Habits. How easy they were when we were kids.
Our parents directed us to do so many things.
Like get up early, brush our teeth, eat healthy breakfast, study well, and play in school.
For 15-20 years, that was our autopilot, our lifestyle.
Now why are we finding it difficult to build healthy, long-term habits.
For ourselves, our personal development?
As young, thriving, and aspirational adults,
- It’s difficult to get up
- Hit the gym
- Work on our passion and purpose
- And, to eat healthier food, let alone cook it
It’s difficult, until the “why” behind a habit is understood.
Think about it.
Why do we do skincare? To protect our skin and have a smooth skin.
Why do we save some money from what we earned? To be financially backed up.
Habit Hack #1 Understand the “WHY”
A person who wants to achieve anything, won’t see his/her actions as habits, it will just be a medium to achieve a particular outcome.
Remember, your habit is not a goal, it’s a medium to your gold.
Hitting gym is not the goal, getting a healthy, well-shaped body is the goal.
To build healthy, long-term habits, create a list of things you want to achieve. For example,
| Achievement Criteria | Actions/Habits that will take me to achievement |
| Wake up early | Set an alarm, sleep early, maintain a 7-hour sleep cycle, cut distractions- Why? To complete all the self maintenance tasks in the morning and keep more time for career and other goals |
| Eat healthy, protein rich food | Daily make a list of foods in the morning for the diet plan, start cooking them or appoint someone, eat junk food 2-3 times a week, follow a 90:10 ratio where 90% is healthy food and 10% is the food you enjoy, stock all the necessary items you require- Why? To build health, strength and fit |
Understanding the “WHY” will automatically streamline your habits.
Habit Hack #2 The Love for Self
How much do you love yourself? Do you love yourself enough to adopt a healthier lifestyle with healthy habits? Are you truly aligned with your goals? What is stopping you from reaching to point B from point A?
Habits are nothing but maintenance of your current self as well as creating your future self.
Let me tell my story.
I was an obese person and I rarely thought about my body or how I look.
I was so detached from my body, I didn’t literally feel it. I was so numb.
My body felt invisible.
Fast forward to 2025, I have lost 20 kilos and I’m currently having a healthy, normal body.
The point here is not about achieving this. The point is, what led me here?
Habits.
Habits like,
- Monitoring what I ate
- When I went to sleep
- Some detours and distractions (which is normal)
- Losing track in the middle but gaining it back
- Spacing my weight loss where I enjoyed my favorite foods as well as thrived on green, fiber rich foods
- Daily or at least did a workout for 4 days per week
- Kept running on a treadmill because I enjoyed running instead of exercising
You know, this was not easy. The company which I had in my life made me see a different version of myself. It challenged me to do better.
On the other hand, once you build healthy habits, the goal is automatically achieved. It’s the habit that made it easy.
So have a look at the mirror. See how much you love yourself that you are ready to face all challenges.
Habit Hack #3 Change the setup
Change the place, the people, the desk, the cup or whatever needs to change.
Get yourself in a place that is pushing you for this growth. The people. Are they successful? Are they action takers? Are they risk takers? What can you learn from them? Are they willing to grow?
The people around you help you accelerate or drained.
What company are you choosing?
Secondly, where you are seated? Are you liking what you are seeing? Do they enable you to sit down and work for your goals?
For example, I didn’t have a study table in my house. So not having one actually never motivated me or called me to get up and study. I chose to study on a bed or sofa, which often times made me even more lazier. So understand this angle as well.
Change what needs to be changed, what needs to be added, what needs to be subtracted.
Hack #4 Break you big goal into small bites
I want to become a rapper.
I want to become a chef.
I’m a life coach.
All these aspirations are great. But actions?
We have to define it.
- What knowledge do I need to learn?
- Which courses I need to enroll myself in?
- What tools are needed?
- Which educational background is needed?
Take all this and break it into ultra small habits.
Let’s take an example.
As I said, I didn’t like exercising. So what I did, I started my exercise regime with a 15 minutes workout.
After each week, I increased the time. From 15, I took it to 30, then 45, then 60.
I also chose easier workout and different types of workouts. I did Zumba, Yoga, Pilates, Bhangra, and HIIT.
See? It’s not that difficult. It made things easier for me. It made weight loss easier for me.
Hack #5 Go big, or go home
This is going to be the craziest piece.
Repeat after me.
Of all the days that made you cry, look smaller or worthless in your and others eyes, take a decision. That I will make my life the best. That I will not let those tearful days come back. It is a do or die situation. From here, I will build those habits and I will achieve my dreamy goals. Nothing can stop me now. Nothing can hold me back. It’s me and my life. I will craft it from here, I will not give power to other people about how my life will be. Whoever does whatever, it’s my life and I have full belief in myself. I am everything. I will love myself enough to work for my wishes and desires. I am stronger in my existence.
I hope these words have got you back to your true self.
It’s okay. It’s life. From here, we have to start and never look back.
For more inspiration, read my previous blog on How to Build Confidence that Lasts.
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