According to a Columbia University study by lead investigator Renee Goodwin, cigarette smokers are seven times more likely to smoke pot than non-smokers.
Why?
A little-known phenomenon, known as The Transfer Effect, is to blame.
According to researchers at Indiana University, when you forge a habit that improves one area of your life, this automatically triggers a desire for improvements in other areas of your life.
What’s behind this Transfer Effect?
A unique breed of habits called Keystone Habits.
Keystone Habits are infectious habits that act like catalysts, giving birth to other related habits. Cigarette smoking and pot smoking are one example. Another is drinking alcohol and cigarette smoking. Still another is commuting in your car and listening to the radio.
While Keystone Habits like smoking, can be a bad thing and lead to other related bad habits, they can also be a good thing.
The Rich Habit of aerobic exercise, for example, is a good Keystone Habit. The Indiana researchers found in their study that those who exercised aerobically, by virtue of this Transfer Effect, also forged the habit of eating healthier food. This had the effect of improving overall health of the exercisers in their study.
The Poor Habit of sitting on the couch and watching TV can be a bad thing, leading you to other Poor Habits such as eating junk food.
The Rich Habit of saving 10% or more of your income can be a good thing, leading to other Rich Habits such as using coupons, buying your clothes at Goodwill stores, prudent investing, budgeting, etc.
The Poor Habit of spending more than you earn can be a bad thing, leading to other Poor Habits such as using credit cards or borrowing money from banks, family and friends. The stress associated with struggling to pay your bills can also lead to other Poor Habits such as eating unhealthy comfort junk food or drive you to drink alcohol or take drugs to relieve the stress.
The Rich Habit of pursuing a dream can be a good thing, leading to self-improvement reading, forging new skills, seeking mentors, etc.
The Poor Habit of staying in a job you hate, for security purposes, can lead to chronic stress and cause you to forge bad habits intended to relieve the stress, such as drinking or eating junk food.
This is why it is so important to forge good habits – good habits lead to more good habits. This is also why it is so important to eliminate bad habits – bad habits lead to more bad habits.
Habits are your transportation system in life. If your desired destination is a healthy, happy, successful life, good daily habits will push you along to that destination.
Open your eyes to your habits because the wrong habits could be pushing you along to a destination you won’t like very much..
About Thomas C. Corley
Great advice. It helps me a lot as I am struggling to get out of poor habits.