{"id":86587,"date":"2022-12-12T18:45:00","date_gmt":"2022-12-12T22:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=86587"},"modified":"2026-01-19T22:55:12","modified_gmt":"2026-01-20T02:55:12","slug":"habits-psychology","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/habits-psychology\/","title":{"rendered":"The Psychology of Habit Formation: How to Train Your Brain"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

How do behaviors become habits? What can you do to make your brain internalize new habits faster?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Habits are patterns of behavior that become more or less established in your daily life depending on how often you engage in the behavior. If you frequently reinforce a habit through your choices, it\u2019ll get stronger. If you engage in the behavior less frequently, the habit will get weaker. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep reading to learn about the psychology of habits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

How Habits Work<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If a behavior feels good, you\u2019ll want to repeat it, and this repetition forms a habit. As time goes on, your brain incorporates the habit into your regular activity. You end up doing it without thinking, even if it doesn\u2019t ultimately serve you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, maybe you have a busy day at work, and you have to stay late at the office. You were going to cook when you got off work, but you\u2019re too tired, and you decide to get takeout on the way home. Once you have your food, you\u2019re happy\u2014it tastes good, involves little clean-up, and required minimal effort to acquire. As the weeks go on, you\u2019re still busy at work, and you find yourself getting takeout more and more. Once it turns into a habit, your brain expects the reward, and you\u2019re barely cooking at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Understanding the Psychology of Habits<\/strong>

As the authors state, we\u2019re more likely to repeat a behavior and make it a habit if it makes us feel good in the moment. In A<\/em><\/a>tomic Habits<\/a><\/em>, James Clear takes this idea further, arguing that we often reinforce bad habits <\/em>over good ones because of our need for instant gratification<\/a>.\u00a0

Because of lingering survival instincts<\/a> from our evolutionary past, humans value immediate rewards over future ones. Generally, bad habits offer a positive outcome in the present, and we don\u2019t see their negative effects until later. Therefore, our brains are built to favor bad habits over good ones. For example, smoking reduces anxiety and makes people feel good in the moment, but it has devastating effects on the body later on. In contrast, good habits, like saving money, often require us to sacrifice things we want in the present (like buying new things<\/a> or going out to eat) for future rewards that feel intangible.
\u00a0
According to Clear, you can combat this pattern by reinforcing good habits with actions that make your progress toward future rewards feel more tangible. For example, if you\u2019re trying to build a habit of avoiding social media, spend the time you\u2019d usually spend online starting a book you\u2019re excited to read instead. You\u2019ll feel instantly rewarded for doing something that\u2019s beneficial in the long term (becoming an avid reader).<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Be Consistent and Keep Going When It\u2019s Hard<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The authors argue that although we often start habits without realizing it, we can also <\/strong>consciously<\/em><\/strong> start new habits to make positive changes in our lives.<\/strong> For example, if you want to learn another language<\/a> so you can travel to a new country, you may decide to practice the language for an hour every day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unlike the habits we fall into by accident, conscious habits take work to maintain.<\/strong> Even though the behavior will help you make positive changes in your life<\/a>, you may not always feel like doing it. To keep a positive habit, the authors argue that you must push forward and maintain the behavior even when it becomes difficult.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: It takes a lot of difficult work to start and maintain a habit, but this work is considerably easier if you can find someone else to help you. In The Compound <\/a><\/em>Effect<\/em><\/a>, Darren Hardy suggests that finding someone else to start your new habit with will help you maintain it. Having someone else going through the same experience will keep you accountable, and you can support each other when things get difficult.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

How do behaviors become habits? What can you do to make your brain internalize new habits faster? Habits are patterns of behavior that become more or less established in your daily life depending on how often you engage in the behavior. If you frequently reinforce a habit through your choices, it\u2019ll get stronger. If you engage in the behavior less frequently, the habit will get weaker.  Keep reading to learn about the psychology of habits.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":8232,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,9,43],"tags":[831],"class_list":["post-86587","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","category-psychology","category-self-improvement","tag-organize-tomorrow-today","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Psychology of Habit Formation: How to Train Your Brain - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The psychology of habit formation is simple: If you frequently reinforce a behavior through your choices, it\u2019ll become a habit. 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