already do on a

daily basis.

Here are a few examples:

● “After I get to my car from work, I will change into my workout clothes and walk for 10
minutes.”
● “After brushing my teeth at night, I will write down everything that I ate for the day.”
● “After I drop off the kids at the babysitter, I will stop by the gym for my yoga class.”

You get the idea.

Simply find an established routine and then anchor the new habit to it.

Step 4: Take Baby Steps

The danger of relying on motivation alone is you don’t have a backup plan for those unexpected
challenges in life.

So, the secret to lifelong habit formation is to take baby steps that turn a new habit into
automatic behavior.

The idea here is to create a micro-commitment where you can stay consistent and never miss a
day. You will discover that with a low level of commitment, it will be easier to start this habit and
complete it each day.

Here are a few examples of micro-commitments you can make:

● Walking for just 5 minutes a day.

 ● Writing one paragraph of your book.
● Eating one serving of vegetables each day.
● Making one sales call to a prospective customer.
● Waking up each morning 10 minutes earlier.

Sure, these activities might seem overly simplistic. But that’s why this is a powerful concept!

When it’s easy to get started, you will build momentum and will often do more of the habit than
you originally intended.

Step 5: Don't Break the Chain

There’s a popular, habit-related story that supposedly involves the comedian Jerry Seinfeld.

When talking to a budding comedian, Seinfeld gave a simple piece of advice:

“Set aside time every day to create new material. The key here is to never miss a day,
even if you’re not in the mood.”

At the start of every year, Seinfeld hangs a one-year calendar on his wall and makes a big red X
on the calendar for every day he writes new comedy material.

He doesn’t have to write a lot of material every day. What’s important is to do something every
single day, without fail.

His focus is to never break the chain.

Marking X’s on a calendar encourages you to complete your desired task every single day. The
more you look at an unbroken string of red X’s, the more compulsion you’ll feel to get over any
initial resistance and force yourself to get started.

This step will help eliminate the excuses we all make for skipping a day.

Yes, there will be days when you’re tired, busy, overwhelmed, sick, hungover, or depressed. All
of these can be valid reasons to skip a habit. But if you focus on the baby steps that I just
mentioned and never break the chain, then it will be easy to create a sticky habit.

Step 6: Plan for Obstacles and Challenges

Every new habit will have obstacles. But, you can plan for these challenges and learn how to
effectively adapt to them.

To get started, here are a common obstacles that you might encounter:

1. Not enough time

2. Experiencing pain or fatigue
3. Bad weather conditions
4. Not enough room or space for the habit
5. The cost of the equipment related to the habit
6. Self-consciousness
A simple way to respond to obstacles is to prepare for them ahead of time. And you can do this
by using something called the “If-Then Planning” concept.

Whenever you encounter a challenge, use this experience to create an “If-Then”

statement for how you’ll respond the next time it happens.

Here are a few examples:

● “If I check the weather and it’s raining, then I will work out at the gym instead.”
● “If I don’t have time for an important goal, then I will wake up 30 minutes early every day
and work on it before anything else.”
● “If I have a really bad day at work and don’t feel like working out, I will still walk briskly for
at least 15 minutes.”

Step 7: Create Accountability for Your Habit

Track your efforts and make public declarations about your new habit. According to the lessons
learned from the Hawthorne effect, you’re more likely to follow through with a commitment when
you’re being observed by others. So to stick with this new routine, let others know about your
efforts and goals.

Here are a few days to do this:

● Post updates on social media accounts

● Use apps like Chains and Coach.me to track your progress
● Work with an accountability partner
● Join a community that related to your new habit
● Post regular updates to an online forum related to the habit.

Never underestimate the power of social approval. You will stay committed when you know that
you will be held accountable for following through on a new habit.

Now, before we move on, I recommend checking out our video that profiles 15 habit tracking
apps. I’ve linked to it at the top of this video and in the description box of this video.

Step 8: Reward Important Milestones

A new habit doesn’t have to be boring. Instead, you can build a reward system into the process,
so you can celebrate those important milestones.

The reward you pick is up to you. You could check out a new movie, enjoy a night out with your
significant other, or treat yourself to an item you’ve always wanted. To learn more, we’ll link to
an article with 155 ways to reward yourself.

It’s easy to underestimate the value of having fun while building habits. Often, looking forward to
a specific reward will help you overcome those challenging obstacles.

Step 9: Build a New Identity

The final step is to turn this habit into a core part of your identity. Only then will you stick to it
without the constant need for reinforcement.

James Clear often talks about something he calls Identity-Based Habits. The idea here is you
can build a lasting habit by making it a reflection of who you are on the inside.

Simply put:

You need to believe the habit is part of what makes YOU a unique person.

Clear recommends making the habit part of your identity and then use each “small win” as a
way to demonstrate that it’s who you are on the inside.

Really, it starts with a shift of mindset.

With a new habit, reinforce this behavior by saying things like:

“I’m the type of person who loves to go running.”

Then, follow through by doing it on a daily basis.

Eventually, your internal identity will match this new habit.

So there you have it -- the 9 step process to building a new habit.

Now it’s your turn...

To get started, I urge you to pick one habit right now, then make a commitment to focus on it
for the next 30 days using the process that I just outlined.

If you need a little help, then make a public declaration by commenting on this video with the
specific habit that you would like to build.

Finally, if you would like to see more actionable strategies to help you build a better life, then
please like this video and hit the “subscribe button.”

Thanks for watching and I’ll talk to you next time.

Show Notes
What is the secret to building a good habit that will stick for the rest of your lifetime?
The truth is many people start a new habit and then give up a few days later. What they don’t
realize is that successful habit formation depends on a repeatable process that emphasizes tiny,
incremental changes.

In this video, you will discover a simple 9-step process about building habits that you can
immediately implement. We briefly talk about the research to building sticky habits and
reference a variety of notable authors on the subject: James Clear (Atomic Habits), BJ Fogg
(Tiny Habits), and even Jerry Seinfeld (with this “Don’t Break the Chain” rule.)

⭐One positive way to improve your life is to learn something new daily. Like this FREE,
informative newsletter 👉 https://www.developgoodhabits.com/yt-newsletter

NEXT VIDEOS TO WATCH:

○ 15 Habit Tracking Apps: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hJmmMn1JyU

○ 11 Keystone Habit Examples: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Iia5MFie_w

○ 11 Growth Mindset Strategies: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7u6UwtmGyE

RESOURCES MENTIONED:

○ Tiny‌‌Habits‌(Website) http://tinyhabits.com/

○ Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything by BJ Fogg (Book):
https://amzn.to/3jrJDcR

○ Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James
Clear - https://amzn.to/3lnocLz

○ Identity-Based‌‌Habits‌: http://jamesclear.com/identity-based-habits

○ Seinfeld‌’s ‌piece‌‌of‌‌advice‌: https://www.developgoodhabits.com/chain/

○ Hawthorne‌‌effect‌: https://www.developgoodhabits.com/hawthorne-effect/

○ 155 Ways to Reward Yourself: https://www.developgoodhabits.com/reward-yourself/

○ Chains‌: https://chains.cc/

○ Coach.me‌‌: http://coach.me/

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