If it were enough to gather your willpower and stick to a new behavior model for just 21 days for the habits to become permanent, everyone would be happy. In about six months, the world would be close to perfection. But that did not happen. 21 days is just one of the myths that we humans are so willing to believe.
Each of us has a whole list of qualities that I would like to have, form a habit. For example, waking up early proper nutrition and many others. I think you have no less. Someone may want to quit smoking or start some useful business. But why are these habits still in the planning stage? It's not a matter of time!
Time to change your life
The common belief that it takes 21 days to form a habit comes from experience. plastic surgeon Maxwell Maltz. In 1950, he noted that patients needed at least 21 days to get used to a new appearance or amputation.
Maltz suggested that changes in the psyche occur in at least 21 days. During this time, a mental image is formed that overshadows the person's past habits. In 1960, his book “Psychocybernetics” was published, and this idea penetrated the masses. The world started talking about “21 days” as a kind of constant “deadline”, beyond which the result awaits us. But after a while, instead of success, people received disappointment. Few managed to change themselves.
Decades later, psychologists from University College London decided to test how long it actually takes to form a new habit. They studied the behavior of 96 participants over 12 weeks. Some had to drink a bottle of water during lunch, others exercised 15 minutes before dinner.
On average, according to their data, a habit is formed in two months (66 days). However, for each person, depending on the type of habit, the amount of time required varies widely. Psychologists say that this can take from 18 to 254 days. It's not three weeks, it's eight months!
Look to the root
Not everyone can change themselves in eight months. Or a year, or a year and a half. It's probably not even a matter of time. Then what? It seems to me that time is not one of the factors necessary to establish a habit. There is the strength of desire, the degree of thinking and the seriousness of the necessary changes.
When we talk about a habit, we mean something useful that will help us become better than our former selves. Nobody wants to intentionally start bad habits. Bad habits are acquired automatically, and it's not difficult. All you have to do is gape a little, and that’s it!
Useful habits are always an overcoming that requires psychological and physical effort. Going up is always harder than going down. To make these changes permanent, psychological strength is required. And the more serious the changes ahead, the more strength is needed.
But sometimes it happens naturally. There are people who, after serious life ups and downs, immediately get rid of their bad habits. Moreover, they themselves note that this happened easily.
Someone, after reading a certain book in a day, becomes a vegetarian, someone quits smoking. And this happens naturally. This happens when a person’s level of thinking increases sharply. For him, a new habit immediately becomes part of his worldview. And he doesn't have to count down 21 or 66 days.
You may want some changes, but not be ready for them. This, for example, applies to those who start smoking again after some time. His volitional efforts have been exhausted, and he himself has not yet changed radically to make the new habit natural. Then he rolls back again.
I really want to believe in 21 days, but, unfortunately, everything is much more complicated. Going up is always harder than going down.
Maxwell Maltz was a famous plastic surgeon in the fifties of the twentieth century. And one day he discovered a strange pattern.
When Maltz performed surgery, such as a nose job, he noticed that it took patients about 21 days to get used to their new face. And when a patient's arm or leg was amputated, most patients also experienced phantom pain for about 21 days until they adjusted to the new situation.
This experience made Malts remember personal experience getting used to changes and new behavior. He realized that it also took him about 21 days to form a new habit.
Maltz wrote about this experience and said:
“These and many other frequently observed phenomena tend to show that it takes at least 21 days for the old mental image to dissipate and be replaced by a new one».
And that's when the problem appeared.
In the decades that followed, Maltz's work influenced nearly every "self-help" professional from Zig Ziglar to Brian Tracy to Tony Robbins. And like the game of “broken telephone,” the more people retold Maltz’s story, the more people began to forget what he said: “minimum 21 days.” The quote was shortened and it turned out like this:
“It takes 21 days to form a habit.”
This is how the well-known myth spread in society that it takes 21 days (or 30 days or another magic number) to create a habit.
Dangerous Lesson: If enough people repeat something enough times, then everyone else starts to believe it.
