What is that, you might ask? It’s the easiest way to form a new habit by adding it to an existing one.
For example, when I go for a walk, I listen to a podcast/audiobook. My walk of at least two miles a day is a habit I’ve had for a few years. I then listened to business audiobooks and podcasts during my walk, as 30 mins of mind and body flexing was pretty good.
But as it was lunchtime, I needed to take a break to relax a little and not think about work, what my next step would be, what I should definitely do next, etc. Instead, I replaced the them with comedy podcasts – so my habit slightly changed to: exercise and relax – at the same time.
As I was already walking regularly, it was easy to stack something onto this activity. Other simple examples might be:
- When I have fed my cat Moko, I will do 30 minutes of yoga (or go for a run, depending on the day)
- After finishing breakfast and loading the dishwasher, I will meditate for 15 minutes
- After having lunch, I’ll go for a walk (this one becomes a triple threat – see above!)
- When I get into bed at night, I’ll read five pages of my book (if I don’t fall asleep before!)
Yes I know, many of mine do revolve around food!
How about you – do you stack any habits onto each other?
