I learned about habit stacking several years ago from a book and l have used this technique off and on since then to hone healthy habits, but this past year I had to learn it’s opposite, yet equally important force called singleness of purpose. Habit stacking is the practice of attaching a new habit to an existing habit and allowing the solidity of the first habit to hold down the consistency of the second until the second gains traction on its own, and from there you can add a third, and so on.
For example, several years ago I began this habit of reading ten pages every morning of a good book. Once that habit was strong, I created a habit of going to the track every single morning, and I built habits on habits that way. But in April 2024, when I decided to go alcohol free (again), I had to sideline “all the things” and entrench myself in this effort with singleness of purpose because alcohol was just too insidious to me in our culture, community, entertainment industry and, frankly, my subconscious, for me to try to really become alcohol free while simultaneously pursuing other goals. So l had to set down the other things and let go for awhile.
It didn’t matter if I ate potato chips or sugary things or fast food or went to the gym or didn’t go to the gym or finished my book or didn’t write for a week; all that mattered was that I didn’t drink alcohol. As the days grew, my strength grew, and my turning to other unhealthy things or not doing the things I wanted was a circumstance that dissolved, gently and quietly into nonexistence. It all sorted itself out. I stopped eating chips. I started making healthier choices again.
As my time being alcohol free has gained momentum, my health has improved and my emotional balance has grown, I’ve started to have the capacity to habit stack again, and it adds up. Every little right choice adds up. The days add up. Make your days count. Every day is a fresh start. Every day we have a chance and a choice. “There is no elevator to success. You have to take the stairs.”
This is how it is that 296 days ago I quit drinking alcohol and then 233 days ago I quit drinking energy drinks and then 210 days ago I began the habit of living fast food free and then 33 days ago I began what’s now an effort at building a sugar free-ish life. One day, one choice, one habit at a time. It’s not always easy, and it’s definitely never perfect, but you are always worth it.
