PRACTISE, Then Practice some more

I love the story about the young talking drum player who ran up to chief talking drummer of the village, talking drum in hand, breathlessly panting, Quick! How do I get to play at the Villagesquare?
The experienced talking drummer eyed him and his talking drum and responded, Practice, boy, practice.
What is your Villagesquare? Where are you headed? How are you practicing to get there? What habits are you forming?
Perhaps you see someone doing something different-something stimulating and adult. Maybe you watch it on television or in a movie, and you see it done at a party or at the office. You like what you see, and you want to do it, too. Or perhaps you want to fit into the group because everybodys doing it. So you emulate and initiate, and the seemingly harmless act of playing copycat or doing copy copy grows, thought upon thought, act upon act, until it is conditioned into a steel cable that either strengthens or shackles your life.
Everyone learns the same way: by observation, imitation, and repetition. Harmful habits, such as self-criticism, smoking, excessive drinking, overeating, laziness, depression, tardiness, and insensitivity, are learned and developed into character traits through relentless, self-disciplined practice.
In the same way, helpful and successful habits of high self-esteem, substance avoidance and control, proper nutrition, dedication, enthusiasm, reliability, and empathy for others are also learned, internalized, and retained through relentless practice. The positive approach to a problem is much more likely to succeed than the negative one. It is far easier to start doing something new than to stop doing something that has become a long standing routine.
Man is a product of influence. You cannot stop a bird from hovering over your head, but you can definitely stop it from making a nest on your head. So watch who you copy and practice their habit. Is it negative or positive?
For example, suppose you are a heavy smoker and you finally decide the slogan is right: A Pack a Day Takes Ten Years Away! So you try the following program:
Commit yourself to clean lungs and a healthier heart.
Enroll in a reputable smoking cessation clinic or program.
Put sugarless mints or gum where the cigarettes used to be, in the car, in your desk drawer, in a pocket, and so on.
Become aware of your new habit of reaching for, unwrapping, and putting a mint or piece of gum in your mouth.
Write down and often repeat new scripts about yourself, such as: I am in control of my habits and my healthI am fit for lifemy lungs are clean and strongI breathe in only fresh airmy stamina and endurance are increasingthe nutritional meals I eat taste even better now.
Listen to positive audiotape affirmations specifically designed to develop a smoke-free attitude.
Congregate in smoke-free areas of buildings and transportation vehicles.
Enjoy the feelings, sights, and sounds of your new found state of health.
Surround yourself with nonsmokers.
Enjoy your heightened sense of smell, taste, health, and appearance.
YOU DONT STOP A BAD HABIT, YOU REPLACE IT WITH A NEW GOOD ONE.
By practicing the ten steps outlined above, you will be applying the basic principle: it is difficult to do two things at the same time. Instead of continuing your old habit of smoking, you will be replacing it with a new habit. As you get involved in new actions and attitudes, they replace the old ones. With all these new activities you have going on, you wont have time for your old bad habits. People often talk about going law-style to break a habit. I prefer going freestyle and replacing the old habit with a new good one.
Anyone who has ever achieved anything can give credit to practice. And we all practice every day in one way or another. The trouble is, most of us spend our time practicing our bad habits rather than our good ones