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When I think of habits, I think of particular negative behaviors a person does automatic and frequent. However, after reading what William James believes about habit, changed my one-sided mind towards it. According to William James, habit is not only described as bad and frequent behaviors that all people acquire overtime, but they can be positive actions too. Also, habit is not only the tendency to behave, but it is also the tendency to think, feel, and believe; which constitutes our identity and what impacts our daily lives and future.
James stresses that education is an organization of acquired habits of conduct and tendencies to behavior (James, 1899/2001). Also, He feels that it is essential for teachers to teach their students how to develop good habits. William James believes that teaching children good habits in their early stages of life will prepare them to automatically and effortlessly think and act out those good habits that they were trained to do. However, if certain good habits were not taught to individuals while in their early stages of life, as adults, they have to neglect certain old habits and acquire new ones on their own.
For example, if individuals have the desire to run a marathon, first there should be no doubts. It should be a goal that is certain in their minds. One way in helping its certainty in the mind and heart is by expressing the goal to other people, so that they can hold you accountable to your word. Secondly, do not acquire new habits that will interrupt the recently acquired habits towards accomplishing your goals (i.e., starting a new workout regimen when the one you were doing was working well for you). Thirdly, do not get caught up with imaging a better time each day you train, the results of a better time is more effective. It reminds me of New Year’s resolutions that many people have each year. So many people put emphasis on exceeding at the task they want to accomplish, instead of only focusing on the action and outcome of the action to succeed at it. The results from our actions are more effective than our aspirations. Fourthly, allow yourself to make some mistakes, learn from them, and continue your journey. Also, frequently interact with people who are or have in the past trained for a marathon so that you all can share common goals and experiences and motivate each other. Another point I believe William James is making in the fourth maxim is to not only start training today, but train for the marathon everyday so that not only will your physical being get trained, but your emotional being will get trained to enjoy it. Lastly, continue to challenge yourself. Do not stay too comfortable with one thing.
The fact that we are living creatures makes it impossible to have a successful departure from our daily habits. James said, “I believe that we are subject to the law of habit in consequence of the fact that we have bodies” (p. 33). Therefore, since we constantly live off our habits on a daily basis, sort of like how we live off the oxygen in the atmosphere, it is absolutely crucial to acquire good habits. We all know that bad air can cause many detrimental effects on people, animals, and the water, so bad habits can lead to bad outcomes because we depend on our habits probably just as much as we depend on air to breathe. Habits make who we are and to disown a habit is similar to stepping out of our comfort zone; which we have difficulty doing. Therefore, since habits are acquired and they are what we do about 99% of our daily living, does any of our innate being impacts our lives?