It's easy to see why the 21 Day Myth has become so widespread. It's short enough to inspire us, but long enough to be believable. Who wouldn't like the idea of changing your life in 3 weeks?
But the problem is that Maltz simply observed what was happening around him and did not state it as a fact. Moreover, he assured that this is exactly minimal amount time, necessary to adapt to change.
But what is the real answer?
How long does it actually take to create new habits? What does science say about this?
And what does all this mean for you and me?
Science provides the answer. And as always, it is quite unexpected...
University College London decided to find out the exact answer.
96 participants asked to choose a new habit they would like to acquire. Most were health-related, such as “eat a piece of fruit with lunch,” or “run for 15 minutes after dinner.”
All 84 days of the study they went to the site and left a short report: whether they completed the action, and how automatic it felt.
Performing an action without thinking—known in science as “automaticity”—turns out to be the main driver of habits. And helps illuminate real question: How long does it actually take to form a habit?
On average, participants who provided sufficient data Habit formation took 66 days.
Of course, there were significant differences in how long it took to form a habit depending on what exactly needed to be done.
Those who simply had to drink a glass of water after breakfast reached maximum automaticity after about 20 days.
Those who got into the habit of eating fruit at lunch took at least twice as long to create the habit.
The exercise habit became the hardest part.
“50 squats after morning coffee” did not become a habit for any of the participants.
“Walking 10 minutes after breakfast” became a habit for several participants after 50 days.
When the researchers combined the results into a single graph, they found a curved relationship between habit and automaticity, rather than a straight line.
Early repetitions were most helpful in establishing a habit, and the benefits gradually diminished over time.
It's like climbing a mountain. There is a steep climb at first and you move forward quickly.
Then the rise levels out, and the closer you are to the top, the less the increase in height with each step.
Some of us have it harder than others
The decline in rate of reinforcement was particularly pronounced among some participants for whom habit formation was particularly difficult. So much so that researchers were surprised by how slowly some habits form:
Although the study lasted only 84 days, by extrapolating the curves, it was found that some habits may require up to 254 days for formation - most of the year!
Conclusions – inspiring and not so
What does this study show?
- Creating a habit often takes much longer than we think.
This explains why we so often give up what we start. For example, running in the morning, or eating healthier, or not losing your temper or yelling over trifles. You just need more time! And you just need to understand this and be prepared for it. - 21 days is enough to create a habit, if it’s something extremely simple.. For example, drink a glass of water after breakfast.
- Anything more complex will take longer. And in some activities, much, much more. Count on 50-60 days or even more. Sometimes it can take a whole year.
- Habits are especially difficult for some of us.
In this case, you need to start with something very simple. And understand that you may have to spend more time. Practice, so to speak, on cats, understand the mechanics of the process and what works for you. And then move on to something more complex.
I can say for myself: by practicing different habits, mastering some and failing at others, you will understand how it works, and over time you will be able to learn to develop habits much easier and with greater success.
Because habit is not something supernatural. It's just a matter of persistence and "deliberate practice." Aristotle also warned us about this:
We are what we continually do. Perfection, therefore, is not an action, but a habit.
At the end of the day, it doesn't matter how many days it takes you to create the habit you want - 50 or 500. Either way, you can do it.
All you need to do is start from day one and repeat over and over again. Forget about numbers - and just do your work for today.
We do many things in our daily lives out of habit, without thinking, “on autopilot”; You don't need motivation for this. This behavior allows us not to stress too much in areas where we can completely do without it.
But habits are not only useful, but also harmful. And if useful ones make our life easier, then harmful ones sometimes greatly complicate it.
Almost any habit can be formed: we gradually get used to everything. But different habits take different times to form for different people.
Some kind of habit can be formed already on the 3rd day: you watched TV a couple of times while eating, and when you sit down at the table for the third time, your hand will reach for the remote control: a conditioned reflex has developed.
It may take several months to form another habit, or the same one, but for a different person... And, by the way, bad habits are formed faster and easier than good ones)))
Habit is the result of repeated repetition. And building them is simply a matter of persistence and deliberate practice. Aristotle also wrote about this: “We are what we constantly do. Perfection, therefore, is not an action, but a habit.”
