{"id":1119544,"date":"2019-06-05T14:26:34","date_gmt":"2019-06-05T14:26:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dailyreckoning.com\/?p=107477"},"modified":"2019-06-05T14:26:34","modified_gmt":"2019-06-05T14:26:34","slug":"4-steps-to-break-any-bad-habit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/?p=1119544","title":{"rendered":"4 Steps to Break ANY Bad Habit"},"content":{"rendered":"

This post 4 Steps to Break ANY Bad Habit<\/a> appeared first on Daily Reckoning<\/a>.<\/p>\n

When you\u2019re in the checkout line, what goes through your mind?<\/span><\/p>\n

Do you think about how much available credit you have on each of your cards, then choose the one with the smallest debt? <\/span><\/p>\n

Do you think about the value of the product you\u2019re about to buy versus the opportunity cost of using those dollars elsewhere? <\/span><\/p>\n

Or do you simply pull out whatever card is closest in your wallet, and spend? <\/span><\/p>\n

The choices we make each day may seem like well-thought out decisions, but they\u2019re not. <\/span><\/p>\n

They\u2019re habits. <\/span><\/p>\n

And if you\u2019ve been noticing a downward trend in your bank account (or upward on your credit) lately, look no further than your daily routines. <\/span><\/p>\n

In Charles Duhigg\u2019s bestselling book The Power of Habit<\/i>, he outlines the habit loop \u2014 how good and bad habits are made and broken. <\/span><\/p>\n

While writing the book, Duhigg became hyper aware of some of his own habits, including buying chocolate chip cookies every weekday at the same time. This routine demonstrated how easy it is to slip into a routine of spending with no intentions.<\/span><\/p>\n

Duhigg wrote about his experience and explained in detail how he broke free from this bad habit. <\/span><\/p>\n

Today I\u2019m going to share with you Duhigg\u2019s secret to breaking bad spending habits. <\/span><\/p>\n

To break any bad habit you must follow Duhigg\u2019s four rules: <\/span><\/p>\n

Rule One: You Must Identify Your Habits<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

To figure out how you spend, you have to identify your spending habits \u2014 the cues and routines and rewards \u2014 that drive how you handle money.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

As an example, let’s say you have a bad habit, like I did when I started researching my book, The Power of Habit, of going to the cafeteria and buying a chocolate chip cookie every afternoon. <\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

How do you start diagnosing and then changing this behavior? <\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

By figuring out the habit loop. And the first step is to identify the routine. In this cookie scenario \u2014 as with most habits \u2014 the routine is the most obvious aspect: it’s the behavior you want to change.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

My routine was that I got up from my desk every afternoon, walked to the cafeteria, and bought a chocolate chip cookie and ate it while chatting with friends. So that’s what I put into the loop.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

Spending money on fast food is no different. You might drive by a fast food restaurant on your way home from work and start to feel hungry. Next thing you know you\u2019re skipping cooking and heading for the drive thru.<\/span><\/p>\n

To take control over these habits, you have to identify them. And to do that, you need to look for patterns in your spending. Download your credit card data and ask yourself:<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n