Why does it seem so easy to do bad and hard to do what is right? What’s so hard about choosing to go through the right process for something you want, instead of trying to cut corners? You see everyone looking for “easy money” because they really don’t want all the hard work that comes with making money the right way.
Back then, we believed that bad habits were easy to pick up, even faster than good habits which we all pretended to ignore. You could see someone smoking as a teenager, he looked cool so you decided to try it out. You saw someone stealing so he could look fresh and cool for others, and you figured it was a good idea to try your luck. And before you know it, it becomes a regular occurrence for you. A bad habit successful bad habit picked!
From what I’ve noticed, most bad habits are done for others, not for ourselves. On the other hand, most good habits are done for ourselves. Like with the example I mentioned, people who started smoking or taking drugs from a young age didn’t start because they wanted to. They most likely started it because their friends were doing it and they wanted to look like they belonged. The first time could be experimental, but you know just how addictive these things can be.
But then, when you find yourself impressed by someone’s reading skills and decide to become an avid reader as well, that’s just for you! It does nothing to improve your street cred and no one really cares. The same for when you choose to earn money the right way; no one really gives a damn and you’re simply training and disciplining yourself to be a better citizen of the society.
This is why it seems children are always so quick to pick up bad habits, naturally, they are more attractive and cool-looking than the good habits. Take fire, for instance, that’s just how bad habits are. They look beautiful, as long as you’ve never touched them! But once you do that, you get burned. And if you’re lucky, you’ll be smart enough to never go near it again.
A kid seeing his peer being disobedient to his parents might think it’s cool and try to emulate it. However, he would have no idea just how different his parents are from his peer’s, and being disobedient might end up being a terrible idea in the long run.
The only conviction we need to start a bad habit, it’s either the promise of validation, the need to impress people who don’t care about us or to satisfy curiosities we have no business with in the first place. Meanwhile, for us to do good, we need a whole lot more than that. To be disciplined, we need to really want it because that’s the only way we can get it without falling along the way. To build a talent or skill, we have to be ready to put in the work, and we do all this knowing that at some point in all these, we’ll most likely be alone. There’ll be no one to help us out it’s just us and the path we chose. Many times, that’s the price of choosing the good lane.
The upside to it is that you won’t always be alone. Success brings many friends, and when you eventually make a thing for yourself and people associate that thing with you, many of them will want to hang out with you. This is the exact opposite for bad habits; you become known by them and people will use it as a reason to stay away from you. The exact same people who got you on in the first place.
So, you see? You start one alone and end it with people around you, you start the other with people and end up alone. It’s a cruel world, I know that!
So, what am I trying to say now? Honestly, I think I’ve said it all. We all probably have that one bad habit that we do from time to time, and we want to stop. Try to remember the reason you started it, is that reason still valid to the person you are now? To the person you plan to become? This should be a reason for you to start working on doing away with it. Letting go may not be easy, but with the right strategy, I’m certain it’ll be done.
Also, if you’re looking to try out some good things, please don’t hesitate. It might not be easy at first, but give it time. The more you get the hang of it, the more easier it’ll be for you. That’s how nature designed it. Who knows, it could end up becoming the one thing you’re known for!
