From Small Changes to Significant Results: Habit Stacking

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This podcast delves into the concept of habit stacking, illustrating how attaching new habits to established routines can lead to lasting change. Listeners are guided through practical tips and personal anecdotes, emphasizing the importance of flexibility and personalization in habit formation.

• Introduction to the concept of habit stacking 
• Explanation of why habit stacking is effective 
• Real-life examples of writing, meditation, and journaling habits 
• Step-by-step guide on how to identify and stack habits 
• Emphasis on starting small and being flexible with stacks 
• Encouragement to personalize habit stacks for individual needs 
• Weekly challenge to implement habit stacking in daily routines

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Oh we could, we could fly.
Welcome to this new season ofthe have a cup of johanni
podcast.
So I want to title this newseason that I'm embarking on
with I'm growing, so this isgoing to be the season of growth
and that's what I'm going toshare with you throughout the

(00:20):
season.
So I thank you for coming overhere and sitting with me and I
hope you enjoy Hola vacitos.
And welcome back to anotherepisode of have a Couple Johnny
podcast.
We're in season five y'all, andthis entire month we've been

(00:50):
exploring habits, and today I ambringing you one of my favorite
habit-building tools, which iscalled habit stacking.
Habit stacking If you've everstruggled to build a new habit
or make an existing one stick,this episode is for you.

(01:18):
Vassito, I'll share personalstories, practical tips and help
tailoring habits for your lifeto make all the difference.
Are you ready?
Difference?
Are you ready?
Of course you are.
I mean, why else would we behere listening to one another?

(01:38):
Let's dive in, all right.
So let's start with the basics,won't we?
What exactly is habit stacking?
So the concept comes from jamesclear book, atomic habits.
I highly recommend it.
It has gone down as one of mylife-changing books and it's

(01:59):
simple.
You take a habit you already doregularly, it's already
ingrained in your psyche, andyou attach a new habit to it.
Think of it as building a chain.
So, for example, if you alreadybrush your teeth every morning
which you should you can stackflossing right after Fun fact.

(02:23):
I did that right after Fun fact.
I did that, I think, two yearsago.
The dentist really caught onand he was like you don't really
floss, do you?
I was so offended, so I did.
I stacked the habit of flossingin between brushing my teeth
and a mouthwash.

(02:43):
So there, there you go.
Then See, I'm doing it.
So when you do things like that, your brain starts to associate
the two activities, making thenew habit easier to remember and
follow through on.
So the key is to use anexisting habit as an anchor.

(03:06):
So why habit stacking works?
So it works because it takesthe guesswork out of building
new routines.
It's kind of like the shortcutway you know of doing it,
because, instead of trying tocreate a habit from scratch,

(03:28):
you're leveraging something youalready do, and because your
brain loves patterns.
Stacking habits createsmomentum and consistency without
requiring a ton of extra effortand willpower, which for us
human beings is a win-win andfor me it's been a game changer.

(03:52):
So let me show you I'm going touse some of my real life
examples of how I've used habitstacking to profit my own life.
To benefit my own life.
Okay, so my writing habit.
Let's talk about that one first.
I tailor my writing habit towhatever phase I'm in.

(04:17):
When I'm drafting, I stack itwith my daily time block and
measure success by word count,but when I'm editing, I stack it
with a completely differentanchor, revealing scenes during
my lunch break or at night whenthe house is quiet.

(04:40):
So by attaching the habit to aconsistent routine, I ensure it
evolves with me and never getsleft behind.
Another example I can give youis the meditation habit.
If you have heard me talk aboutthis, this is something that I

(05:01):
strive to do, to be consistentwith it.
It's something that I'vestruggled with being consistent
with.
So I stack this one with myworkout, and that's how it has
been able to stick to theroutine, because by stacking

(05:21):
meditation to the end of myworkout, it works perfectly.
I am exhausted at the end of itand I'm already in a state
where my mind can quiet down,whether it's for 10 minutes or
for just five deep breaths I amable to get there, to get zen,
and this habit stacking hashelped me to stick with it.

(06:05):
But lastly, the last examplethat I'm going to give you is my
journaling habit, and I amtelling you, the journaling
habit for me is kind of likeseamless.
It's that habit that doesn'teven feel like a habit.
It feels more like breathing,like I just got to do it.
Now this is very powerful forme because it supports my
writing habit.
So you heard me talk about mywriting habit and how I anchor
it to different things dependingon what phase of writing I'm in
.
But the one thing, the one habitnow that drives the writing

(06:28):
habit, is my journaling habit,which I do seamlessly, without
even thinking about it.
As thoughts come and go, I amquick to grab my journaling app
on my phone and write it down.
If my phone is not available tome, because of whatever
environment I'm in, I utilize mywritten notebook, my bullet

(06:50):
journal, and I put it there.
But this habit, the journalinghabit, I use it to brainstorm,
reflect and capture ideas forboth fictional and non-fictional
pieces.
It is basically a water faucetof ideas and by stacking my

(07:13):
journaling with my morningcoffee or with my evening
winding down routine at the end,for all those thoughts that I
just can't let go of, it becomesthe foundation for my creative
process.
So, if you see, here it's kindof like this cycle that I have

(07:34):
the journaling habit feeds mywriting habit, my writing habit
is stacked to my time blockhabit, you see.
So it's kind of like this kindof cycle in there that it just
it's like a cog, you know thatjust keeps on turning.
You see, now you're like, okay.

