Knowing how to make or break habits is a superpower you never knew

I was listening to Tim Ferris’ podcast with Naval Ravikant, and something about making and breaking habits that Naval said really struck a cord.

I think learning how to break habits is a very important meta-skill that can serve you better in life than almost anything else…… I would say that breaking habits is a skill, and it is something you can learn. Start with a small habit and try different techniques to break it. Try substituting. Try going cold turkey. Try weaning yourself off. Try social proof, by telling other people that you’re going to break the habit. Try putting other habits around it that leave no time for that habit. Try removing the triggers. Try toning down the rewards. Do whatever it takes but break one bad habit this year. Once you pick up that skill, it’s a beautiful thing, because slowly you can shed all your bad habits and make room for good habits in your life.

On top of that, research had shown that “a good 90 per cent of what most people do in any day follows routines so complete that their behaviour can be predicted with just a few mathematical equations.”

So imagine: if you have the iron skill to make or break habits infallibly, you can change almost everything about yourself since habits make up 90% of our routines. That’s like a superpower! Just imagine. Six pack abs? No problem, as getting there is a series of habits around fitness and diet. Save half your salary every month? No issue, because it’s about breaking spending habits and putting in place new ones that spend less and save more. Want to be happier? Sure, since it’s about breaking unwholesome habits of dependence on things and people that don’t give you joy, and creating new ones that do.

This sounds so normal, but what was insightful and exciting for me is how the making/breaking of habits is framed as a skill. I mean, we all know that making/breaking specific habits is something we can learn to do, like quitting smoking, or working out every day, or writing. I know I can get good at a specific habit, but never quite thought of how there’s overlaps between these specific habit-making processes that can be collated and learned as an overarching personal skill, which can then be applied across the board for all sorts of habits. Kind of like learning how to learn. (Naval also mentions happiness is a skill, which was also equally mind-blowing - that’s material for another post probably).

I love how Naval then lays out the various techniques of habit-making/breaking:

• Start small
• Substitution
• Cold turkey
• Social proof
• Replacement
• Remove triggers
• Tone up/down rewards

The suggestion of breaking one bad habit this year is a good one. It doesn’t feel as intimidating, because starting small always feels more manageable. If I were to choose one small but bad habit, it’ll be my weakness for sugary treats.

If you had to break one bad habit this year, what would it be?