The new year brings forth much contemplation—which usually results in resolution and goal setting. That’s great! But how many have we set that have fallen by the wayside?
You don’t have to change yourself to achieve your goals. (You’re just right the way you are, thank you.) You just need to upgrade your habits with a habit hack.
I’m not really into hacks, especially when it comes to real-deal resolutions and goals. I like to do the work. I’m a trudger. I like to see what the real muck is. Besides, if I ever find myself or someone else stuck, I’ll know what to do, or how to help (instead of being full of, er, muck).
Using systems (oh, am I that guy) and working through challenges to achieve your goals creates better, more long-lasting results. But there is a hack, or shall I say, a technique, for attaining your goals.
Start By Being Honest With Yourself
Improving habits. (Snaps fingers, all done. OK, not quite.)
“As long as you can look in the mirror and honestly tell yourself you chipped away at your goals by following a better habit vs. a bad one, I’m calling that a win.”
Mike Michalowicz
Improving your habits sounds simple, and it can be. However, to truly improve habits for a lifetime, be it your health, relationships, finances, or business, you are going to have to get honest with yourself. Like, real honest.
I am that real—and honest—guy. But once upon a time, I thought that if I had the intentions, desires, and wants, I would get the results I wanted—if I just wanted it badly enough. As if to say, “Hey, Mike, you think about it, you want it this passionately, you have to get it!” Shockingly, that strategy didn’t seem to work (reading the sarcasm here, I hope).
Unless you work for something, you won’t get it. And you won’t get it unless you learn how to improve your habits.
Take working out, for an example. Years back, I wanted to get healthier. So, I set a goal—to have a stronger, leaner body in four months. I was going to eat clean. So clean. No drinking either! I was going to work out five times a week. I was going to lift two times a week and do some serious cardio the other three days. I’d nail that goal. Then I’d be strutting! The poster man for lean, mean … Yeah!
But guess what kind of results you get when you work out just two times a week instead of five and eat and drink whatever you want?
Exactly. Not much changed for me. But, but, I wanted to!
Channel Useful Habits Toward Your Goal
What went wrong? I decided I needed to check myself—and my habits. Aside from not much, what was I doing that needed improvement? What were my established behaviors and habits before and during my workouts when I attempted them? Were the habits useful? Could I channel more of the useful habits toward my goal?
We’re all good people. And I’m a good guy. My habits, however, needed improving. I found that my habits were holding me back. My habits were making me miss my workouts. Does this sound familiar? I’d have coffee, check my phone, get lost in the black hole of the internet, and, “Oh look, time to get ready for work.” No workout.
How could I intercept my pattern to improve my habits? So I made this one change. It has to do with a toilet, so work with me. The first thing I do when I wake up in the morning is use the bathroom. So, I put my sneakers on top of the toilet seat the night before. This way, I had to move them to use the toilet. OK, now I have my sneakers, which I require for my workout.
That one, small, simple step was a game-changer! Yes, friends. Sneakers on the toilet would start the momentum for the day. I wasn’t going to put my sneakers back on top of the seat now, was I? Ta-da! New habit. I’m happy to say that after a couple of years, my new habits have brought me to a level of health I can be proud of. I even broke my own running record a few weeks ago.
It should go without saying that forming better, more aware, and organized habits is a huge part of running a successful business as well. Small changes work here too. (Yes. It’s universal.)
Create Small Habits To Start
Now, creating small habits to build toward your goals and resolutions isn’t a new system, and certainly, I won’t take 100% credit. There are others out there who inspire me daily. James Clear is one of them. He wrote Atomic Habits. In this (friggin’ awesome) book, he talks about intercepting behavioral patterns. He says you must exchange your “bad” behaviors and replace them with “good” ones. New, better, and permanent habits will slowly begin to form. By making small changes. Bring it.
This is practical in theory, no doubt. Implementing habits and sticking with them until they are characteristics of who you are—that’s going to be a bit more challenging.
10 Tips To Create Better Habits
There are two main ways I have accomplished creating better habits so I can achieve my personal and business goals: Break bad habits. Create good habits.
OK, the end. Have a great year.
I cannot tell you exactly what you should do, because it’s not all one size fits all. We are all, all of us, unique and have our own set of dynamic needs. So maybe leaving sneakers on the toilet won’t work for you (though, come one, it’s kinda foolproof).
That said, here are 10 tips to create better habits from me to you. Maybe some will land with you.
- Be realistic. I have lofty goals. But to get to them, sometimes I have to create a group of smaller goals—no shame in my game.
- Be mindful. To break lousy habits and create glorious ones, we need to be mindful. Sure, we all hear about it, but do we put it into practice? Mindfulness needs to be fostered. You can do this by getting your clarity on. You can be as motivated as you want, but if you are not 100% clear on what your “want” looks like, then what are you really going after? Find ways to increase your awareness and be more mindful overall. For you that may be working out, meditation, prayer, yoga, writing. Whatever it may be, practice it at the start of your day. Because without being mindful, it will be harder to be intentional, which is another important step in creating better habits.
- Be intentional. Getting swept away in your day is natural, but not productive. If you set your intentions early on in the day (you can write them on a Post-it at your desk for all I care, I’m not above it), whenever the static starts to bear down, you can hit that imaginary reset button and return to the intention you set for yourself.
- Avoid bad habits. You’re an adult, you know what they are. Avoid the actions that cause the bad habits. Stop the behaviors that are counterproductive. And, stop avoiding the unavoidable. Not checking bank statements will not increase your balances.
- Create rituals to foster good habits. Sneakers on the toilet. I won’t say it again. Workout clothes folded at the end of the bed or a gym bag packed. Automated daily accounting/banking reminders. These are in-your-face reminders of the bigger picture, of the goal you set for yourself. Which leads me to …
- Stay accountable. If you follow the Profit First system you know how successful your business will be when you stay accountable. To improve your habits and achieve your goals you must, must stay accountable. Do you check your bank account balance daily? Do you make it a habit to log in and monitor your account balances? That one small step can help you kick off the traction you need to create, establish, or maintain just one business goal. And it’s a great way to start the domino effect toward a more profitable business.
- Go slow. Little quality is created within minutes. Small steps (check out my Small Steps blog here) will garner bigger results. It takes some patience, but your results will be real and lasting.
- Follow systems to attain goals. Following systems will help you maintain good habits because they are organized and clear-cut. All you have to do is follow and apply!
- Track your progress. Me? I like graphs. Those spikes, either way, are very motivating!
- Make decisions that feel good, not guilty. If you implemented Profit First, you know how empowering it was when you opened the five accounts. Then you had those accounts listed for you to see every day. Then you completed the assessment. Maybe it was daunting at first, but it was an empowering and fiscally responsible decision. The good decisions, the responsible decisions, are what ultimately help you change your habits and permanently obtain your business goals.
Even a little bit of progress is progress! As long as you can look in the mirror and honestly tell yourself you chipped away at your goals by following a better habit vs. a bad one, I’m calling that a win. All those moments will get you to the finish line. I know it.
Here’s to your good habits! And here’s to your profit!
-Mike
