21 Days, 40 Days, 66 Days – how many days does does it take to form a habit?
Days aside, do YOU need help to create and maintain your new habit?
What is most important to you?
What feels good to you?
You’ve likely heard so much during your years on this planet about cultivating habits. And as we’re at the rough end of January in terms of people sticking to resolutions, I thought this was the perfect time to delve into helping you to create and maintain your new habit.
Resolutions and habits have something in common, in that they are often created from a person’s should lists (whether themselves or others) rather than what they feel deeply called to inside of themselves.
How about we put the old ways to bed once and for all.
From this day forward, let’s focus on creating habits and ultimately rituals that come from a deep place inside of you. That place that really does know what it is that you need to do and what you need to do FIRST.
How Many Days Does it Take to Form a New Habit?
There are a lot of conflicting suggestions out there on how many days it does take to form a new habit. The Kundalini Yoga Tradition (guided by Yogi Bhajan) suggests that it takes
40 Days to change a habit
90 Days to confirm a habit
After 120 Days the new habit is who you are
After 1000 Days you have mastered the new habit
Older studies have suggested 21 days,but a recent study from the University College London has debunked this saying that it takes 66 days to form a habit.
For the purpose of our habit forming exercise here, let’s work with this for a minimum of 40 days and then build on it. I have felt in the past that 40 days helps set the scene to create amazing things in your life. Now, keep in mind that if you miss a day, you start again at Day 1, as we need 40 continuous days to change the habit.
Let’s Relax For a Moment
Take a few moments now to close your eyes and centre yourself for a few minutes. Close your eyes and breathe quietly for a few minutes and then come back to the page.
Welcome back.
What New Habit Would You Like to Create?
I encourage you now to get a pen and paper or something where you can jot down a few notes and answer the following 3 questions.
1. If there was ONE daily habit that would significantly enhance my energy levels, what would it be?
Trust the first answer that comes to you.
For example, my answer right now is to get in the habit of going to bed earlier, and I am working with cultivating this new habit.
2. If there was ONE thing you want to be proud to say you’ve incorporated as a regular part of your life in twelve months time, what would that be?
Your answer may require that you break up something major into smaller more manageable pieces to create the process of getting there.
3. Pick one of your answers from 1 or 2, or both and write down how you would like to feel in the process of doing this.
So, as an example
NEW HABIT
Going to sleep earlier.
HOW DO I WANT TO FEEL
A calm nervous system before sleep.
SPECIFIC DAILY ACTION TO HELP ME DO THIS
Create an unwind period for one hour before getting into bed at 10pm.
Read and meditate for further unwinding if needing.
Lights out and asleep by 11pm.
What is Your New Daily Habit?
So, let us know.
What new habit are you committing to?
What action steps are you taking to make this happen?
Put this in writing for us in the comments below.
There is a much greater likelihood of a new habit becoming real when you not only write it down, but when you also share it with others.
If you don’t wish to write it down here, share it with a friend.
Best wishes. I know you can do this!
Love Lisa
P.S. If you would like a FREE PDF DOWNLOAD to help you through this process and to track where you’re at with your new habit forming process, click on the box below
Click Here for your FREE DOWNLOAD Creating and Maintaining a New Habit
