So you want to change your life, but you keep putting it off. Maybe you want to eat better, exercise, learn a new skill, write fiction or study a foreign language. Myself, three years ago, I wanted to learn to play guitar and pick up again the habit of reading fiction. I'll give you some tips on my journey from there and what worked with me.

Pick a Goal

Decide what it is what you really want to do. What brings you happiness? For this kind of change, it's better to start with one thing at a time and pick it up the pace as you get used to it.

Set a Realistic and Frequent Schedule

After deciding what you want to do, set a realistic schedule. I had decided I wanted to practice guitar and read every day. You don't have to commit to doing something every day if you realistically know you won't be able to do so, but if you want to form a habit it should be frequent enough.

You may want to exercise twice a week, or play soccer every weekend. Pick a schedule that you feel you can stick to.

Plan Your Routine Including Your Habit

Don't leave time to do what you want as an afterthought. I planned to play guitar when I got home from work and read after going to bed before sleeping.

If the schedule is realistic, you should be able to reserve some time do it.

Don't Break the Chain

Keep track of your progress and the days you completed your goal. Stick to it, even if it's hard. Especially when it's hard.

This is the Don't Break the Chain method popularly attributed to Jerry Seinfeld. You can get a calendar to visually keep track of your progress. Personally, I've been using Coach.me and really like it. Recommended!

The power of an unbroken streak is a powerful one. Often I got home late from work, and instead of the usual hour or so of practice, I'd try to stretch out at least a few minutes of playtime to make sure I didn't skip a day. Instead of reading a whole chapter, I'd read a few pages until I fell asleep.

Be flexible on the completion criteria of your daily goal, but be strong on keeping the chain going. Go for 30 days, then for 60 days. Maybe you'll eventually get a year?

But if you have to break it for the right reasons, do it and get back on it the next day. You don't have to obsess on beating the number of unbroken days - the important thing is starting and keeping a new streak.

Enjoy Your New Habit

After a while, you won't need to worry about schedules or streaks. Not doing your habit will feel strange. When for some reason I met my reading quota for the day before bedtime, it felt wrong not going in and reading a chapter anyway.

Life will change, schedules will change, but the habit should stick with you even after a while.