Life Life Strategies Inspiration & Motivation Habit Stacking Makes New Habits Last—Here's How It Works Make small changes with big impact. By Maggie Seaver Maggie Seaver Maggie Seaver is the digital health and wellness editor at Real Simple, with seven years of experience writing lifestyle and wellness content. She spends her days writing and editing stories about sleep, mental health, fitness, preventive health, nutrition, personal development, relationships, healthy habits, and beyond. She loves demystifying complicated health topics, debunking wellness fads, and sharing practical, science-backed solutions for healthy living. Real Simple's Editorial Guidelines Updated on March 24, 2024 Reviewed by Samina Ahmed Jauregui, PsyD Reviewed by Samina Ahmed Jauregui, PsyD Samina Ahmed Jauregui is a specialty trained sleep psychologist with expertise in non-pharmaceutical, behavioral treatment of sleep disorders. Other areas of mental health expertise include chronic illness management, pain management, and mood and anxiety difficulties that impact physical health and wellness. Dr. Ahmed has five years of experience in the field of sleep psychology. Learn More Fact checked by Haley Mades Fact checked by Haley Mades Haley is a Wisconsin-based creative freelancer and recent graduate. She has worked as an editor, fact checker, and copywriter for various digital and print publications. Her most recent position was in academic publishing as a publicity and marketing assistant for the University of Wisconsin Press Our Fact-Checking Process Trending Videos Close this video player Photo: Getty Images Trying to change existing habits or introduce new ones—and make them stick—is notoriously difficult. Of course, some people seem to adopt behaviors easily or with impressive discipline, but for the rest of us mere mortals, finding an effective technique for building, breaking, and keeping habits can feel like a hopeless endeavor. But it's not our fault. Habit-building is hard, and we're wired for what we're used to, already good at, or familiar with. But this doesn't mean we're doomed to fail—not by any stretch. Out of all the helpful psychological tips and tricks out there, there's one brilliantly simple and effective technique you may not have heard of yet: habit stacking. It involves "stacking" the new behavior onto a current behavior to help you remember to do it and/or perform it with less mental effort. Here's why it works so well and how to break and create new habits using this method. Melissa Ming Foynes, PhD, is a licensed psychologist, holistic wellness coach, international educator and consultant, and mindfulness, meditation, and yoga teacher. Habits and behavior expert James Clear is the best-selling author of Atomic Habits and creator of the Habit Journal. The Science Behind Habit Stacking Habit stacking utilizes the strong synaptic connections we already have, and these connections have been extensively studied. S.J Scott used the term habit stacking in his book Habit Stacking: 97 Small Life Changes That Take Five Minutes or Less, and it's been encouraged and implemented by many behavioral experts over the years. Behavior scientist BJ Fogg, PhD, founder and director of Behavior Design Lab at Stanford University, best-selling author of Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything, and creator of the Tiny Habits Method, has written extensively about linking behaviors to make lasting change, referring to the current habit or trigger situation as an "anchor" or "anchor moment" that helps cue and hold the new one in place. While they explain why stacking habits promotes lasting change, we also spoke with a licensed psychologist to further demystify this method. Here's why habit stacking is so effective. Relies on Existing Brain Power The neuronal connections in our brains are strongest for those behaviors we already practice and weak (or non-existent) for those we don't (yet!). "Habit stacking is a really effective strategy for building new habits because it builds off of the existing neural networks in our brains," explains licensed psychologist Melissa Ming Foynes, PhD. "When you identify a daily action or habit you already engage in, add [a new habit or make a change] before or after the existing habit. Rather than strengthening an entirely new neural network, you're capitalizing on a structure and cycle that already exists in your brain." Provides a Built-in Reminder Foynes notes that this strategy works beyond the neurophysiological level. "The existing habit serves as a [helpful] 'cue' to engage in the new habit you're trying to develop," says Foynes. "For example, if you decide that after you turn on your tea kettle each morning, you'll breathe deeply for one minute every time you turn on your tea kettle, there's a built-in reminder integrated into your daily life that helps you maintain consistency. Over time, you'll begin to associate your tea kettle with this one minute of deep breathing." "In the midst of a busy lifestyle, habit stacking can also be helpful because the new habits often feel less like an 'add-on' when tied to something you already do anyway," Foynes says. "This approach can feel more integrated, and therefore, less overwhelming." How to Start Habit Stacking Your Way to a Better You It's simple enough to know why habit stacking works, but how can you effectively incorporate it into your life? Is it really as simple as pairing one habit with another? Here are some tips to make these changes to your routine more successful. 