What are Some Habits to Stop?
The red sticker on the Sticker the Habit calendar represents habits you’d like to stop doing. Some of my favorite “stop” habits over the years have been:
No alcohol
No sweets
Stop using my phone before 7 am and after 7 pm
Stop making non-essential purchases/No spend day
Stop giving advice to someone who just wants to vent (This was SUPER hard!)
Each day I successfully avoided one of the habits I wanted to stop, I was rewarded with a red sticker that added to my streak. And adding these habits to the calendar and tracking them over time brought a new level of awareness that helped me through hard days when I felt like I was white-knuckling to not have a cookie.
If you’re stuck on what habit to stop this month, this list shares some you can use across various categories.
Technology habits to stop
Checking your phone before getting out of bed
Being on your phone while eating a meal or snack
Scrolling on social media for more than 10 minutes at a time
Checking notifications the second they appear
Sleeping with your phone in bed
Comparing your life to what you see online
Working or multitasking with 12 tabs open
Leaving your phone on the table during meals
Grabbing for your phone the second you’re alone
Self-care habits to stop
Skipping meals
Using caffeine to replace sleep/Drinking more than X amount of caffeine
Going all day without stepping outside
Saying “I’m fine” when you’re not
Using your phone as your only form of self-soothing
Work & productivity habits to stop
Starting your day with email
Multitasking
Procrastinating because you want to “do it perfectly”
Working through lunch
Putting more than 5 items on your to-do list
Working late every night “just to get ahead”
Skipping breaks
Avoiding help because you want to do everything yourself
Home & cleaning habits to stop
Letting laundry pile up over the top of the bin
Leaving dishes overnight
Waiting until you have “enough time” to clean
Letting mail, coats, shoes, etc pile up next to the door
Financial habits to stop
Making impulse purchases to “treat yourself”
Spending money on non-essentials
Spending money over your set budget
Using credit cards
Eating & drinking habits to stop
Skipping breakfast
Eating out of boredom or stress
Drinking soda or energy drinks every day
Scrolling while you eat
Eating until you’re stuffed instead of satisfied
Forgetting to drink water
Getting takeout instead of cooking at home
Drinking alcohol/soda/energy drinks
Relationship habits to stop
Interrupting or talking over people
Avoiding hard conversations
Expecting others to read your mind
Keeping score in arguments
Giving advice when someone just needs to vent
Over-apologizing for things that aren’t your fault
Ignoring people while “listening”
Neglecting quality time
Personal growth habits to stop
Waiting for motivation instead of creating structure
Trying to change everything at once
Dismissing progress because it’s not “big enough”
Doing things just because you “should”
Avoiding reflection because it feels uncomfortable
Holding onto routines that no longer serve you
Seeking validation instead of self-trust
Thinking you have to be busy to be worthy
Mindset habits to stop
Thinking in all-or-nothing terms
Believing you have to start over every Monday
Ignoring gratitude because you’re chasing goals
Assuming growth has to feel easy
Forgetting to celebrate yourself
Waiting until “life slows down” to make changes
Remember that each sticker reflects one day of sticking with your habit change. Over time, you’ll develop streaks that are a visual representation of how you’ve changed. After a few months of consistency, you’ve become a more disciplined version of yourself!
