Install new habits to become a leader

First of all, every habit goes through three phases. Number one, destruction. Second, installation and third, integration. Of course, it’s going to be hard at first. You’re destroying your neural pathway of the old habit and the emotional architecture of that old habit. Every routine or ritual or habit goes through, number one, destruction 22 days, installation 22 days and installation 22 days; 66 days to become automatic.

From the starting point to anything you’ve learned to install as a habit, from zero to 66 days. At 66 days, you will reach what researchers call automaticity. It’ll be easy. You’ll get up at 5:00AM automatically. You will go the extra mile, practice your workout automatically. But you have to stay with it for 66 days.

First 22 days approximately is phase number one, destruction of old habits. You will feel like giving up.

Phase number two, installation. After you’ve destroyed your old habits, like a renovation; your will grow slowly. Society says, “What’s the changes you have made to yourself? You will start installing the new habits.

Stage number three, the final 22 days approximately, integration. Integration of the new habit. You get to automaticity. It becomes a part of your new belief, your new way of being. It becomes easy.

True lasting growth is a result of internal transformation. While an attitude of “out with the old, in with the new” is helpful, in practice, it requires us to tap into the power of habits. It is said: “First, we mould our habits, and later, our habits mould us.”

Think about it. We are first taught to brush our teeth every morning immediately upon waking up. After some time, the behaviour becomes so ingrained that we don’t even stop to think about it; it’s something we just do. It’s the same concept with negative behaviours as well. Some of us are so used to smoking a cigarette first thing in the morning that doing without it leaves us uncomfortable and in disarray as if something is amiss.

To change a habit i.e. cultivate a new one or drop an existing one requires us to understand the Science of Cultivating Good Habits. Successful implementation and integration of habits requires us to understand the neuroplastic nature of the brain, the physiology of habit formation, the habit loop, the gravitational pull of bad habits, and the power of good habits among other concepts.

Warren Buffet, an American investor, business tycoon, and philanthropist, is undoubtedly one of the richest people in the world. His name continually figures in the Top Five in the Forbes list of billionaires every year for at least the last ten years. As of today, his total net worth is around 88 billion US dollars.

Given these facts, one would be inclined to think that Buffet would own multiple houses and live in New York City or London or one of the other major financial hubs of the world. Nothing could be further from the truth. You would be surprised to learn that Buffet still lives in his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska, in the middle-class house he had bought in 1958 for $31,500.

He still loves to eat at the local restaurants in town instead of the fancy ones. He still enjoys spending time with the people he grew up with. He prefers not to be in the media and turns down most invitations for interviews and galas. Such habits to lead a modest lifestyle despite having all the riches in the world is a hallmark, not just of simplicity but also humility. Indeed, these habits are worth practicing.