Trading My Bad Habits For Good Habits
Habits are so hard to break so I have settled for trading some of my bad habits for better and good habits.
A lot of us have habits that are so ingrained that we don’t even realize that we are doing them.
For instance, I have a really bad habit of biting my nails that I have been doing since I was a kid.
It has got to the point that I have been biting my nails for so long, that I don’t even realize when I have my finger in my mouth.
It is a disgusting habit that I just cannot kick for the life of me and I still catch myself doing it sometimes to this day.
But that is just one bad habit that I’m not proud of.
I have some other ones that I need to shake off as well.
I know that I’m not alone when it comes to cleaning up some habits that are doing absolutely nothing for them but we still do them anyway.
Especially with the current pandemic, we are all bound to have picked up some bad habits or let some settle in because we got comfortable.
Well, I think it is time to replace some of those bad habits and I’m going to assume that since you are here, you are ready to kick those habits to curb as well.
With that said, I’m going to identify some of the bad habits that I do as well as how I began trading those bad habits for good habits.
If you are interested in how I changed some of my bad habits, then just keep reading.
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How Long Does It Take Change A Bad Habit?
Before I get into how I started trading my bad habits for good habits; let’s answer this question.
How long does it take to change a bad habit?
We already know that bad habits are really hard to break because it is something that is so ingrained in our brains that we don’t always realize that we are doing it.
So I doubt it will be something that you can break overnight.
No matter how many articles you read that talk about breaking habits within 24 hours.
Even a week is still not enough time to break a habit.
According to Healthline, the amount of time it takes to really break a habit depends on a number of different things.
Such as:
- how long youโve had the habit
- whether youโve fully integrated the behavior into your life
- what rewards (social, physical, or emotional) you get from it
- whether other behaviors reinforce the habit
- your motivation
So there really isn’t a timeline for how long it takes a break a habit.
It can be anywhere from a month to 3 months depending on how ingrained the habit is.
This is why I suggest replacing a bad habit with a better one.
For instance, say that you are trying to decrease the number of sodas you drink a day and you currently drink 3 sodas every day.
Aim for 2 sodas instead.
2 sodas a day are better than 3 sodas a day.
And once you have mastered 2 sodas, take it down to 1 soda a day.
Keep making small changes and trading those bad habits for better decisions and you will have gradually replaced that bad habit.
Now that we have a general idea of how long it can take to break a habit, let’s talk about we can begin trading some of these bad habits for good habits.
Trading These Bad Habits For Good Ones
Not Taking Care Of Your Body
The very first bad habit that must be traded for a better one is not taking care of your body.
If we want good to come out, we have to put good in.
You cannot ignore your body and expect it to not give out on you because it will.
I noticed how tired and lethargic I was some days and realized it was because I was not getting the proper rest and eating well.
There is a reason that so many people rave about exercising, eating healthy, and drinking enough water.
These are all things that contribute to having a healthy lifestyle that can hopefully keep us around a little longer if we put in the effort now.
Taking care of our bodies can look like taking care of our skin and hair, eating our fruits and veggies, moving our bodies, and getting good sleep.
As a mom, these are also good habits that I want to instill in my daughter so it starts with the example that I set.
I try to make sure I’m consuming something healthy on a daily basis and get some type of movement in.
We all know kids learn more by watching us more so than by us telling them, so if I am putting in the effort to be more healthy, she will continue these good habits as she gets older.
Consuming Too Much Social Media
The next habit that is something that most of us do, including me, is consuming too much social media.
I mean how do you even begin to escape social media when it is everywhere.
When you think about it, there really is no escaping social media because many of us use it to communicate with one another.
So social media is not all bad.
The problem is when we consume too much social media.
As important as it is to take care of our physical health, it is just as important to take care of mental health which is affected by consuming too much social media.
You have to find a healthy balance when it comes to social media.
Social media has the power to inspire, but it also has the power to uninspire making you feel even worse which is why balance is key.
Comparing Yourself To Others
Along with consuming too much social media, another thing that many people wind up doing while on social media is comparing themselves to everyone on there.
