8招教你丢掉坏习惯

Most of us have one or a few habits that we consider bad and we’d like to get rid of. But how do you do it?

我们大多数人都有一个或几个坏习惯，我们自己心知肚明，也想改掉它们。具体应该怎么做呢？

Today I’d like to share I have a few suggestions that have helped me and people around me greatly.

今天我就来分享几条建议，这些建议对我和身边的朋友都有很大帮助。

Here are 8 tips that can help you to finally get rid of that bad habit once and for all.

以下8条建议能让你永远告别自己的陋习。

Tell your friends and family

告知家人和朋友

If you tell people around you that you will stop smoking or start working out three times a week then they will check up on you. And you will feel a social pressure to keep up with your promise now that it is let out into the world. I would recommend only telling people who you think will support you or be neutral. Negative people make things so much more difficult.

如果你告诉身边的人你要戒烟了，或者从现在开始你要每周锻炼3次，他们就可以帮助监督你。来自周围的压力能督促你实现自己的许诺。我建议你只告诉那些会支持你的人，或持中立客观态度的人。那些消极悲观者只会帮倒忙。

Make it painful to not go through with it

完不成目标的惩罚措施

This may not be for everyone but you could consider making a promise to someone. For example, if you stray off the path to better health by having French fries or a cigarette then you will give your friend 100 or 500 dollars. The point is to add some possible pain to keep yourself in check on days when you may feel a bit tempted.

这条建议可能并不适用于所有人，但你可以考虑和别人定下赌约。假如你没能完成你的健康目标，比如你吃了炸薯条，或者抽了根烟，那你就要付给朋友100或500美元。这样肉疼的惩罚措施可以使你面对诱惑时保持自省。

Listen to those who have gone where you want to go

听取过来人的经验

Not to people who have no practical or real idea about what your challenge entails. It is important to get the best advice that actually works in real life. Seek it out in people around you, in the best books on the topic (check for the number of stars and read reviews on a site like amazon.com) and on blogs and forums that seem reliable.

要听取过来人的经验，而不是那些不明就里者的夸夸其谈。现实生活中真正实用的经验才是最好的。你可以向周围人请教，或者查阅相关科目的优秀图书（在亚马逊这样的网站上查看图书评分和图书预览），也可以到值得信赖的论坛和博客去转转。

What will this lead to in 5 and 10 years?

5年或10年后你会是什么样子？

See your future self vividly in your mind. Where are you going? Towards massive debt, a heart attack, serious illness and severe restrictions in your future? Do you want go to that place where it is very likely that you will wind up if you don’t make a change? Then see your future self where you have made the positive change. What positive and awesome things has it brought you in 5 years and in 10 years? See it all in your mind. And remind yourself of the positive and negative consequences by writing them down and reviewing them whenever you feel like quitting and going back to your old ways.

想象一下你的未来会是什么样子？债台高筑，心脏问题，恶疾缠身，处处受限？如果你不能改掉坏习惯，这就是你的未来。难道你想变成这幅模样？现在再想象一下，如果你做出积极改变，未来5年或10年后，你会取得怎样的成就？把好的一面和坏的一面都考虑清楚，并用笔记录下来，当你想要放弃退缩的时候，就拿出来看一看。

Avoid temptations

避免诱惑

Know what usually triggers your bad habit. Places where you are likely to spend too much money. Things in your cupboard that will not help you to get healthier and you should not have at home at all. And people that drag you down and back into your old ways.

想清楚哪些东西会触发你的坏习惯。不要去那些你可能会大笔花钱的地方。把橱柜里的垃圾食品找出来扔掉。还有那些会把你拉上老路的狐朋狗友，你应该与他们断绝交往。

Replace it

用新习惯来替代

If you stop doing one thing then it can leave a vacuum in your life. It’s easier to not relapse if you replace that space with a new habit. If you had chips and candy at home to snack on then have fruits and nuts to snack on when you feel the cravings. If you stopped checking social media and the internet for many hours each evening then replace that habit and space with reading more books or joining a club, sport or evening class.

坏习惯的终止会给你的生活留下一块真空，用新的习惯来填补这片空白，坏习惯就很难再找上你。以前你的家里常摆着薯片糖果类的零食，不妨把它们换成水果和坚果。以前你习惯每晚花费数小时查看邮件，现在你可以利用晚上的时间阅读图书，参加俱乐部活动，进行体育锻炼，或者参加夜校学习。

Don’t remove more than one habit at a time

一次改正一个陋习

It may seem like a good idea to overhaul your life all at once. When regular life, stress and lack of energy interfere it usually leads to failure. Don’t try to be Superman or Wonder Woman. Take it easy and change one habit at a time to dramatically increase the odds of real life success.

让生活来个翻天覆地的变化——听上去很不错，但现实生活的规律，压力和难以为继的动力都会导致你的行动失败。所以，不要尝试成为超人或神奇女侠。慢慢来，一次改掉一个陋习，这样做成功的几率会大很多。

Don’t make a huge deal out of it

不必小题大做

If you think about it and talk about it all the time then it will feel like a huge deal to get rid of that habit. This will make each day much harder mentally and you may feel overwhelmed. Instead, keep it simple and realize that whatever habit you want to get rid of thousands if not millions of people have done so before. Yes, things do get tough from time to time. But there is no need to create a lot of extra drama around it and in the longer run make things more difficult than they need to be.

如果你总把改掉陋习这件事放在心里，挂在嘴边，就会觉得这是件了不得的大事。这会增加你的精神压力，让你感到不知所措。不要把它想得太复杂，要知道，无论你要改变什么坏习惯，之前都已经有无数人有过与你相同的经历。当然，事情不可能总是一帆风顺的。但没有必要将其戏剧化夸大，并人为制造困难。