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From Mark Ford, founder, Palm Beach Research Group: If I had to choose one skill as being most important in achieving success in life, I would say it is the skill of developing successful habits.
I am not alone in feeling that way. Thinkers have been making this observation since the time of Aristotle.
When psychologist Jeremy Dean became interested in the power of habits, the first thing he did was investigate a popular idea: It takes 21 days to form a habit.
Through extensive research, Dean found there were many good studies to draw conclusions from. But one study from University College London caught his attention…
In the study, 96 people were asked to choose an everyday behavior they wished to acquire. They were instructed to practice it for 84 days (12 weeks).
Habits ranged from simple tasks, such as “drink a glass of water with breakfast,” to more demanding ones, such as “exercise for 20 minutes per day.” For 84 days, participants reported whether or not they had carried out the task, as well as how they felt about it.
Understandably, there was considerable variation in the results. It turned out—on average—it took 66 days for the new habit to take root.
For the simpler tasks, it took around 20 days to become automatic. That’s great news!
But they had trouble forming some of the more challenging habits (e.g., “practice 50 situps after morning coffee”), even by the 84th day!
This might not seem very encouraging. But think of it like this…
Now you know what to expect—that is, you know about how much time it will take you to develop a simple habit versus a more challenging habit. Knowing beforehand will allow you to better plan for it, so you won’t get discouraged along the way.
This leaves us with a most important takeaway: It really comes down to grit. You can form any positive habit you want, so long as you have realistic expectations, plan your days accordingly, and stay determined to make it happen. Check out Dean’s Making Habits, Breaking Habits today.
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