Of all of the bad habits that I’m going to list, this is probably one of the hardest ones to replace because how in the world can you not compare yourself to others?
Especially when they appear to be doing so well for themselves while you are just sitting scrolling wondering why can’t my life look like theirs.
I do it and I know you do too.
Now there is no harm in wanting to be like someone who you admire and look up to and you find yourself motivated and happy when you watch their content.
But if you find yourself feeling down and talking negatively about yourself, then their content is not for you.
Like I mentioned above, your mental health can be heavily affected by social media use.
We don’t often get to see the journey behind the scenes of the many people we follow on the Internet and I guarantee you that it was a journey for them to get to where they are now.
Your journey is your journey which makes it unique and your journey will never be what the next person’s journey is.
So be a little kinder to yourself and know your time is coming.
That person who you envy had to likely experience some obstacles or put in a lot of hard work to be where they are. Your time is coming.
You just have to be patient and keep going.
Staying Up Really Late
Another bad habit that I’m guilty of is staying up really late sometimes.
A lot of the time, the reason that we wind up staying up so late is that we are scrolling on social media or we got sucked down a rabbit hole on Youtube.
If I had to give a runner up on the next reason, it would probably be binge-watching a TV show.
I’m guilty of both, but if there was one that I was more guilty of, it would be binge-watching a TV Show.
With all these streaming networks available, all of my shows are right at my fingertips and I can watch the whole season without having to wait for a new episode every week.
And most of these streaming platforms have these set up to keep playing one show after right another.
I know I have a harder time changing the TV, especially when it picks up right where the previous episode left off.
I enjoy watching TV in bed at night so the way I keep myself from staying up too late is to set a timer for my TV to turn off after a certain amount of time.
As someone who struggles with insomnia, trading this bad habit for a better one allows me to sleep a little better at night.
Saying “Yes” To Everything
A habit that is extremely common in people-pleasers, such as myself, is saying yes to everything
My family has been telling me for years that I beat around the bush when asked about something because I don’t want to flat out say “no”.
So often I am saying “yes” when I don’t really want to say “yes.”
Saying “no” just sounds rude, doesn’t it?
But saying “yes” can sometimes put you in a sticky situation that you did not want to be a part of in the first place.
And some of the situations can be dangerous not only to your physical health but once again, your mental health.
The only way to replace this bad habit is to get comfortable saying “no”.
This will be hard to do at first because it will feel like you are hurting someone else’s feelings.
But the way I choose to think about it is by saying “no” to that person, I’m actually saying “yes” to myself and I deserve a yes.
Spending Too Much Money
A lot of people enjoy this habit so much that they will refuse to believe that it is a bad habit, but spending too much money is a bad habit to have.
As someone who used to love beauty products, I found myself with many different products and barely anywhere to put them much less use them.
I mean how many different foundations, body washes, and lotions do someone really need?
Especially when most of it would wind up sitting in my bathroom cabinets for months and months before I finally get around to using it.
Something else that people have a tendency to spend too much on is eating out too much.
This was also a problem with our family for a while until we finally created a budget and also limited the number of times we would go out to eat.
We use this Budget Planner that you can get off of Amazon to keep track of our expenses and day-to-day spending.
I know by us visually seeing where our money was going it helped open our eyes to how much we were spending and how we could save more.
Holding On To Too Much Stuff
If you are spending too much money, there is a good chance that you have probably accumulated a lot of things.
Having a lot of things creates clutter and clutter can contribute to stress.
Which is the last thing you want to do since the whole point of this post is about trading bad habits for good habits.
If you realized that you are a beauty hoarder like myself or any kind of hoarder, this would also be a good time to declutter.
By taking the time to declutter, you can go through your things and see what can go and what you want to stay.
You can either donate those items or even sell them.
I know that decluttering can feel overwhelming and you may not know where to start.
If you read my post on decluttering the different areas of your home, then you know that I prefer to take my time and not rush the process.
Decluttering a couple of times a year is a great habit to have so you don’t find yourself with so many things and no place to them.
Procrastinating
Another bad habit that a lot of us have is procrastinating.
I am terrible about procrastinating and waiting until the last minute to do stuff.
