Can't stick to it? Decide when, in advance

Can't stick to a habit? What helps

Exercise more, sleep earlier, read more: the resolution is usually real, yet it rarely lasts more than a week or two. Often the problem isn't the resolution but the moment itself: we forget, or we're tired, and have to talk ourselves into it all over again.

An if-then plan, which psychologists call an "implementation intention", was introduced by the psychologist Peter Gollwitzer. It's simple: write what you want to do as one small action, and tie it in advance to a moment you'll meet anyway, such as "If I get home from work and change, then I'll walk ten minutes in the park downstairs". When the cue shows up, you're more likely to remember and just do it, without deciding again each time. The same method works on obstacles: "If I feel too tired, then I'll do just two minutes".

Gollwitzer and Paschal Sheeran brought together a large body of research and found that plans like these generally help people reach the goals they set. Results vary by person and by goal, though, so treat it as an experiment: try it for a week, then see whether the cue needs changing.

This exercise is for everyday goals. If what you want to set is eating less or dieting, or checking and washing you can't stop, this isn't the right exercise, because rigid rules can tighten things further; for that kind of difficulty, talking with a counsellor is better. This exercise also isn't therapy. If you notice it isn't just one thing, and lately you can't get going on anything, talking with a counsellor can help.

If what you want to tackle is one thing you keep putting off (a report, say), try the "Procrastination: five minutes to start" practice: it shrinks that one task to a five-minute first step and starts it there and then. This exercise is for things you want to do again and again, as a habit.

If-then plans (implementation intentions) were introduced by the psychologist Peter Gollwitzer; with Paschal Sheeran he brought together a large body of research, which found they generally help people reach the goals they set.

How it works

1. 1Pick which part of life the thing you want to do more of is in, and write it as a small action of ten minutes or less; it's small enough when you could do it on your most tired day. Rate how sure you are that you'll do it this week (0 to 10).
2. 2Find a cue: a time, a place, or right after something you do every day, and make one sentence: "If…, then I'll…". If you wouldn't recognise the moment, add a detail you could see.
3. 3Rehearse it in your head for ten seconds: picture the cue arriving and yourself doing the action.
4. 4Pick the situation that most often stops you, like being too tired or last-minute plans, and make a backup if-then plan for it, usually a smaller version or another time.
5. 5Rate again how sure you are, and pick a day to look back. When you do, ask only: was the cue right? If you missed it, change the cue, not yourself. It all goes on your if-then card.

References

1. Gollwitzer, P. M. (1999). Implementation intentions: Strong effects of simple plans. American Psychologist, 54(7), 493–503.
2. Gollwitzer, P. M., & Sheeran, P. (2006). Implementation intentions and goal achievement: A meta-analysis of effects and processes. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 38, 69–119.