Loophole #3 - Do you fall into this category when trying to form a new habit?

When we’re trying to form and keep habits, we often search, sometimes unconsciously, for loopholes. We look for justifications that will excuse us from keeping this particular habit in this particular situation. However, if we recognize this behavior and catch ourselves in the act of loophole-seeking, we can avoid using the loophole, and improve our chances of keeping the habit.

There are many kinds of loopholes. Ten kinds, in fact. So every few days we will be posting about a category of loophole, to help with the Strategy of Loophole-Spotting.

Loophole Category #3: The Tomorrow Loophole

This loophole depends on “tomorrow logic.” Now doesn’t matter much, because we’re going to follow good habits tomorrow.

·         It doesn’t matter what I eat now, because I’m starting a diet tomorrow. (Research shows that people who plan to start dieting tomorrow tend to over-eat today.)

·         I’m definitely on track to finish my paper on time, because starting tomorrow, I’m really going to buckle down.

·         I’ll be really frugal in January so it doesn’t matter if I spend too much in December.

·         Today I’m eating whatever I want, but tomorrow I’ll be “good.” (People tend to self-regulate day-by-day, but everything counts.)

Tomorrow logic undermines good habits by making it easy to deny that our actions clash with our intentions. It’s nice to think about how virtuous we’ll be, tomorrow. In one study, when subjects made a shopping list for what they’d eat in a week, 70 percent chose fruit instead of chocolate; when asked what they’d choose now, 74 percent picked chocolate instead of fruit.

Postponing a start may also lead to the unhelpful phenomenon of the “last hurrah.” “I’m starting my diet on Monday, so I deserve to eat anything I want until then.” Some people even fool themselves into thinking that extreme indulgence now will give them more self-control when the magic future day arrives. But eating a giant bowl of ice cream today doesn’t make it any easier to resist tomorrow, and spending an entire day watching TV doesn’t make a person feel more like working the next morning.

Reference: “Which of These 10 Categories of Loopholes Do You Invoke?” by Gretchen Rubin, February 5, 2014.