By putting things off, I am only building up my own anxiety to get whatever I am needing to get done.
Sometimes, it is something as small as me putting off washing my car which can be solved by blocking out the time to wash it.
Or it could be something much bigger.
I know I put off starting a blog way for way too long and it was because I was scared of what people would think and wouldn’t like what I had to say.
It took me 6 months to finally press the launch button and I’m so glad that I did.
If you are struggling with procrastination because you are scared, I challenge you to confront your fears and just do it.
At least you can say you tried.
Wanting Everything To Be Perfect
Part of the reason I also procrastinate is that I want everything to be perfect.
I definitely have perfectionist characteristics.
I want everything to be perfect or just right and if it’s not, it will bug me until it is exactly the way I want it or envisioned it.
Do I think that perfectionism can come in handy sometimes?
Sure, especially when it comes to something that requires a lot of attention to detail.
But the main problem with perfectionism is that not everything will be perfect or exactly what you had in mind.
You will always find a flaw or even find a way to improve what you already did.
In order to combat this mindset, you have to learn that done is better than perfect.
I bet your version of “done” is probably good anyway.
Not Asking For Help
And the last bad habit that we should all change is not asking for help.
If you don’t break any of the habits that I mentioned above, please break this one.
We have to normalize asking for help when we realize that we cannot do it all on our own.
When I became a first-time mom, I didn’t realize how lonely I would be at home and I found myself knee-deep in postpartum depression.
Even though you are not technically alone with kids around, there isn’t a lot of adult interaction and if your current friends don’t have kids, they don’t quite understand what you are experiencing.
Find someone to talk to.
Whether it is talking with your friends or family, communicating on a Facebook support group, or going to therapy to speak to a therapist, just find someone.
Don’t stuff down your feelings and emotions and admit that you are not fine.
There are people who care about you, but you have to be open and willing to receive their help.
Your Turn
Now that I have discussed some bad habits that I have been trading for good ones, I want to hear from you all. What are some of your bad habits and how were you able to replace them with good habits? Let me know in the comments and while you are still here check out my previous blog post below. Until next time!
Love,
Just Jass
Jasmyn Heard
Hi! I'm Jasmyn or "Jas" as everyone likes to call me! I'm a stay-at-home girl momma to 2 beautiful little girls and married to my wonderful husband whom I have been with for 10 years! I'm a book and tea lover and when I'm not working on my blog, you can find me sharing bits and pieces of our lives on Instagram or me strolling down the aisles of Target and DSW! I'm the mama blogger behind the blog, Just Jass, where I offer parenting advice, productivity tips, and positive mental health habits from my perspective as mama of 2. Why don't you join me and my Jassy Fam as we navigate this thing called "mom-life" together!
89 Comments
Tiffany S
I have had to break several of these bad habits. The one I still struggle with is social media.
Another habit that I am currently working on breaking is reaching for sweets. I have a sweet tooth that is triggered by anxiety.
Thanks for sharing this great post!
Jasmyn Wilkins
I have a sweet tooth myself and it always shows up at night so I have to work on that one as well! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Hannah Siller
With everything going on my schedule is an absolute mess. Usually I would only have maybe one or two of these apply to me rather then most. I think my bad habit is just accepting that rather then getting down to change it.
Jasmyn Wilkins
That is actually a good point you have made because a lot of just accept where we are at life or what we are currently doing even though it makes us unhappy to do it. We don’t take the time to change, so it just lingers on. Great feedback and something we all should take into consideration!
Jennifer Van Haitsma
My worst bad habit right now is probably my eating. But I’m slowly working on it. Thanks for this great insight!
