If goals are the fuel that drives our ambition, habits are the engine that helps us get there. When setting goals, it’s very easy to assume that by knowing where we want to go we’ll eventually get there. But things are a bit trickier than that.

Knowing how we’ll slowly change our behaviour is also important. In other words, goals matter and help you look ahead, but only by changing our own habits can we actually start heading in that direction. Goals get us started but habits keep us going.

Charles Duhigg, author of ‘The Power of Habit’, has written some very interesting thoughts on how habits are more important than we think. Because we’re big fans of his work (and because we believe in accomplishing goals), here are 5 great quotes on the power of habits.

1. “Change might not be fast and it isn’t always easy. But with time and effort, almost any habit can be reshaped.”

At the core of working out more often or trying a new sport is a change of behaviour. Having the goal to accomplish something new is the first step. Slowly building the habit to do what we need to do every single day will ensure we follow through. This matters a huge deal, because…

2. “Exercise is a keystone habit that triggers widespread change.”

Duhigg’s research shows that people who exercise regularly start eating better and become more productive at work. In summary, the self-discipline of changing your own habits easily impacts other areas of your life beyond the original goal. Which brings us to the next quote…

3. “Champions don’t do extraordinary things. They do ordinary things, but they do them without thinking, too fast for the other team to react. They follow the habits they’ve learned.”

Becoming adept at something such as a new sport is, then, the product of ensuring that our habits become a core part of ourselves. It takes time until it becomes automated, but once it does, the results speak for themselves. No wonder they say, “excellence is a habit”. So never forget…

4. “Small wins are a steady application of a small advantage.”

Some have raw talent and sheer athletic ability, but by mastering your own habits you gain a powerful strength: consistency. And even if it looks like all you get is a small advantage, remember: the greatest victories (including those over your own self) are decided by the details. So keep this in mind…

5. “Habits (…) shape our lives far more than we realize—they are so strong, in fact, that they cause our brains to cling to them at the exclusion of all else, including common sense.”

Habits exist to save mental energy in everything we do, but the positive secondary effect is that we might actually end up enjoying what we do the most. If you ever had someone ask you why you choose to run a ridiculous distance or climb a mountain or cycle in the rain, it’s absolutely fine to simply answer “because I love it.” Which is another way to say, “I’ve built the habit and now it’s a part of me”.

Over to you. What’s the latest habit you changed in your own life? Let us know on Facebook, Twitter or the comments section below.