Or how your superpower owns your ass and how to change that.
It’s amazing what we can do with little to no effort if we put enough practice into it!
Have you ever got home from work or school without having any conscious knowledge of your actions?
or
Have you ever found the solution to a complex problem while taking a shower or doing the dishes?
That’s your habits at work.
Habits are actions you learn and then replicate without giving a second thought. This way, you free up brain real estate to ponder over the truly existential problems (like what to have for dinner) while doing the things that keep your lifestyle going.
I like to think that habits are our individual superpower or our auto-pilot feature.
Let’s take walking as an example – once you learn the mechanics, you don’t have to think about how to put one foot in front of the other or how to move your joints and ligaments to form a step. Your body knows and does the action without requiring any extra brain power.
It’s like a function you learn and then store, only to access when it’s needed.
The same is true with driving, learning a language, dancing, and many other incredibly complex activities.
And the best part? You can apply the pattern of habit formation to absolutely anything you want to do!
Want to be a good swimmer?
Just learn how to swim and practice as much as possible. After a while, you will have formed the habit of swimming, and the movements will come naturally to you.
Want to get stronger and leaner?
Just learn how to exercise and eat right, and practice every day. In time, you’ll get better, and you’ll see the results.
We all have the brainpower and the capacity to master our (realistic) objectives and goals!
Soooo, why aren’t we all ripped and happily adding to our stack of skills?
A Superpower Is Not Good or Bad - It Just Is
Habits may be our superpower, but not all habits will help you achieve world domination (or whatever your goals may be).
Mindlessly scrolling social media when you’re tired or spending your evenings in front of the TV won’t lead to any positive changes in your life. And yet, most of us invest hours each day doing these very things.
Most of the time, you don’t even know when you pick up the phone and start scrolling - it just happens.
This is because of the habit loop.
You’ve been picking up your phone and scrolling social media as a way to take a break so often that it’s become an automatic response. So, when you feel tired, or work is too challenging, your brain activates the scrolling social media habit.
A habit loop starts with a cue (you’re feeling tired or bored). The cue activates a craving (you want some time for yourself). The craving leads to an action (you pick up your phone and start scrolling), which leads to the reward (you feel at ease and forget about your real-life problems.)
James Clear, the author of Atomic Habits, talks more in-depth about habit formation and loops so go check out his work. It’s truly impressive and mind-opening.
The thing about this superpower (habit formation) is that when not used mindfully, it owns your ass. What you do every day matters because it turns into a habit that will stay with you for the rest of your life if you allow it.
It’s not like you turn off habit formation if you don’t feel like working on yourself for a while. The brain is always active and observing.
But how come that only bad habits stick to us like glue?
That’s because our brains are suckers for immediate gratification and rewards. This is why we end up procrastinating, eating junk food, scrolling social media, or binge-watching the latest TV series.
The things that are bad for you in the long run feel good in the moment. Junk food feels like a party for your taste buds, binge-watching the latest series offers rapid entertainment and lets you forget about your real-life problems, and going on a shopping spree gives you that temporary dopamine rush.
Good habits, on the other hand, take longer to produce effects. You don’t feel instantly better the moment you walk into a gym – you have to do the workout to get your rush of feel-good hormones. Plus, it takes several months of constantly going to the gym to start seeing results.
How to Use Your Superpower for Good
Lists, plans, and dreaming big did not work for me. I can dream all I want (and I daydream), and I can design the perfect plan (sooo many plans), but nothing changes without action.
No matter how small the action, if it’s something you do every day, you’ll start seeing results soon enough.
Here are a few tricks that I can vouch for:
Play a Game of Association
About a year ago, I started to take my skincare routine seriously. I went from not really knowing what a moisturizer is to taking the proper steps each morning and evening.
I honestly surprised myself at how easy it was to go from zero to 100 and stay consistent.
Then it hit me - I did my skincare routine right after brushing my teeth. Poof! A lightbulb went on im my mind and I started reading about this.
It turns out, it’s a lot easier to introduce a new habit that doesn’t provide immediate rewards, if you attach it to an existing habit.
Pretty cool, right?
Find Joy in What You Do
If you dread going to the gym, it won’t last. The same with anything else - if there’s nothing to spark joy it will come to a screeching halt no matter how motivated you are
That’s why I got myself a pair of funny leggings. And I always look for new workouts to try. I do yoga and weights at home, so I have to keep it interesting.
Also, I’m the kind of person who would love to take walks outside but never seems to find the time or the mood. But lately, I learned that am more likely to go for a walk if I can listen to a good podcast.
The takeaway here is that, if you find pleasure in the process, you will do the thing more often. Thus, in time, it will become a habit before you even realize it.
Don’t grit your teeth and think about the reward - make it so that you like the activity. Then, the reward will feel effortless and you’ll feel more confident in your power.
Build Systems
I would plan an entire day of well-detailed work activities (made my Google calendar real colorful), only to do my best to avoid it all and procrastinate away my day.
If you’re like me, you know just how hard it hits your self esteem and what kind of anxiety comes from this risky behavior.
So I gave it up entirely. Then, I started learning about the idea of building systems. Now, I have time slots in my calendar.
For instance, every other day, I have 2 hours blocked for writing on Medium. It doesn’t matter if I browse for ideas or write an entire article. That time is blocked for this purpose alone.
This frees me of the guilt of not accomplishing a very detailed task. If the inspiration strikes and I manage to write an entire article that’s fantastic. If not, I’m still making progress by searching for ideas, writing bits and pieces, or editing.
The fun part is that each person can (and should) develop their own systems. Try things out and see what works. When you do find something that works, write it down, develop it, and turn it into a system.
Key Takeaways
We all have a superpower in habit formation. But it’s not magic. You can’t just whip a wand around and make it work.
It takes self-observation, mindfulness, and the desire to change your current state to activate it. But once you taste its sweet rewards, you won’t be able to go back that easily.
The good news is that this is a highly-personal journey, one that only you can take!