Jasmyn Wilkins
As long as you are working on it! That is what counts and how you can begin to change that habit! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Brie
The best way to break bad habits is to replace them with better habits. The book, The Power of Habit, has taught me that we never forget our bad habits, so we must replace them with good ones and make those good habits stronger than the bad ones. To replace a bad habit, we must identify why we perform that habit, what is our “cue” to perform it and what “reward” are we getting after taking action. Once you figure that out, you can try to replace the habit with other, better actions and figure out which one gives you the same reward. For example, I am a late-night snacker (OMG, MY WORST HABIT). So I am working to replace that with a good habit. My cue is time – the clock hits 9:00 and I feel like I have to go eat something sweet. The reward: my sweet tooth is satisfied (I think that’s the reward). I am testing out different actions to see if those get rid of the craving I am feeling at 9:00 PM. Here are my 5 habit replacement tests: 1. eat fruit instead of a sweet, 2. brush my teeth 3. watch tv with my mom 4. drink decaf tea with honey and 5. read a book. After testing these out over the next 5 days, I will take notes and see which one suffices my craving and roll with it!
Jasmyn Wilkins
That book is definitely on my list to read because I have heard how amazing it is! And you sound just like me at night when my sweet tooth kicks in. I will have a decaf tea with honey and a small piece of chocolate. I love chocolate so I try to limit myself to one small piece before bed. I’m so glad that you enjoyed this post!
Hailey
Iโm guilty of pretty much all of these tbh. Definitely need to re-evaluate myself a little bit, so this is very helpful. Thank you for sharing!
Hailey | https://feelinggoodashail.com/
Jasmyn Wilkins
We all are probably guilty of engaging in some of these bad habits! Once we know what they are, we can begin to replace them with better habits and go from there! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Patrick
A lot of these are so me. I’m definitely a yes man.my wife has been telling me for years I need to learn how to say no.
Jasmyn Wilkins
Yea this is a tough one even for me! I don’t want to come across as rude, but sometimes, I need to focus on myself and that means saying no sometimes. Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Rebekah Charles
Great post and some of these are so me! I use to be a “yes” person all the time until 2 years ago… Best decision ever ?. Love the tips as well and your baby is too cute!
Jasmyn Wilkins
I’m glad that you were able to overcome being a yes person! You have got to reveal your secrets because I still struggle with saying no sometimes! Glad that you enjoyed these tips and my daughter says thank you ๐
Nathalie
It is so hard to break bad habits but it is so important to stop, reflect, and do better each day. What this pandemic has done is help me reevaluate my priorities and it has forced me to take care of myself.
Jasmyn Wilkins
You couldn’t be more right about that! I have also taken this time to reflect and use this time to better myself and figure out exactly what I want to do! Glad that enjoyed this post!
Reads and Rambles
I need to break so many of these habits. Staying up past midnight and then complaining about being tired is not a long term plan. I am hoping that when i start university i will start getting into better habits and taking care of my body and mind. I think lockdown has made me let go of those priorities. ๐ this was an amazing post though and I have taken a lot from it and realised I need to work on some things. Xxxx
Jasmyn Wilkins
I used to do the same thing when it came to staying up too late and wondering why I would be so tired the next morning! I knew I had to get a handle on that if I wanted a more productive start to my day! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Carista
I think I do all of these! These are definitely things I am growing in!
Jasmyn Wilkins
You are not alone! We are all trying to do better to break these bad habits!
Karen Chen
Consuming too much social media… whew that’s a big one! I’ve been taking more regular breaks and detoxes, it has seriously helped calm my mind a lot! Thank you for sharing, love x
Jasmyn Wilkins
So have I! It is the only way for me to remain in the present and not feel overwhelmed by everything I am seeing! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Livi
After reading your article I realised that Iโm probably guilty of all what you mentioned… sometimes we putting too much on us and believe that itโs okey. During lockdown I realised so many mine habits what I need to fight and now after your article when I saw them writing down even more. Brilliant post โค๏ธ
Jasmyn Wilkins
You and me both Lockdown has had everyone reevaluating everything that they do because they finally have the time to notice it. You got this and I’m so glad that you enjoyed this post!
Emily
I completely agree with you that saying “no” when necessary is a very important boundary to set. We cannot possibly say “yes” to everything in life and others have to understand that they need to take “no” for an answer sometimes. We are not always going to be available every little time so others have to respect our availability and that self-care is not selfish. In addition, as a perfectionist, I know how people with this habit feel, but we need to apply the understanding in life that perfection is impossible in order to improve in this area. I have improved in this area over the years.