01 of 05 Identify All Potential Goals and Cues Whether your goal is to incorporate more wellness habits into your weekly routine or simply become more organized in general, the first step in habit stacking is identifying what specific actions you want to take to enhance your daily routine. Clarifying your objectives sets the foundation for effective habit stacking and allows you to focus on actionable steps toward achieving your desired goals. If you don't know what habits you'd like to start implementing, consider compiling a list of different aspects of your life. These categories may encompass physical health, mental well-being, career development, relationship enhancement, and involvement in volunteer activities. To get a sense of all your cue options, Habits expert James Clear recommends making two lists: one of the things you do every single day (drink coffee, eat dinner, listen to a news podcast) and another of events that occur or things that happen to you every day (the sun rises, the phone rings, you get hungry). Now, you can choose the best building block on which to stack another habit. Examples Habit stacking follows a simple formula of "When I do [current habit], I will do [new habit]." Here are some examples:"When I drink my coffee in the morning, I will listen to an educational podcast.""When I wake up in the morning, I will immediately open my window blinds.""When I finish brushing my teeth at night, I will wash my face." 02 of 05 Be Extremely Specific and Set a Realistic Cue If either your new goal or current cue (or both) are too vague, you'll struggle. "If you tell yourself you're going to take a 10-minute walk outside every day during your lunch break, it would be helpful to decide exactly when you'll go outside—right after you end the session with your client? Five minutes after you finish lunch?" Foynes says. And don't forget to make contingency plans, she adds, like what you'll do if the weather's bad or you're feeling pressure to work through lunch. To set yourself up for success, select your current habit wisely, taking into account the realities of your life, Foynes says. For instance, you want to read 10 pages every night after you brush your teeth. Sounds great. But if you "tend to fall asleep immediately reading at night, or your children have inconsistent bedtimes that affect your bedtime routine, choosing nightly teeth brushing as the cue may not be optimal." You'll want to go back to your list of existing habit options to think of a better anchor. 03 of 05 Start Small—the Smaller the Better "Research shows that consistency of practice is more effective than the duration of practice in helping us make changes in our lives," Foynes says. "Doing something every day for five minutes is more likely to result in sustainable change than practicing something once a week for 30 minutes." With that in mind, it's easier to be consistent when the goal or task is attainable. The existing habit can be as seemingly insignificant as, "When I get out of bed, I will…" In fact, this is a great one—you have to get out of bed every day (in theory). The new habit, too, should be small: "While my coffee brews, I will delete five emails." The more realistic, the more likely you are to do it, feel successful, do it again, and so on until you're a pro—and maybe even ready to stack on another habit or make the challenge slightly harder. For example, your goal might be to drink more water throughout the day, so you decide you're going to start drinking a glass of water every morning. Don't just assume you'll start doing it—it probably won't last long. (You could set an alarm or reminder, but why add another task.) Instead, pair that new habit with a small (tiny, even!) everyday habit or routine you already do, one that's concrete, specific, and consistent. Decide: "After brushing my teeth in the morning, I'm going to drink a glass of water." You stack them together and create a small but growing chain. Every morning, those two actions should be associated with each other: brush teeth, drink water. The more regularly you do it, the more automatic it will become. 04 of 05 Give Yourself a Timeline It's not totally necessary, but it's helpful to set yourself a concrete window of time to build the new habit. It could be arbitrary (one week, one month, until your birthday) or an actual deadline for an event (the race you're training for, when a work project is due). "When goals are too open-ended, you can feel less motivated to work on them," Foynes says. "Establishing [a timeline] helps reinforce the commitment you're making to work on this new habit. Plus, setting a time limit can feel less daunting because it's more of a short-term commitment with an end in sight." Setting a timeline also creates an excellent moment for you to pause and reflect on your progress. Did you successfully meditate for three minutes after taking your morning vitamins for the entire month? Celebrate that! Or did you drop off after a few days? Ask yourself why, modify the goal, or consider choosing a different old habit to link to. 05 of 05 Reward Yourself After Sticking to a New Habit One of the best ways to stick with a new habit is to treat yourself to a reward after completing it. Even more effective is choosing rewards that reinforce the habit itself. For instance, if your goal was to go for a 15-minute walk every morning after brushing your teeth, and you successfully achieved it for a week, why not treat yourself to some new workout clothes? Similarly, if your desired habit is to go grocery shopping every Sunday after lunchtime, consider rewarding yourself with a dessert as a treat while you're there. By integrating rewards into your habits, you create positive reinforcement loops that create a desire to continue practicing them. Forget Time Management—Attention Management Is the Better Path to Productivity Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit