A few years ago, I went to see my dentist, and he said to me, "Listen, your teeth are fine but you need to start flossing."

幾年前我去看牙醫時，醫生告訴我：「你的牙齒目前沒有大礙，但你必須開始養成剃牙的習慣。」

Okay, I said, "No problem, how hard can flossing be?"

我心想：「好啊，剔牙有什麼困難的？」

I got all the kits, I bought all the tape, the sticks, everything.

我準備了各種牙線捲和牙線棒等工具。

Day one, I did it, day two, I did it.

第一天，我乖乖剔牙，第二天，我也乖乖剔牙。

Day three, I didn't do it.

但到了第三天，我沒做到。

And then the days turned into weeks and the weeks turned into months, and I was back at my dentist.

日子一天天過去，我連續好幾週到好幾個月都沒有剔牙，直到我又去看牙醫。

Again, he told me I needed to floss.

醫生再次叮嚀我一定要剔牙。

Some nights I did, some nights I didn't, there were so many excuses.

某幾晚我做到了，但也有很多時候，我都會找很多理由不剔牙。

I'm tired, it's boring.

譬如，我好累或是好無聊啊。

I'm going to punch myself in the face again by accident.

我又會不小心打到自己的臉。

But now I'm a dedicated flosser.

不過，我現在已經成功養成了定時剔牙的好習慣。

So what changed?

那麼，我究竟做了什麼改變呢？

Sean Covey, author of the best-selling book, "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People" once said...

暢銷書《高效人士的七個習慣》的作者 Sean Covey 曾說...

"Depending on what they are, our habits will either make us or break us."

「習慣可以成就一個人，但壞習慣則會使人墮落。」

"We become what we repeatedly do."

「決定了我們的為人。」

Some of these habits are helpful and healthy, and some not so good.

有些習慣對你有幫助，但有些習慣則不怎麼好。

But what they all have in common is that we're unaware we're doing them because they become automatic and repetitive.

而好壞習慣都有個共同點，那就是我們不太會注意到自己正在做這件事，因為習慣都是自發性重複的。

Our habits combine like steps on a journey in life.

習慣引領著每個人的生活。

They determine our direction, and that's pretty scary considering most of the time we're not really consciously in control of them.

它們決定了我們的人生方向，而想到大部份的時間我們毫無意識地被習慣所操控，真的很可怕。

So why are habits so difficult to break, and new ones so difficult to make?

所以，為什麼壞習慣總是很難改，而好習慣卻很難養成呢？

Neuroscience tells us our brains set up things called habit loops.

神經科學提到，我們的大腦會透過「習慣迴路」來建立東西。

These habit loops consist of three stages.

「習慣迴路」包含了三個階段。

Stage one is a cue.

階段一：暗示。

This is a trigger, it could be from your external environment or your internal environment.

「暗示」是誘發點，可能來自於外在環境或是內在因素。

For example, your emotional state.

例如，情緒狀態也能成為一個誘發點。

Stage two is a routine behaviour.

階段二：慣常行為。

It's the action you take in response to that cue.

也就是受到暗示的誘發後，你所產生的回應方式。

Stage three is the reward, so the release of dopamine in the brain, a neurotransmitter associated with feelings of pleasure.

階段三是獎賞，大腦會釋放一種製造快樂情緒的神經傳導物質，叫多巴胺。

Because you've had that release of dopamine which has made you feel good, you're more likely to repeat that behaviour in response to the cue next time.

由於多巴胺會讓你感到快樂，所以當你下次接收到同樣的暗示時，你將更願意做出相同回應。

And that's why a habit is hard to break and hard to make, because those neural connections are strong.

而這也是為什麼習慣很難改也很難養成的原因，因為神經的連結性很強。

But the good news is nothing's set in stone.

不過，並沒有什麼習慣是永遠改不了的。

Breaking old habits and making new ones can be done, but it takes an extraordinary amount of self-awareness and effort.

只要願意多花點心思和努力，你也能改掉舊習慣和養成新習慣。

So here are some top tips to help you through it and it may even save your gums at the same time.

教你幾個養成習慣的小妙招，或許也會幫助你保健牙齦。

It worked for me.

這些妙招幫了我很多。

Tip one, find your motivation.

妙招一，找到動力來源。

Why do you want to change, what are the benefits?

你為什麼想要改變，改變之後有什麼好處？

What are the repercussions if you don't change that habit?

如果不改掉這個習慣，又會造成什麼後果？

And do you want those repercussions?

你想要承擔這些後果嗎？

Write them down and read them often.

把這些回答寫下來，然後時常拿出來看。

Tip two, be specific.

妙招二，明確一點。

What exactly do you want to achieve and how are you going to do it?

你想要達到什麼，以及你要怎麼做？

Make space and time in your diary to put the effort towards changing that habit.

在你的日規劃裡多空出一些時間，好讓你能改掉習慣。

Take practical steps that will help you break that cycle of cue and response.

同時，要有實際作為來打破暗示和慣常行為的輪迴機制。

Tip three, small steps are better than giant leaps.

妙招三，只求踏實不求快。

Try the "1% idea" where each day you improve or change something by 1%.

試著執行能固定每天改變百分之一的方法。

That way you start to see progress, and you're not put off by failure.

如此一來，你便能看到自己的進步成長，而不會因失敗而拖延。

Tip four, don't stop when you're on a roll and celebrate your success.

妙招四，進步時不要停止改變，並記得為自己的成功慶祝。

Keep the momentum of that new habit going, however small it is.

無論進步的幅度多小，都要繼續努力建立新習慣。

The continuous nature of changing something about your behaviour will signal to your brain that this is an important change and one that you need to continue.

持續不斷的改變會讓大腦意識到重要性，了解到這是一個不能間斷的事情。

Chart your progress and celebrate your achievements with a treat, so you still get that dopamine hit.

追蹤並記錄你的進步與成長，並記得獎賞自己，如此一來便能達到多巴胺的效果。

Tip five, be patient.

妙招五，要有耐心。

A study in 2009 showed that on average, it takes 66 days to form a new habit.

在 2009 年的一份研究指出，要建立一個新習慣，平均需要花六十六天的時間。

With some easier habits being formed in 18 days, and some harder ones being formed in 254 days.

簡單一點的習慣可能只需要 18 天，困難一點的則需要 254 天。

So changing habits can change your life.

改變習慣可以讓你的人生煥然一新。

I think that once you notice a habit is unhelpful and you know why you want to change it, then really, the rest is a piece of cake.

當你發現某個不太好的習慣而你也有改變動機時，那麼剩下的都不是難事了。

So good luck, go forth and break some habits.

祝你好運，改掉壞習慣並持續進步。

Thanks for watching.

感謝您的收看。

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不要忘記訂閱以及按下小鈴鐺，這樣才能收到新影片的通知。

See you again soon!

我們下次再見！