Many people, myself included, have multiple areas of life they would like to improve. For example, I would like to reach more people with my writing, to lift heavier weights at the gym, and to start practising mindfulness more consistently. Those are just a few of the goals I find desirable, and you probably have a long list yourself. The problem is, even if we are committed to working hard on our goals, our natural tendency is to return to our old habits at some point. Making a permanent lifestyle change is really difficult.
Recently I've come across a few studies that will make these difficult lifestyle changes a bit easier. As you'll see, however, the approach to mastering many areas of life is somewhat counterintuitive. Research has shown that you are two to three times more likely to stick with your habits if you make a specific plan for when, where, and how you will perform the behavior. For example, in one study, scientists asked people to fill out a sentence to specify during the next week they would do at least 20 minutes of vigorous exercise on which day, at what time of day, and at or in what place. Researchers found that people who filled out this sentence were two to three times more likely to actually exercise compared to a control group who did not make plans for their future behavior. Psychologists call these specific plans implementation intentions because they state when, where, and how you intend to implement a particular behavior.
However, follow-up research has discovered implementation intentions only work when you focus on one thing at a time. In fact, researchers found that people who tried to accomplish multiple goals were less committed and less likely to succeed than those who focused on a single goal.
Another science-based reason to focus on one thing at a time is that when you begin practising a new habit, it requires a lot of conscious effort to remember to do it. After a while, however, the pattern of behavior becomes easier. Eventually, your new habit becomes a normal routine, and the process is more or less mindless and automatic. The most important thing to note is that there is some tipping point at which new habits become more or less automatic. The time it takes to build a habit depends on many factors, including how difficult the habit is, your genetics, and more.