And, as is usually the case, the path to perfection is not a straight line, but a curve: at first the process of developing automaticity goes faster, and then slows down.
The figure shows that, for example, a glass of water in the morning (blue line of the graph) became a habit for a particular person in about 20 days. It took him more than 80 days to get into the habit of doing 50 squats in the morning (pink line). The red line of the graph shows the average time it takes to form a habit – 66 days.
Where did the number 21 come from?
In the 50s of the 20th century, plastic surgeon Maxwell Maltz noticed a pattern: after plastic surgery, the patient needed about three weeks to get used to his new face, which he saw in the mirror. He also noticed that it took him about 21 days to form a new habit.
Maltz wrote about this experience in his book Psycho-Cybernetics: “These and many other frequently observed phenomena tend to show that minimum 21 days so that the old mental image dissipates and is replaced by a new one.” The book became a bestseller. Since then, it has been quoted many times, gradually forgetting that Maltz wrote in it: “at least 21 days.”
The myth quickly took hold: 21 days is short enough to be inspiring, long enough to be believable. Who wouldn't like the idea of changing your life in 3 weeks?
In order for a habit to form, you need:
Firstly, the frequency of its repetition: any habit begins with the first step, an action (“sow an action, you reap a habit”), then repeated many times; we do something every day, sometimes making an effort on ourselves, and sooner or later it becomes our habit: it becomes easier to do it, less and less effort is required.
Secondly, positive emotions: In order for a habit to form, it must be “reinforced” by positive emotions, the process of its formation must be comfortable, it is impossible in conditions of struggle with oneself, prohibitions and restrictions, i.e. under stress.
When under stress, it is common for a person to unconsciously “slip” into habitual behavior. Therefore, until a useful skill has been consolidated and a new behavior has not become habitual, stress is dangerous due to “breakdowns”: this is how we stop eating right, or doing gymnastics, or running in the morning, as soon as we start.
The more complex the habit, the less pleasure it gives, the longer it takes to develop. The simpler, more effective and more enjoyable the habit is, the faster it will become automatic.
Therefore, our emotional attitude towards what we want to make our habit is very important: approval, pleasure, a joyful facial expression, a smile. A negative attitude, on the contrary, prevents the formation of habits, so all your negativity, your dissatisfaction, your irritation must be removed in a timely manner. Fortunately, this is possible: our emotional attitude to what is happening is something that we can change at any time!
This can serve as an indicator: if we feel irritated, if we begin to scold or blame ourselves, it means we are doing something wrong.
You can think about a reward system in advance: make a list of things that give us pleasure and can, therefore, serve as rewards for consolidating the necessary useful skills.
In the end, it doesn't really matter how many days it takes you to form the right habit. Something else is much more important: in any case Can you do it!
If it were enough to gather your willpower and stick to a new behavior model for just 21 days for the habits to become permanent, everyone would be happy.
In about six months, the world would be close to perfection. But that did not happen.
21 days is just one of the myths that we humans are so willing to believe.
I have a whole list of qualities that I would like to have, to form a habit. For example, early awakening, proper nutrition and many others.
I think you have no less. Someone may want to quit smoking or start some useful business. But why are these habits still in the planning stage? It's not a matter of time!
Time to change your life
The common belief that you need to hold out for 21 days to form a habit comes from the experience of plastic surgeon Maxwell Maltz. In 1950, he noted that patients needed at least 21 days to get used to a new appearance or amputation.
Maltz suggested that changes in the psyche occur in at least 21 days. During this time, a mental image is formed that overshadows the person's past habits. In 1960, his book “Psychocybernetics” was published, and this idea penetrated the masses.
The world started talking about “21 days” as a kind of constant “deadline”, beyond which the result awaits us. But after a while, instead of success, people received disappointment. Few managed to change themselves.
Not 21 days?
Decades later, psychologists from University College London decided to test how long it actually takes to form a new habit.
