Make new good habits
Do you
have a bad habit you want to stop?
How
long do you think it takes to stop a bad habit?
For most people it will take more than 2
months before a habit becomes automatic. But this change can be very different
for each person. In one study, it took anywhere from 18 days to 254 days for
people to make a new habit.
So you need to control your expectations. It may take you anywhere
from two months to eight months to make a new good habit.
Don’t worry if you fail. You might mess up sometimes.
Find some Inspiration. Read positive things, talk to people who have
succeeded.
Do not be disheartened.
There is no reason to get down on yourself if you try something for a few weeks and it
doesn't become a habit. Good habits take some hard work. Try to focus on your goal and how great you
will feel when you become a better you.
You don't have to be perfect. Sometimes you
will fail. Let yourself make mistakes. Finally you will succeed.
You need to know that success comes from
making small incremental changes.
You don’t have to do it all at one time.
At
the end of the day, how long it takes to make a new
good habit is not important. It may take 50 or 500 days, just keep going, keep
fighting.
The only way to get to Day 500 is to start
with Day 1. So forget about the number and focus on doing the work.
Try
to guess the meaning of the words in bold and match them with their closest
meaning from the choices in the right. Some of the answers are very close and
have similar meaning. The meaning of these words is how they are used in the
reading. Some of these words have different meanings in the dictionary
depending on how they are used.
The
answers are below the table.
expectations
|
A
|
1
|
Something/someone that gives you desire,
passion, energy to do something greater
|
mess up
|
B
|
2
|
To make a mistake, to fail
|
Inspiration
|
C
|
3
|
To concentrate on something, to give all your
attention and effort to something
|
disheartened
|
D
|
4
|
Very small changes
|
get down on yourself
|
E
|
5
|
These are what we think will or should happen
|
focus
|
F
|
6
|
To be disappointed with yourself, to
criticize yourself
|
incremental
|
G
|
7
|
Finally
|
At the end of the day
|
H
|
8
|
To feel like giving up after failing, not
wanting to try anymore or to keep fighting
|
A=5, B=2. C=1, D=8, E=6, F=3, G=4, H=7
Some example sentences using the new words or phrases from the
meaning of how they are used in the reading to help you understand better.
My teacher has expectations that I will get into a
good university.
I’m sorry, I forgot to do my
homework, I have messed up.
The greatest inspiration in my life was my father
who taught me to never give up.
Don’t be disheartened; you tried your best. Next time you will do better.
Sometimes we get down on ourselves because we don’t
do what we know is best.
Get a good nights sleep so you
can focus on the exam tomorrow.
When you are learning a new
language the changes are incremental.
You don’t see change happen fast.
At the end of the day, how much you
succeed will be because of how hard you worked.
Some questions using the new words/phrases. Try to use the
words/phrases in your answer.
Do you have some expectations of what you want to
achieve? What are they? And if you mess
up do you get down on yourself?
What or who inspires you to do your best?
When you fail do you feel disheartened? What do you do to feel
good or positive again?
What things do you do to help
you focus?
If you want to start a new good
habit; what incremental changes can
you make?
At the end of the day, what helps you to
change a habit?