Use 21 days to stop bad habits
The saying has been adapted since the 1950s from Dr Maxwell Maltz's observations that 'it takes a minimum of about 21 days for an old mental image to dissolve and a new one to gel'
WHILE 21 days of forced isolation does not appeal to most, many Zululanders are using the time to tend to those shelved projects, enjoy quality time with family or make some necessary changes in their lives.
‘It takes 21 days to make or break a habit’ is the popular saying which, although not quite factual, gives us exactly this amount of time to break old habits or start to form new healthy ones.
The saying has been adapted since the 1950s from Dr Maxwell Maltz’s observations that ‘it takes a minimum of about 21 days for an old mental image to dissolve and a new one to gel’.
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This was the plastic surgeon’s findings after noticing that his patients took at least 21 days to come to terms with whatever surgery he had performed on them.
Those who had nose jobs done would take at least 21 days to get used to seeing their new face, while those who suffered amputations would sense a phantom limb for about 21 days before adjusting to their new situation.
As the years went on, Dr Maltz’s statement and findings, which in book form sold 30 million copies, gradually became shortened to the popular phrase as we know it – ‘it takes 21 days to kick a bad habit, or form a new one’.
According to Phillippa Lally, a health psychology researcher at the University College of London, who undertook a study of the habits of 96 people over 12 weeks, it takes 66 days for a new behaviour to become a habit, while it can take much longer – or shorter – to form a new habit.
Results vary widely among people, but in Lally’s study, it took anywhere between 18 and 254 days for her subjects to form a new habit.
Nevertheless, this 21-day lockdown period is a good opportunity for new behaviours to be put in place and we asked Zululanders what habits they would look to make or break.
QUESTION: Whether myth or fact, they say it takes 21 days to make or break a habit. What habit would you like to make or break over the next 21 days of lockdown?
CLICK ON THE IMAGE BELOW FOR ANSWERS!
HAVE YOUR SAY
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