Chain reaction: How the 30 day myth is sabotaging your progress
Introduction
"Chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are too heavy to be broken"
--Warren Buffett.
So far in our habit’s series, you have learned about piggybacking your new habit onto an existing one, establishing rewards, changing up your environment, getting feedback on your behaviour, and how to build a ritual.
In this ultimate blog, we will look at one final step to solidify your new habit- how long you need to practice your new behaviour before it becomes ingrained in your brain.
Consistency is key
66 days may seem like a long time, but don’t be disheartened. Having a longer habit building period helps switch your mindset from a result focused to a process focused. But the 66 days will only be effective if you display consistency during that time. To get good at something, you need to be consistent. All the best traders don’t just get good results- they repeat the behaviour that led to the good results every day. They might have an off day, as we all do, but the difference in a top trader is that they settle right back into their good patterns the following day. It may take 66 days (or longer!) for a habit to stick, but remember you need to be consistent with it during that time. It is easy to have enthusiasm on day 1, but motivation can quickly fade away if you don’t make a concentrated effort to stick with it. If that wasn’t the case, gyms wouldn’t be dead by the end of January! Get yourself a schedule and daily tasks over the 66 days, and this will help your new habit really stick.
Don’t break the chain
So, you’ve set your schedule, but is there a way to help you stick to it for the 66 days?
When the comedian Jerry Seinfeld was starting out, he set himself a goal of writing a joke a day. To bolster this commitment, he hung up a calendar in his living room. Every time he wrote a joke, he put a red X on that date. After a few days, he saw the chain of X’s grow, and had more motivation to keep going- he didn’t want to break the visual chain.
It is simple, effective, and motivating method, so try it out yourself. Buy a calendar and place it at eye level to your trading desk. Commit yourself to one small action every day, and give yourself big red X if you complete it. You’ll like the feeling that visual progress brings when you look at it, so it will motivate you to keep going.
Conclusion
In conclusion, to successfully form your new habit you need to give it on average 66 days, you need to be consistent, and you need a visual progress reminder. Doing this, along with the other methods we taught in this series, will help you build better trading behaviour that will then become automatic. And, as is the often the case, the first few days are the most paramount to your success. You need to set good foundations in order for the habit to become ingrained. Begin your journey to better trading behaviour now.
Read the full habits series: