From Chad

To establish new habits, create a strong reward that excites your brains reward center, making behavior automatic. Captivating rewards are key to rewiring your brain and forming lifelong habits.

When trying to establish a new habit, focus on action rather than feelings, as action determines attitude and motion creates emotion. Use Neurohacks like setting passwords that reinforce your desired self-identity to bypass the mind and create lasting behavior change.

Stephen Guise’s “Mini Habits” concept emphasizes starting with absurdly small, easily achievable goals to build lasting habits. By making habits so simple they require minimal willpower, individuals can bypass resistance and build momentum. The key is consistency, as even the smallest actions, when repeated daily, can lead to significant progress.

The most important question to ask yourself when making a change is “why.“ Finding the right meaning and a clear, concrete reason for change, motivates more effectively than abstract reasons. Disconnects to Sean Young’s framework for making change stick, emphasizing the importance of a clear “why“ in achieving goals.

Lewis Pugh, a British open-water swimmer, used the psychological forces of breaking down goals into smaller steps and surrounding himself with a supportive community to become the first person to swim in each ocean. The acronym SCIENCE (stepladders, community, important, easy, neurohacks, captivating, ingrained) summarizes the science of making behavioral changes stick.

Feelings are not part of our being, but rather signals that provide information about our experiences. They have been described, like the weather, passengers on a bus, or a car dashboard. The better story to tell ourselves is that we are not our feelings and that we control them, they do not control us.

Feelings can sabotage change and commitment. To achieve goals, it’s important to act according to ones identity and focus on the finish line, rather than being driven by feelings. This requires recognizing what feelings are working against you and forcing yourself to act until you feel like it.

When trying to change, focus on who you want to become, not just what you need to do. Nelson Mandela‘s identity as a leader for all of South Africa, drove his actions, even after 27 years in prison. Let identity drive your behavior, not the other way around. Identity equals destiny.

The easiest resolutions are often about stopping something rather than starting something new. Stopping a negative habit can have a significant positive impact on various aspects of life, requiring less energy and resources than initiating new behavior. Identifying and eliminating one detrimental habit can lead to a ripple effect of improvement.

Robert Kraft, nicknamed “the Raven,“ has run 8 miles daily for over 50 years, covering 145,000 miles despite challenges. His dedication has inspired a community, a book, and even a street named after him. His streak is arguably the greatest New Year resolution ever.