Can habits be the key to success? By Andy Crook A habit can be defined as a routine behaviour that is repeated regularly without conscious thought. According to behavioural scientists, up to 43% of our daily behaviours are habitual. It follows then, that we are the sum of our habits, both good and bad. Breaking bad habits and forming new, good habits is the key to success in all areas of our lives. Developing good habits that can positively impact the workshop is everyone’s responsibility, from health and safety to the most complex diagnostic work and dealing with customers, we can all improve our habits.
How are habits formed or broken? Habits are formed when behaviour is repeated until it becomes automatic. It is a slow process that requires between 18-254 days of repetition, the average time for participants in a 2010 study to form a new habit was around two months. There are three components to every habit – good or bad: 1. Reminder (The trigger that initiates the behaviour) 2. Routine (The behaviour itself ) 3. Reward (the benefit you gain from doing the behaviour)
PROCESS
Consider breaking a habit, if the reminder or cue is removed, then the routine simply does not start.
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This is because there is no reward to be gained. Our brain is hardwired to seek these rewards, our very survival depended on primary rewards such as food, water and reproduction. This is what makes habits so powerful. In modern society, we are more likely to seek out secondary rewards, such as money and fame, praise and approval, love and friendship, or a sense of personal satisfaction.
We perform any habitual behaviour to experience the reward it delivers, the driver, therefore, is the craving or desire for the reward, not the actual behaviour. The reward must be greater than the effort to perform the behaviour otherwise, we simply will not do it. Stephen R. Covey’s book ‘The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People’ identified the 7 habits listed below as key for success: 1. Be proactive 2. Begin with the end in mind 3. Put first things first 4. Think Win-Win 5. Seek first to understand, then to be understood 6. Synergize 7. Sharpen the saw Habits 1, 2, and 3 are focused on self-mastery. Habits 4, 5, and 6 are focused on developing teamwork, collaboration, and communication skills. Habit 7 is focused on continuous growth and improvement and embodies all the other habits. Covey believes the way we see the world is entirely based on our own perceptions. "The way we see the problem is the problem," he suggests that “We must allow ourselves to undergo paradigm shifts – to change ourselves fundamentally and not just alter our attitudes and behaviours on the surface – in order to achieve true change.” Let’s take a look at the first three habits of highly successful people in more detail. The so-called ‘Self-mastery habits’.
Be proactive Being proactive is accepting responsibility for a given stimulus or situation. Reactive people take a passive stance, they believe that the world is happening to them.
