5 Ideas I Use to Design Habits to Last

How do I design habits to last? I start from the awareness that I’m not the problem. The system I’m using just isn’t the best fit for me. And like a tailor modifying an off-the-rack item for my petite frame, I go about modifying systems to create ones that will hold up to the life I have now.

I’m going to share 5 of the go-to tools I use to tailor systems and make them my own so you too can apply these ideas to whatever you’re trying to stick to.

And honestly, this kind of tailoring shows up in everyday life more than we realize.

For example, you know how parents get kids to eat their vegetables?

They don’t usually sit them down and give a lecture on micronutrients and long-term cardiovascular health. They do things like:

• hide spinach in smoothies

• put broccoli under cheese

• cut carrots into “fun shapes”

• make a game out of it

• or just flat-out lie and say, “These are special dinosaur trees.”

Well, that’s basically how I think about designing wellbeing routines and lifestyles for adults — including myself.

I acknowledge how life actually works and how I actually work inside it. I acknowledge that my tired brain and the limited time I have need gentle persuasion to start things. Otherwise, I'll just do what's most urgent.

I know that I can't expect to have willpower and natural motivation in the beginning, so environment redesign is always the first thing on my checklist.

No Lectures

And just as I wouldn’t give kids the micronutrients speech, I don’t think I need to give my audience and clients the “walking is good for you because science says…” speech either.

Because I know that most of us already know what we “should” be doing. Sleep more. Move more. Eat better. Connect more. Drink water. Take breaks. Stop scrolling at midnight.

Knowing is not the problem.

Living is the problem.

Life is busy. Energy is limited. Brains are weird.

So, when I design routines — for myself and for others — I’m asking, What’s realistically going to work in this person’s actual Tuesday?

So once you acknowledge that the challenge of showing up is primarily a systems issue — and you already know the sleep, movement, or whatever habit is something you want (no lectures needed) — the real question becomes: How do I tailor this for my Tuesdays, my Thursdays, my mornings, my forgetfulness, my own real life?

It’s usually not the habit. It’s the situation.

Most people I work with (and honestly, most people I know) aren’t unmotivated. They’re:

• short on time

• mentally tired

• emotionally stretched

• running on not enough sleep

• quietly telling themselves, “I’ll deal with connection later” or “I’ll catch up on sleep when things calm down”

Except… things don’t really calm down. They just change flavor.

And here’s the part that matters:

Sleep, nourishment, movement, and connection all talk to each other inside your body. When one is off, the others usually wobble too.

Which is why I don’t design habits in isolation. I design them to fit into a whole, messy, human life.

Here are a few of the ideas that work for almost everyone. It's a matter of choosing the right one for the routine or habit you're trying to stick to.

1. I sneak habits into things I already want to do (bundling)

This is my grown-up version of hiding spinach in the smoothie.

If I want to do something more consistently, I don’t rely on motivation. I attach it to something I already want to do.

So instead of “go for a walk,” it becomes:

• I listen to my favorite podcast when I’m walking

• I make certain phone calls walking calls

• I walk during low stakes work calls when I can

The walk isn’t the main event.
The walk is how I get the thing I already want.

My brain isn’t thinking, “Time to exercise.”
It’s thinking, “Ooo, podcast time.”

Same outcome.
Very different energy.

2. I make the good thing the easier choice

Most of us try to use willpower to beat convenience.

I stopped doing that.

Now I redesign my environment so that the better choice and the lazy choice are one and the same. It’s convenience I create when I have energy and time — in anticipation of those moments when I’m depleted or rushed.

• Pre-washed grapes so eating well doesn’t require a whole emotional ceremony.

• Daily supplements pre-packaged in mini Ziplock bags so I can grab a packet and go — no opening three bottles.

• Collagen peptides mixed into my mushroom coffee mix, so it’s one item to scoop out in the mornings.

• Nuts kept in my car, so hunger doesn’t turn into a drive-thru decision.