Jasmyn Wilkins
Always so insightful! Self-care is absolutely never selfish and perfection is something that can never be reached. Saying no is actually saying yes to ourselves when you really think about it! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Queenie
I totally relate with social media usage and comparing myself with others. They’re habits that I just cant stop but I believe I have improved ever since I noticed it’s not doing me any good.
Jasmyn Wilkins
Yea those are tough ones! At least you are aware of them so that way you can work on them and try to improve them! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Nicole
Iโm guilty of almost every single one of these, and itโs so hard to break long term habits. Great article!
Jasmyn Wilkins
You are not alone! I’m guilty of some of them too, but we got this! Glad that you enjoyed this article!
Whitney
I need to start waking up before my kids so I have a moment to myself! It would make for less stressful mornings.
Jasmyn Wilkins
Waking up before my daughter has been one of the best decisions I have made! It really gives me a head start on my day!
Clarissa
I love this Jass! Of these, there are a few I’m working on. I’m definitely a perfectionist, but trying to get better about that. I’ve always been a people pleaser too, so I can relate with saying yes when you don’t want to. And finally, asking for help. I never used to do this and used to think it was weakness to do so, but I don’t think that way any more!
I’m still working on all 3 of these, the perfectionism is probably the one that still has the furthest to go, but I’m much better at all three than I used to be. Thank you!
Jasmyn Wilkins
Perfectionism is one of my worst habits so I completely get it! As long as we know what we need to work on, then we can begin to break these bad habits! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Prisca J Benson
This pandemic threw off my routines so much. I developed a lot of bad habits and lost some good ones. But I’m coming around. Definitely trying to balance my social media use.
Jasmyn Wilkins
This pandemic has thrown a lot of us off our game! But as long as we are able to identify the bad habit, then we can work on breaking it!
Anita
Nice post. I used to have a bad habit of biting my nails, now I don’t, I just leave it to grow and it’s pretty nice. I’m guilty of spending too much time on social media too.
Jasmyn Wilkins
You have got to share your secrets on how to stop biting your nails because I still struggle with that habit! But spending way too much time on social media can really affect your overall mood and not always in a good way. Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Crystal @ Simply Full of Delight
Excellent thoughts! I struggle with many of these! It’s interesting how so many of these are correlated, so if we work on one bad habit, it may help another!
Jasmyn Wilkins
You are absolutely correct! We will definitely see a difference by changing at least one of these bad habits! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Em
Crazy how many of those I do! Thanks for pointing them out, I enjoyed this read!
Jasmyn Wilkins
We all do! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Jessi
I feel personally attacked by this post because I do all of those negatively haha great article! Thank you so much for sharing!
Jasmyn Wilkins
Hahahaha! Don’t feel attacked because we all do it including me! Once we are aware of it, we can do better about breaking them! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Poli-Archivist
Learning to say no is such a skill that took a long time for me to learn. I love this post!!
Jasmyn Wilkins
You couldn’t be more right! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Jenn Kalchik
There are some things listed that I need to be better about, especially using social media.
Jasmyn Wilkins
Social media gets us all! But I really learned that setting a timer helps or having it set up on my phone to let me know that I reached my limit for the day. Hope this helps!
Lex
I am really bad about comparing myself to others. I feel like social media just makes it so easy! I appreciate you sharing this! I think acknowledging the habits makes them that much easier to break!
Jasmyn Wilkins
You are not alone! Social media has a way of doing that to all of us, but as you said, if we can acknowledge it, then we can break them! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Deanna
Gosh Iโm guilty of so many of these. Especially social media!
Jasmyn Wilkins
Hahaha! Social media will do it! But it’s ok! Now that you know, you can work on breaking that bad habit!
Amanda Rae
These are great tips! Especially the always saying “Yes” section. I found myself saying yes to everything when sometimes I didn’t even want to do it!
Jasmyn Wilkins
I’m just as bad about doing that too! But hey we are going to do better! I’m glad that you enjoyed these tips!
Samantha White
Iโm so bad about holding on to too many things. Itโs a problem I have that Iโve been working on for a while.
