CREATING HABITS THAT STICK

WHY HABITS?

By: Jack Guyler

Habits are essential for living! James Clear says in his bestselling book, Atomic Habits, that “the quality of our lives often depends on the quality of our habits.”[1] Would you agree? I certainly would. Habits are things we have done so many times or practiced doing so many times, that we can do them automatically or as we might say, “I can do it in my sleep.” Habits are necessary, because they allows us to do things without over taxing our brain. Imagine if every time you brushed your teeth or went to tie your shoes, you had to think about it or approach them as if you never had done them before.

This is the good side of habits. The bad side is we often “slide” into habits that don’t produce good results in our lives - such as addictions or blind spots in our behavior that can create pain for others or turn us into a toxic person. Persons who have good and healthy habits developed in their lives usually produce more good results, have better relationships and contribute more to the good of our world. The opposite is true for those with poor habits. This is why Clear’s words ring so true – the quality of our lives are often dependent on the quality of our habits.

But here is the thing we often don’t realize, we really don’t just slide into bad habits. We create them through repetition. But the other side of this is, we can create new habits – better and healthier ones. Stephen Covey talked about this in his ground breaking book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, when he talked about how we create habits twice – once in our mind, and then through our actions. The good news here is, we as human beings are capable of creating new and more positive habits that can benefit both ourselves and others. Both the bible from ancient times and neuroscience today confirm that our brains can change.

The bible says that transformation comes through the renewing of our minds (Romans 12:2). The bible presents this as a reality for us. Neuroscience confirms this as it states that our brains are capable of creating new grooves or ruts that are called neural pathways. “Just because we have created rigid neural pathways and behaviors over many years does not leave us trapped to repeat those habits forever. We can create new pathways by participating in new activities and developing new behaviors.” [2]

Why are habits important? Because habits shape our lives each day, and our days make up the sum of our life. Those who create good and healthy habits will create a better life for themselves and others. Those who choose to follow Jesus and live for Him can really only do so when they develop the good habits that lead to a holy and righteous life. Those who allow poor habits to develop in their lives will not produce a life that is either good for themselves or other and will struggle to follow Jesus. But here is the good news: you can change your habits! You can turn from bad and destructive habits and begin to create good and productive habits. This is the life God wants for you and neuroscience confirms, if you had any doubts, that this is possible for you.

TAKE AWAY: Your brain can change (neural plasticity), therefore you can create new habits

Sources:

1 – Atomic Habits, James Clear

2 – “The Brain & Our Habits: Natural Pathways to Wellness”, Susan Rieck