10 ways to effectively change your habits

As a Life Coach I have been trained in Neuro-Linguistic Programming, Hypnosis, Coaching, EFT, and the EMDR. All these tools provide ways of helping you overcome difficulties in your life and open up to the potential of what it means to be human. Life Coaching is really about human development.

What’s more we can take a moment to reflect on the many ways we attempt to change, and what happens when things don’t seem to transform and remain stuck in a certain form.

It is quiet obvious to most of us that a lot of our life is patterned by habits, habits that we learned a long time ago. This patterning or structuring of our experience can be considered part of the evolution, and part of our learning process. But at the same time ever so often, it creates issues. We feel stuck, we feel like it is impossible to overcome certain habits.

It is possible to hire a Life Coach to help you with this issue. One of the Life Coaching companies in Vancouver, is Light Point Coaching. Their mission is simple: Dedicated to Change, Transformation and Authentic Living. Their founder, Nicole Koch, believes that everyone has everything they need within themselves and it is possible to work with people to change and transform their lives. Nicole is a Certified Professional Coach, and Teacher.

What would it take for you to change a habit?

This article is designed to provide you with 10 ways to effectively change a habit.

A habit is most likely a behaviour, or some kind of conditioning that is now running the show. Rather then having awareness about new choices in the moment, a part of you takes over, and makes sure the status quo remains.

There are simple habits, like procrastination, or being confused about taking action, or turning red every time you have to give a speech, or more deeply ingrained once, like overeating, or addictions.

So how can we change? What will make the difference of the difference?

10 Strategies to Change a Habit

1. It takes 30 days to change a habit.

Life long habits will not change overnight. The rule of thumb in Coaching is usually that it takes about 30 days of conscious effort to change a behavioural habit. That is how long it will take until it becomes something you don’t have to think about anymore.

2. Set an intention for change

As simple as this may sound, a lot of people forget to focus on the result they want and keep focusing on the limiting habit instead. It is much more important to have a clear outcome in mind around what you would like to experience instead of the habit.

3. Visualize the new habit

Rehearsing the wanted change in your mind’s eye will help put the new habit into place. There is nothing like a good movie of yourself having overcome whatever it is you want to change. Also your brain tends to build new connections and it is easier to change the pattern. Focus on the future and on the solution.

4. Find the positive intention of the limiting behaviour

Why would you do that? Because every behaviour, may it be as destructive on some level, has a positive intention on another level. It serves some purpose or intention, otherwise we wouldn’t do it. So there is a pay off for your limiting behaviour, or unconscious habit. Find out what it is and you are one step closer to changing it.

Ask yourself: What is the positive intention of me e.g. nail biting, overeating, etc.

What does it get me?

5. Connect to the values behind the change

This is often forgotten, and underestimated. What if you could change easily by re-connecting to your values? Why is it important to change this habit? What values would it support? Values help us clarify what is truly important in life and can help build a bridge to the life we want. Values are kindness, love, clarity, integrity, joy, honesty etc.

6. Who would you be without this habit?

Often when people try to change, they do it on the behavioural level, and that usually isn’t enough to shift a habit. What works is looking at who you are, at your identity. Is your identity allowing the habit change to take place? In other words, who would you be if you would overcome this limiting habit?

7. Repetition. Repetition. Repetition.

As you know all new behaviour need repetition so they can become ingrained into who you are. Habits are learned, and all change is learning, so learning needs rehearsal. The more you visualize and do the new behaviour the more will you let go of the old limiting patterns.

8. Who would benefit from your change?

This is a great way to make changes. By looking at who else will benefit from your change, you are increasing the chances of staying committed. Look at the bigger picture. Don’t just consider yourself. Consider the entire world around you, people you love, and people that are close to you.

9. Set a time and date.

This is often avoided and often mentioned around making a shift happen. It is useful at times, to set a date for the moment in time when you know for sure you will have overcome this limiting habit, and you will not fall back into the old habit. The way to do it is to set a time when you know for sure, that you will always stay with the new behaviour.

10. Notice the four stages of learning.

Be patient with yourself and notice the stages of learning. Each time we make an adjustment to our behaviours, we will go through the stages of learning.

Changing a habit through understanding how we learn

1. unconscious incompetence – we don’t know that we don’t know

2. conscious incompetence – we know that we don’t know

3. conscious competence – we know that we know

4. unconscious competence – we don’t think about it anymore: habit

Find out more about Life Coaching:

Light Point Coaching, Vancouver, B.C. info@lightpointcoaching.com