I’ve learned that when I’m tired, my brain isn’t interested in long-term goals — it’s interested in whatever is closest, easiest, and already there.

So I design for tired-me, not best-self-me.

No moralizing.
Just setup.

3. I build everything around one anchor habit

For me, that anchor is walking.

Not because walking is magical (well, it kinda is — but let me not digress).
But because walking fits my life and delivers benefits I’ve noticed and want to keep.

It helps my mood.
It gives me thinking space.
It makes connection easier.
It makes it more likely I’ll end up doing other movement too.

So walking isn’t just a habit for me.
It’s the one I build everything else around.

If walking happens, a lot of other good things tend to tag along. Which means instead of trying to juggle a dozen separate wellness habits, I mostly protect walking — and then I stack a few reinforcements around it so it doesn’t quietly fall off.

Things like:

A Fitbit, so it stays visible.
Routes I like, so I actually want to go.
And a few lifestyle choices that make walking the easiest option when I have time.

That last part leads directly into the next one.

Because for me, protecting my anchor habit isn’t just about motivation.
It’s about being set up so I can say yes to it when life gives me the opening.

4. I dress and live like I might move

This one might sound random, but it’s one of my most useful ways of quietly protecting my anchor habit.

I basically live in leisure wear with a long shirt over it.

Leggings with pockets for my phone.
Cute flats and comfy shoes that make walking — when the opportunity shows up — a can do.

It’s not that I’m always planning to walk.
It’s that I’m rarely dressed in a way that makes walking inconvenient.

Here’s how that plays out in my real life:

When I’m in a department store and have time, I’ll browse almost every aisle. Suddenly I’ve walked a mile without trying.

I have the multi-location plan for my gym, so if I’m near one and I suddenly have time, I go in.

Everyone wants parking by the door, but if the weather is decent, I’ll take a spot a reasonable distance away. It’s amazing how unbothered that makes my whole shopping experience.

Even when I end up buying something online, I like to check it out in stores first.

When I used to live in heels and outfits that made walking a hassle, movement required changing and effort that I rarely wanted to make. Now, I can take these little windows because I’m killing time waiting on someone, early for an appointment, or just have a gap between errands.

Those opportunities were always there.
I just couldn’t take advantage of them quite so easily before.

At home, these nicer-yet-comfy clothes also change how I move through my space. I’m more likely to fluff the couch pillows, water plants, wipe down cupboard doors, organize books, and take care of my feet and nails — to match that slightly elevated way I’m dressed.

And it also means I’m already dressed for my evening walk — my anchor habit.

So when it’s time?
There’s no outfit change.
No mental negotiation.
Just… go.

5. I only make swaps my brain actually likes

This is where a lot of advice quietly fails.

If the “better” option feels like punishment, your brain will pretend it doesn’t exist.

So I don’t do swaps that look good on paper.
I do swaps I actually want.

For example:

I like bananas. I don’t like apples.
So bananas win. Apples get ignored.

I like nuts — especially with a few raisins.
That feels like a treat.
A plain rice cake does not.

Same with movement.

I don’t love formal workouts every day.
I do love walking, browsing, walking calls, casual movement, being outside.

So that’s what I build around.

Not what I “should” like.
What I actually like.

Give yourself a good chance

This is the part most people miss: Discipline doesn't require force. It requires systems designed to automate it.

I design habits to support the life I already have and my own patterns.
My forgetfulness, uneven mornings, limited energy, and all the knowns that come with being human.

And you can do that too.

Design for:
A full life.
A busy life.
A life where energy changes, plans shift, and some days are just… a lot.

So, if habits have felt hard for you, it’s probably not because you’re doing something wrong.

It might just be that you haven’t yet built the system that makes doing them easier for you.

It’s like expecting kids to tidy up without giving them bins. Or, having bins, but they can't reach them or their little hands can’t easily open them, then you wonder why their room never stays clean.

Habits can stop feeling like chores and start feeling like backup when you try a few of these ideas (applied to your own life, of course).

And honestly, that’s what most of us actually need.