Many people want to become healthier, fitter, more satisfied and happier. In fact, you can achieve such goals – by establishing mini habits. Two experts explain how this works and which mistakes should be avoided.
Improving your life with small changes and becoming a different person as a result – that is the promise of numerous Instagram posts (“Do these 3 things to be happy/calm/fit”) and almost as many books. But is that really possible? Creating a better feeling through mini and micro habits?
Yes, say experts. But only if you know what can be changed – and what perhaps can’t. And if you avoid a few basic mistakes.
Updating your habits can boost your self-confidence, make you more resilient and even be fun, say health scientists Susanne Kobel and Olivia Wartha. They wrote the book “111 Healthy Habits” and list healthy habits in it. Here are some of their tips:
Mistake 1: Changing too many habits at once
Trying to incorporate tons of new habits into your daily routine isn’t going to work. So don’t start by getting up at 5:00 a.m. and at the same time making gratitude lists and writing in your diary in the evening. You can do it better like this:
How do I know which habits are right for me?
By asking yourself questions, you can find out which habits are worthwhile. “You should really go with your own instincts: What interests me, what is important to me? What do I need?” says Susanne Kobel. And then look: What is involved? And where do I start? It is important to start with small steps, and the new habit should be small, manageable and easy to implement.
What do I need to get into the habit of something new?
“The basis is that you are willing to consciously invest time in yourself,” says Olivia Wartha. That can be 30 seconds or two hours a day. The main thing is that you do it regularly. The reward system in the brain helps us develop a sense of joy in achieving something. “And you want to have that feeling the next day too.”
How long does it take to internalize a new habit?
How long it takes to establish a new habit varies greatly. A study from 2009 (“How are habits formed: Modelling habit formation in the real world”), for example, reported periods of between 18 and 254 days, reports Wartha. This suggests that the process is always an individual one, depending on the type of habit and personality.
Are there habits that particularly promote mental well-being?
This also varies from person to person. But: Almost every habit has the potential, and it can be very simple things – like smiling in the mirror every morning. “That makes a big difference to me, it doesn’t take 20 seconds and I’ve already done something for myself,” says Susanne Kobel. Even such mini-actions can strengthen self-awareness.
How can you effectively integrate habits into your everyday life?
Effectiveness is achieved by linking it to daily routines. “Making coffee, for example. Then I have a few seconds until the coffee has brewed and I can simply link a new habit to it and do a short meditation exercise, for example.” The US author SJ Scott calls this “habit stacking”, i.e. adding one habit on top of another. This makes it easier for the brain to form new connections and learn.
An effective habit stacking routine consists of three elements and forms a so-called cue-reward loop:
- Cue: The trigger that starts the routine. This can be an existing habit, a specific place or a specific time.
- Routine: The new habit you want to establish.
- Reward: The positive reinforcement that helps maintain the habit.
Mistake 2: Just wanting to get rid of bad habits
This way, bad habits can also be replaced with good ones: “Getting rid of bad or old habits is extremely difficult, so we always recommend replacing them,” says Kobel. “If I always take a bowl of chips with me in front of the TV and I want to break the habit, I need a substitute activity,” she explains. “Either I don’t sit in front of the TV at all and go for a walk instead, or I take a bowl of grapes with me. Then I have something to do again and it’s not difficult at all.”
What if it doesn’t work and I don’t stick with it?
“Forgiving yourself is the most important thing. It’s not a bad thing if you forget a habit once in a while,” says Kobel. Tip: It’s better to start with one or two small habits. This will help you avoid being overwhelmed and maintain your motivation.
Mistake 3: the wrong moment
Sometimes it helps to choose a better time. “If I want to start taking cold showers on New Year’s Day, it won’t work. You’ll just freeze. But in the summer I might be totally open to it because it just works,” explains Olivia Wartha. “Just because it didn’t work out one time, it might work out really well another time and just become a habit.”
It also makes sense to see who or what would support you. “Would it help if I got a friend to do it with me? Or would it help if I just decided: I’m going to do this for a month and then reward myself with something?” says Wartha. “Some people are motivated if they make a little tick in their calendar every day and are proud of having achieved it.”
And if I don’t have time for it?
“If you simply observe where your time goes for a day, you’ll notice that you obviously had time for 20 or 30 minutes on social media. But you could have used that time for something else,” says Susanne Kobel. For a short yoga session, for example.
And again the keyword “habit stacking” comes into play: If you regularly stand on your tiptoes when brushing your teeth or talking on the phone, you can significantly reduce the strain and subsequent damage to your hips and spine, according to the health scientists.
Whether and how you can establish small habits also depends on how big and complex they are for the individual, say the experts. So: How difficult is it for me personally? For some it may be very easy to integrate a certain habit, but for others it is not at all because they have had a different lifestyle or different priorities in life up to now.
Mistake 4: completely overhauling something
And there is another mistake to avoid: completely changing something: “If I say I’m going to start with a completely new morning routine that is completely different to what I did before, that can only go wrong,” says Olivia Wartha.
Mistake 5: the wrong method
Another mistake: choosing something that doesn’t suit you. Wartha: “If I always do a certain habit with a lot of aversion and don’t actually want to do it, then it probably won’t do me any good in the long term.”
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