They studied the behavior of 96 participants over 12 weeks. Some had to drink a bottle of water during lunch, others exercised 15 minutes before dinner.
On average, according to their data, a habit is formed in two months (66 days). However, for each person, depending on the type of habit, the amount of time required varies widely.
Psychologists say that this can take from 18 to 254 days. It's not three weeks, it's eight months!
Look to the root
But I think that not everyone will be able to change themselves in eight months. Or a year, or a year and a half. It's probably not even a matter of time. Then what?
It seems to me that time is not one of the factors necessary to establish a habit. There is the strength of desire, the degree of thinking and the seriousness of the necessary changes.
When we talk about a habit, we mean something useful that will help us become better than our former selves. Nobody wants to intentionally start bad habits.
Bad habits are acquired automatically, and it's not difficult. All you have to do is gape a little, and that’s it!
Useful habits are always an overcoming that requires psychological and physical effort.
Going up is always harder than going down
To make these changes permanent, psychological strength is required. And the more serious the changes ahead, the more strength is needed.
But sometimes it happens naturally. There are people who, after serious life ups and downs, immediately get rid of their bad habits. Moreover, they themselves note that this happened easily.
Someone, after reading a certain book in a day, becomes a vegetarian, someone quits smoking. And this happens naturally. This happens when a person’s level of thinking increases sharply.
For him, a new habit immediately becomes part of his worldview. And he doesn't have to count down 21 or 66 days.
You may want some changes, but not be ready for them. This, for example, applies to those who start smoking again after some time.
His volitional efforts have been exhausted, and he himself has not yet changed radically to make the new habit natural. Then he rolls back again.
I really want to believe in 21 days, but, unfortunately, everything is much more complicated. Going up is always harder than going down.
Many people wonder: how to develop a habit? Do you need special knowledge for this? We often would like to change our lives for the better, but we don’t know how to do it. Some people are hampered by laziness, others are captive of their own fears. Formed habits greatly influence our sense of self, make us believe in ourselves or, on the contrary, doubt every step we take. His future depends on how an individual is accustomed to act when in certain situations. Anyone who is not afraid to take risks, as a rule, wins as a result and acquires a lot.
In most cases, people do not even dare to dream about what really excites and occupies them. They are too focused on possible failures that they are afraid to make grandiose plans. What many of these people don't realize is that they just need to figure out how to develop good habits. Let's try to understand such a difficult issue.
Setting a goal
This is the first place to start. If you intend to change the scenery of your life, you cannot sit idly by. Passive behavior destroys positive energy. The most important thing is to determine the direction of future changes. Proper goal setting can lead to a satisfactory result. After all, the clearer we imagine what we want, the easier it really becomes to achieve it. Having understood your aspirations, it actually becomes easier: you no longer need to waste your energy on useless activities. It turns out that every hour is filled with a special meaning.
Overcoming obstacles
In any business, a person has to overcome numerous difficulties in order to obtain a satisfactory result. The problem is that many stop halfway, never having time to come to what is important and valuable to them.
Competent knowledge can bring an individual to a completely different level of self-awareness. When self-confidence appears, the strength for purposeful actions increases. As a result, the individual feels inspired and wants to be useful to others.
Constant repetition
When thinking about how to develop a habit, you need to systematically perform the same actions. It is recommended to do something every day. Then you will soon discover that you can no longer imagine yourself without a specific task. A person gets used to the fact that he has to overcome his laziness, fear and anxiety. When there is no time to be afraid of your own steps, thoughts about imaginary insolvency fade into the background. Constant repetition helps develop the habit of acting in a certain way. The individual ceases to doubt his abilities and focuses entirely on the task at hand.
Eliminate gaps
If you worked on yourself for, for example, a week and then stopped, there will be no result. The secret here is timing. Really, how many days does it take to develop a habit? This question is asked by many people who seek to add variety to their daily routine. On average, it takes at least three weeks to form in your head the need to act in a certain way. It will not be possible to do this right away for the reason that an individual cannot always immediately believe in the prospects available to him. Omissions must be excluded. When you are striving for a goal, it is completely unacceptable to cut yourself some slack. Otherwise, all previously made efforts will go down the drain. If some day you want to be lazy and relax a little, remember that giving in to temptation will not achieve anything.
