Bad habits, we all have them. For example, some people smoke or snooze their alarm every day. Breaking these types of habits is a good goal to have. But how long does it actually take to break a bad habit? We’ll find out.
Breaking a bad habit
Breaking bad habits, well, it’s easier said than done. It takes time and perseverance. But how much time exactly does it take? That can still vary. Scientific research has shown that it can last between 18 and 254 days. That’s no small feat. On average, it takes 66 days to really break a bad habit. How long it takes depends on the habit you want to break. Some habits are more difficult to break than others, such as smoking. How long it takes you also depends on how good you are at teaching yourself new habits. Because the best way to break a bad habit is to teach yourself a good habit to replace it.
This is how you unlearn a bad habit
Let’s start with what not to do if you want to break a bad habit. First of all, don’t try to quit overnight. Unfortunately, quick fixes don’t work with things like this. Give yourself time, this works much more effectively. Our tip: strive for progress, not perfection.
To break a bad habit, there are three steps you can take. The first step is to imagine yourself in a version of your life where you no longer have the bad habit. What does your life look like then? How does that make you feel? Once you have a clear goal in mind, you can move on to step two. This is determining what you need to do to achieve your goal. What do you need to ensure that you can leave the habit behind? This includes clear planning, motivation, structure or support from others. Now that you know what you need, you can actually get started with it. When you actually start taking steps to break your habit, step three is very important. This is tracking your progress. If you don’t do this, it is very easy to bring yourself down. You look at everything as a whole and your progress doesn’t always look impressive. But when you focus on small victories, your struggle becomes a lot more valuable. And remember: the goal is progress, not perfection.