(07:56):
Okay, I hear you, I hear yourexample, but how do I start?
Okay, so let's talk about that,it's easier than you think.
Okay, I would say the firstthing to do will be to identify
an existing habit.
What is something that youalready do every day?

(08:18):
James Clear says it on his book, and I think he talks about
auditing your day.
I need to reread it.
That's a good book to reread,by the way.
So it's like brushing your teeth, making coffee or commuting to
work.
What is it that you already doseamlessly, like?

(08:38):
For me, I journal seamlessly,brush my teeth without even
thinking.
Coffee is another thing that Idon't have to think about too
much.
Now, choose a new habit tostack right Once you audit your
day and you know the things thatyou automatically do, that are
like part of your routine.

(08:59):
Now choose a new habit to stackand pick a habit you want to
build, like drinking more water.
Do you want to stack that tocoffee?
Maybe drink two cups of water,or one cup of water before the
coffee?
Or do you want to do practicinggratitude Right After you brush

(09:21):
your teeth?
You want to jot down threethings that you're grateful for.
Or stretching Do you want to doa minute of stretching once you
see your car, before you get infor the commuting?
So once you choose which newhabit to stack, you pair them
together.
Attach the new habit to theexisting one.

(09:43):
For example, right after Ibrush my teeth, I'll floss.
That's something that I stack.
While I wait for my coffee tobrew, I can jot down the three
things I'm grateful for.
Or I can do five deep breaths,you see, and start small.
You heard me say this Startsmall and manageable so that way

(10:07):
it can be sustainable.
Vacitos, okay, don't go inthere aiming for perfection or
these like magnificent things.
Aim for progress, because thebeauty of habit stacking is that
it's manageable.
You can customize it.

(10:28):
It's not about copying somebodyelse's routine because my
routine may not be for you, myroutine may not work for you.
It's about creating one thatworks for you.
For example, maybe you stack agratitude practice into your
commute it's very doable bythinking of three things that
you're grateful for while you'redriving and saying them out

(10:50):
loud.
Or you stack a few minutes ofstretching after putting on your
workout clothes, even if you'renot heading to the gym.
The key is to find those pairsright that fit into your life
seamlessly.
But don't get into like a pithfee when it doesn't work out

(11:16):
perfectly, because sometimes itjust doesn't.
Sometimes new habits don'tstick and it could be because
the pairing doesn't feel naturalor it doesn't have a flow to it
, and that's okay.
It's about trial and error.
Okay, maybe what's a weirdexample?

(11:43):
Like, maybe stretching beforeyou get into your car for your
commute?
Is not it because you wear asuit or you wear, like these
fishy clothes to work right andthey're too tight on you so you
can't really stretch?
Well, you know now we knowthat's not a habit.
Stack that is going to work foryou.
Maybe the one that works for youis to do gratitude.

(12:09):
Say three things that you'regrateful for during your commute
, to say three things thatyou're grateful for during your
commute, because the wholestretching before the commute is
not going to work.
So that's why it's good not toget too caught up or too rigid
into what you come off with thefirst time around, but to be

(12:30):
flexible.
Remember that's part of theprocess is to be flexible, so
that way you're not too afraidto tweak your stack until it
feels right for you, until it'sworking for you, because the
lesson is Spacitos.
Here's the lesson is that itneeds to last, the routine needs

(12:52):
to last, and for the routine tolast, it needs to be
sustainable to you.
By attaching new habits toexisting one, you create a flow
that feels natural andachievable to you.
As you're figuring it out,you're going to find those
matches that are not good foryou, and that is okay.

(13:13):
Revamp them, go back to thedrawing board and do it again,
because when you tailor thosehabits to your goals and
lifestyle, they become more thanjust tasks.
They become anchors for growthand consistency.
So here is your challenge forthe week.
That's it.
Go, pick one habit you want tobuild and stack it into an

(13:39):
existing habit.
Let's just make one pair.
That's it.
Start small, keep it simple andwatch how this technique
transform your routine or how itmesses up your routine.
It may just do that, we don'tknow, but we're going to watch
and reflect and, if you try itand let me know, I'd love to

(14:03):
hear how it works for you, whatyou did, what worked, what
didn't work and how y'all wentabout it.
Share your habit.
Stacks with me on social mediaor in the comments and, as
always, thank you for sipping onthis conversation with me.
Until next time, keep growing,keep stacking and keep showing

(14:27):
up for yourselves.
Besitos.
Talk to you later.
Bye.
Thank you so much for listening.
I want to hear from you, leaveme a comment, do a rating if you

(14:49):
can on the podcast, share itwith somebody you love, but,
most importantly, come back.
See you next time.
Bye.