It’s better to do less, but every day. This approach really disciplines us and helps us realize that everything is in our hands. Only those who take full responsibility for what is happening can boast of valuable achievements.
Strict self-discipline
It is necessary precisely in order not to leave the race. In fact, it is very difficult to stay true to your word when you are surrounded by various temptations everywhere. You need to be aware of what is happening and be very sensitive to your achievements. If you are truly focused on how to develop a habit, you must adhere to strict rules and strive to complete the assigned tasks. Strict discipline will not hurt at all if you are a disorganized and easily distracted person.
When it comes to major changes in life, you need to think globally, and not give in to momentary impulses. Remember, you only have to meet temptation halfway once, and you cease to be responsible for individual actions and relieve yourself of responsibility for the events that occur.
Why are restrictions needed?
Any framework is necessary in order to be able to move on. They help us understand what is really worth striving for and where to direct our efforts. A person who understands what his predestination is will never waste his life energy in vain. On the contrary, he will begin to collect it bit by bit in order to pull himself together at the right moment and take the necessary steps. The more clearly an individual realizes this point, the better. This way he has a chance to achieve any goal and live without looking back at the opinion of society.
Habit of sports
One of the most difficult things for many citizens is to force themselves to do physical exercise. Some people are so lazy that in their worst nightmare they wouldn’t agree to exercise. They are much more accustomed to lying on the couch at home and watching TV. Such people will be helped to move forward by reflection and awareness of the benefits of such activities. It is at this moment that you need to apply the proposed methodology on how to develop a habit of sports and start doing it regularly. You need to set a goal for yourself and not give up in the face of difficulties that arise. Sport loves active people who strive to finish what they start. Anyone who constantly trains himself inevitably becomes stronger, more resilient and more active. Such a person will not miss the opportunity that arises, because she has a clear idea in her head of what she wants to achieve.
21 day rule
When you're thinking about how to develop a habit, here's some great advice. The 21 day rule works very effectively. Its essence is that during a designated period, perform certain tasks. Gradually, the need will develop not to put things off until later, but to do them every day. Three weeks fly by, but produce amazing results. During this period, the individual gets used to acting in a certain way.
It turns out that what was previously an unbearable burden is now becoming something ordinary. The 21 day rule develops the habit of disciplining your own will. A person develops a need to constantly work on himself in order to achieve significant results.
Reorganizing your daily routine
Once the habit has been formed, you may be surprised to find that your work schedule has been rearranged in a convenient way. Now you don’t have to constantly force yourself to act in accordance with emerging needs. There is a restructuring going on throughout the day.
Time is no longer wasted, because a person learns to appreciate every free minute. Suddenly you realize how important it is to properly organize yourself in advance and not waste precious hours.
Consolidate the result
In any business, it is important not to stop, but to continue to act. A good indicator must be consolidated. One victory over oneself does not mean that this will continue to happen. You must constantly try not to slow down. Only then will those changes begin in your life that will truly make you happy. You need to work hard: see the goal and strive to achieve it.
One habit - one period
This is a very important rule that allows you to correctly distribute the load. Once you start forming one habit, it is recommended to work only on it for some time. After three weeks, you can start the next one. You can't strive to do everything at once. It is unlikely that you will be able to simultaneously start running in the morning and immediately afterwards play the game. musical instrument. Give yourself time to get used to it and adapt to changing conditions. It’s better to change more slowly, but for sure, than to constantly try and fail.
And finally, one more effective tip on how to develop the right habits: you need to strive for consistency. There is no need to rush or act at random here. You need to think carefully about what changes in life you personally need and start working on it. Efforts must be targeted, and not simply repeated a large number of times. Don't forget that there is a rule on how to develop a habit in three weeks, it is quite effective. Be sure to take advantage of the suggested tips in order to get a chance to open new facets of your life.
