As goes a saying – ‘First we form habits, and then they form us. Conquer your bad habits or they will conquer you."

All of us have both good and bad habits. Good habits help us win friends, success, fame and much more. While bad habits can be disastrous for our relationships, career, all round growth and can drastically affect our lives.

‘Bad habits are like a comfortable bed, easy to get into, but hard to get out of’. Most of the times we don’t even remember when we embrace a bad habit, sometimes we don’t even acknowledge that one of our habit is actually a bad one. Generally bad habits could be a result of our surrounding, influenced by culture and friends/relatives, inculcated due to specific lifestyle or sought as a resort for depressions and failures.  Whatever might be the reason for imbibing a bad habit, the fact remains that we ourselves have got into it and it is up to us to get rid of it.

Some of the most common bad habits are –

• Smoking, drinking or addiction to drugs
• Nail biting , nose or mouth pricking
• Talking loudly and talking too much
• Bad food habits, over eating, lack of table manners and so on
• Lying unnecessarily
• Being workaholic, shopaholic
• Overspending and landing up in debts
• Living a unhealthy life due to stress, lack of exercise
• Avoiding socialising and being lonely
• Being irregular, unpunctual always

This is just a small list, however if we really have to count bad habits the list may turn out to be never ending.

Whether the bad habit is trivial like nail biting or as major as being an alcoholic, it can be difficult to quit, however it is essential to take care of it, before it is too late. Most people would not like to leave their bad habits; rather they offer logically inappropriate excuses and reasons for not doing so. Some people desperately try to get rid of these bad habits but fall prey to temptations and pick them up soon.

A famous quote by Mark Twain says, ‘A habit cannot be tossed out the window; it must be coaxed down the stairs a step at a time.’ People make resolutions and start with huge enthusiasm but do not continue with the same to give up a bad habit. Following are few ways to give up a bad habit

• Define your goals, set a timeline preferably and then commit yourself to achieve them
• If you find it difficult to stick to your resolution , get help, ask a friend to remind you and to keep a check on you
• Add and don’t just subtract – While trying to lose a bad habit, make efforts to inculcate a good one, it will help you divert your attention from bad habit
• Allow yourself some concession, as it might be at times difficult to get rid completely at one go, but don’t let it happen often
• Lastly reward yourself, as and when you achieve your goals

Remember, it is in our hand to quit our bad habits. It may be time consuming but is worth the efforts.