Is it easy to get rid of bad habits? Which books do we recommend for understanding how habits work and breaking the negative ones?
If there is one thing we can say with certainty today, it is that people who achieve exceptional results are doing something that people who fail to get good results in life are not doing. Habits rule our lives. And habits are the first thing we need to change or adopt when we want different results. There are habits of success, and others that lead you to failure.
But… is it that easy to break bad habits? Unfortunately, no. It is not easy at all because, as we have discussed in several articles, we are wired to be drawn to what is easy. To pleasure.
And pleasure is not the same as happiness. Pleasure is instant and fleeting. We often find pleasure in the very things that rob us of true happiness.
The truth is that, however many articles are written about how to get rid of bad habits, how to be more disciplined or how to stop procrastinating, some studies say the message of an article will reach you for a moment but is very likely to fade away within a short time.
So the best way to get rid of bad habits and take on good ones is precisely to dig deep into the subject and understand how habits work. And for that there are some good books on habits that will not leave you indifferent.
See also: 8 books to make you smarter and open your mind
3 books that will help you get rid of bad habits
1. The Power of Habit, by Charles Duhigg
Written by Pulitzer Prize winner Charles Duhigg, this highly recommended book teaches you that 40% of your daily choices are not really choices but habits.
For most of the day you are on autopilot, so if your habits are bad, you could say you are a robot programmed to ruin your life.
You will learn how habits work in your brain, how to get out of the vicious circle and how to acquire better habits. To do so, Duhigg favours not breaking the habit (since habits are very hard to break) but replacing it. It sounds like the same thing, but it is not. When it comes to breaking bad habits, this is without doubt the right book.
2. The Craving Mind, by Judson Brewer
The method Judson Brewer proposes for getting rid of bad habits combines neuroscience research with mindfulness practices. You will not depend on willpower, nor will he suggest replacing bad habits as Duhigg’s book, mentioned above, recommends.
That said, you will need to get to know your brain in depth, which is very interesting and worthwhile. Brewer’s method has been tested in a controlled scientific study to help smokers quit.
And his system not only proved effective, it doubled the effectiveness of other methods. In other words, it got twice as many people to stop smoking as other methods and systems.
In this book you will learn to be aware at every moment. When you are 100% aware of what is happening in your life and of what rules your life (habits), you will automatically start shedding bad habits by instinct. As a side effect of this method, you may find that, for some reason, your happiness levels go up.
So if you want to break bad habits, or simply want to stop smoking or drinking, you have nothing to lose by reading what this author has to say.
3. Irresistible, by Adam Alter
We are tech junkies. Addicts. Obsessed with email and with “likes” on Facebook and Instagram.
What is more, since almost everything on the internet is free, we spend hours absorbed in content we would never consume if we had to pay for it.
In one study, 46% of participants said they would rather break a bone than have their smartphone broken. Seventy per cent of office emails are checked within 6 seconds of arriving.
We carry the enemy in our pocket, and it is very hard to get rid of it through willpower. Like any other drug, technology is seriously damaging our lives and our happiness. Adam Alter talks about this in his book and gives us some guidelines for taking back control of our lives.
Another book about habits
We cannot leave out one of the best books ever written on the subject: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen R. Covey. It does not talk about breaking bad habits but about the habits you need to build into your life, the winning habits. And clearly, every good habit you adopt immediately replaces a bad one.
Recommended article: How to quit bad habits without willpower
Featured image: Ohio State University Center for Operational Excellence, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
