Bad habits. They are the bane of our existence.
Everybody has them, but nobody wants them.
If only there was a way to get rid of them for good!
Some claim there is a way. They write self-help books and blogs about breaking habits. They even give seminars about how to kick a bad habit. Information abounds! – But is it any good?
Often the suggested approach for habit breaking is to take one small step after another. Gradually and persistently making small adjustments will mount up, they say, and lead to much easier, permanent success.
However, others have proposed that perhaps a full plunge, or cold turkey approach, is much easier than previously thought. An all-out radical course change may be the better route for successfully eliminating those bad habits.
Given that both methods are so different, what is the best way to breaking habits?
Comparing the Approach: Small Steps vs Full Plunge
Pros
Small Steps
- often feels less scary and seem less likely to lead to failure.
- offer a feeling of being in control – making each choice your own – and a confidence that each step will add up and last.
- are more about endurance than intensity or marathon vs. sprint.
- focus less on regimens and more on full lifestyle changes, which are often self-driven and self-guided.
Full Plunge
- offers a feeling of exhilaration about making sweeping changes that will bring liberation.
- keeps motivation going because changes happen fast and observably.
- Is about intensity and the momentum created by it, which could carry you further than perhaps you imagined.
- focuses on a regimen or a routine, accompanied by guidance and support from others.
Cons
Small Steps
- may cause a loss of momentum can cause a problem with balance, since going too long without progress might decrease your motivation.
Full Plunge
- May be impractical, as not everybody has the resources to hire professional assistance with a regimen, nor the time to stick to a strict routine.
It becomes obvious that both approaches have valid pros and cons. “One size fits all” simply doesn’t work. Every person has a different lifestyle, different circumstances, and different capabilities. Considering these factors, and how they affect your own life, may lead you to realize that one approach could be more successful for you than the other. It’’s important to look at your individual situation.
There might also be a third option to breaking habits – a combination of both approaches. Instead of making a grandiose overhaul of your whole life all at once or easing along with one tiny change after another, try focusing on one specific area of your life and make a radical and intense change in only that one aspect. Make the change with the commitment that it will be permanent, not temporary. Then, give yourself some time in between, implementing more changes.
The Bottom Line
The fact is: no study, no research, no expert can ever be 100% correct for all people. You have to know yourself how you operate. No statistics can tell you what truly works for you as an individual. It takes time to evaluate that – and that never happens overnight.
Therefore, making the method you choose for yourself your own is much more important than following any specific expert-recommended approach. When you define yourself with the choices that you make, your new identity will help you garner the will power you need to succeed. Your choices become what you do because of who you are, not because of what someone else says you should be or should do.
