I have found that in order to establish and sustain a new habit, ritual or life rhythm, it is really helpful to couple (or de-couple) it with a specific time and place (or in some instances a person). The same principal applies with trying to get rid of a habit, ritual or life rhythm that is causing harm or no longer serving us.

Have you heard of the coupling theory? My take on it is, there is a much higher likelihood of an action occurring (or not occurring) when coupled with a specific condition (i.e. place, time, person). This is a powerful concept and tool which can really help to transform our good intentions into action and is available to us right now (no waiting period, no admission fee, no license or training required).

And, while coupling (or de-coupling) with a single condition may be effective enough, this power is really supercharged when coupled with two or more conditions (i.e. time, place and/or person).

By way of example, if you wanted to create a habit of daily reading, you might choose to couple this with your daily meals and to read before every meal. You might like to also select a specific space where your reading takes place (i.e a stool from your kitchen, this being very close to where your meals are made). In addition, you might like to also set a time or goal target for every session (i.e. 10 minutes or 1 chapter) to further define the activity and later be able to measure your progress. After some time, as you prepare for meals you may start to find yourself automatically reaching for your reading stool without any thought given to it at all and associate that time and place with reading.

So, what’s a habit, ritual or life rhythm you want to begin or better embed? What time or/and place (or person) is available to you that you can couple (or de-couple) it with to make it happen?

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