Jasmyn Wilkins
I know how you feel! I try my best to declutter seasonally! I tend to redecorate seasonally so this usually gives me an opportunity to declutter some of the stuff that I hold onto!
erika
I have more bad habits than I thought lol. Especially, saying yes to everything. Being a little selfish once in a while isn’t a bad thing! Great tips!
Jasmyn Wilkins
There is absolutely nothing wrong with being selfish! Glad that you enjoyed these tips!
Tina
Omg my worst ones are probably putting things off and not asking for help. Eep! But great tips to help work on being better moving forward!
Jasmyn Wilkins
Procrastination is the worst, isn’t it! And we can’t take on everything as much as we think we think can! I’m so glad that you enjoyed these tips!
Erin
Definitely doing about half of these! Really need to work on spending too much money and spending too much time on social media! Both so hard to break but so necessary for a healthy life. Thanks for pointing them out. Going to make an effort this week ๐
Jasmyn Wilkins
Both of these are really hard to break, but we can do it! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Amanda
I am so guilty of saying yes too much and spending too much time on social media! Thank you for sharing this, I definitely need to break those habits.
Jasmyn Wilkins
You are very welcome! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Lexi
My biggest habit that I need to break is staying up late on tik tok. I usually break habits by starting a new routine.
Jasmyn Wilkins
That is a great way to kick a bad habit by creating a new one!
Emelina Rosa
“Perfectionism” and “comparing yourself to others” stand out to me as things I am guilty . I think social media makes it harder. I enjoyed reading and found your tips helpful. Thank you ๐
Jasmyn Wilkins
You are very welcome! I’m glad that you found these tips to be helpful!
Emily
I definitely agree with you that setting the boundary of that it is okay to say “no” sometimes is important. It’s called self-care which is not selfish at all. We all need a break sometimes to better our mental health.
Seriah
I definitely need to break several of these habits, such as saying yes to everything and sweets. Both are triggered by anxiety and fear and it sucks to have.
Jasmyn Wilkins
I’m right there with you. It is hard to stop but once you realize that by saying no is actually saying yes to yourself, then you will start to see how much easier it is to say no!
Karine
Its so hard to break these habits, some we don’t even notice that we are doing! Definately need to break the habit of trying to defend myself when someone says something and sweets are another big one. We all do what we can to become a better person!
Jasmyn Wilkins
And that is ultimately the goal that we all want to achieve!
Tammy Harris
Such a great article! I worst bad habit has been not exercising. Since I started working from home, I have found myself becoming lazy about that. I have been trying to get better ๐ Keep up the great job~
Jasmyn Wilkins
You are not alone, we all have been a little bit lazier with the current state of the world! We got this though! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Marjorie
Several of these habits are ones I need to break. Social media is the biggest which leads to sleeping late. Now that I am using social media to market my biz, ita hard to put a stop to it, although I’m trying screentime. Thanks for the wake up call.
Jasmyn Wilkins
You are very welcome and breaking bad habits is not an overnight thing! It takes practice and once we get better at it, we can then begin to implement new, better habits!
Shay
Great article! I’ve been on social media a lot more these days, giving the current social and political climate, and find myself needing to take breaks. I’ve also been going to bed too late and need to get back on a routine, damn you Netflix, lol. I will check out your post on insomnia.
Jasmyn Wilkins
Please take those breaks! Social media can be draining! Hope you enjoyed my post on insomnia!
Jimmy Clare
this was totally me yesterday and a little bit today.
Jasmyn Wilkins
You are not alone! This is a lot of us!
Tasha
It took me so long to learn to stop saying yes to everything. Great insights.
Jasmyn Wilkins
It took me a long time too! Glad that you enjoyed this post!
Jessica @ My Homeschool with a View
Great post! I love learning about habits.
Jasmyn Heard
Thank you! I’m glad that you enjoyed this post!
Jodie the Mom
I’m working at eating healthier.
Jasmyn Heard
Eating healthier takes time but it can be done! You got this!
Deanna | Life By Deanna
Social media is a big one!! I have been trying to find other things to do than sit on my phone during my down time. So far I’ve been getting a lot more reading done haha
Jasmyn Heard
Yes! Social media will definitely suck you in much longer than you need to be! Reading is something that I have been doing more of lately too!