New Year, New You? How to Transform Your Personality

Welcome to Effective Habits, a weekly newsletter where I share evidence-based strategies and tools to help you live a happy, healthy, and productive life.

Today at a Glance:

• Would You Like to Change (Aspects of) Your Personality?

• Fever Feels Horrible, but is Actually Awesome!

• Why You Should Abandon Time Blocking and Use This Instead

Would You Like to Change (Aspects of) Your Personality?
Susan Cain

Lights, Camera, ...
Can you really change (aspects of) your personality? Science suggests you can, though it takes effort and consistency. While personality traits are partly shaped by genes and circumstances, they’re not set in stone. Research shows that repeated small actions—like practicing new habits or behaviors aligned with desired traits—can gradually shift personality over time. For instance, studies have used structured challenges, such as social tasks to boost extraversion or organizational habits to enhance conscientiousness, to help participants grow in specific areas. However, follow-through is crucial. Merely setting goals without action can backfire, leading to frustration or self-doubt. Ultimately, meaningful personality change requires persistence, reflection, and the willingness to embrace new ways of thinking and acting. The good news? With dedication, positive transformation is within reach.

Action!

1. Identify the Trait(s) You Want to Change: Reflect on the "Big Five" traits (Extraversion, Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, Emotional Stability, Openness to Experience). Choose one or two traits that matter most to you.

2. Break It Down Into Small, Actionable Challenges: Create or select simple, concrete actions to practice regularly. These "state-level" changes help align your behavior with your desired trait. You can find some example challenges* below or full a list of 50 actions for each trait in the appendix of this study. Example: Decide to greet one stranger every day (Extraversion) or journal your gratitude daily (Emotional Stability).

3. Use “If-Then” Plans: Plan your actions using "if-then" statements to make them automatic. Example: "If I feel anxious, then I will take three deep breaths" (emotional stability). "If I see something beautiful, then I will take a photo" (openness).

4. Gamify Your Progress: Track your actions and make it fun. Reward yourself for completing challenges consistently or involve friends for accountability. Example: Compete with a friend to see who can complete the most challenges in a month.

5. Follow Through and Be Consistent: Repeated actions over time turn into habits and, eventually, lasting personality changes. Be patient and kind to yourself if you falter.

*List of Challenges:

Extraversion

• Before you go to bed, reflect on a positive social experience you had during the day, and what you liked about it

• Say hello to a cashier at a store

• Smile and wave at someone new on campus or near your home. Don’t worry if they don’t smile or wave back!

• Say hello to someone you’ve never met. Don’t feel pressured to say more unless you want to!

• Download the app “Meet Up” on your phone, and identify one or two events you’re interested in going to

• Prepare a few well-rehearsed and brief responses to commonly asked questions, such as “What do you do for a living?”

• Make a positive comment on someone else’s Facebook post

• Ask a cashier at a store how their day is going

• Say hello to someone you’ve never met and comment on your shared surroundings (e.g., “The weather is nice!”, “These flowers are beautiful!”, “I love the song this store is playing!”)

• Call a friend that you haven’t spoken with in a while

Agreeableness

• Smile at someone you don’t know

• Say “please” and “thank you” when asking for something

• Hold the door open for someone

• Write down a nice thing someone else did for you today

• Spend 5 minutes writing down a list of things you’re grateful for in one of your relationships

• Before you go to bed, reflect on something kind someone did for you that day and how it made you feel—even something small (e.g., smiling at you)

• Give a friend or family member a hug

• Say “thank you” to someone you normally wouldn’t (e.g., thank a teacher for the lecture; thank a friend for hanging out)

• When someone compliments you, say out loud, “Thank you.”

  Take a few minutes to reflect on the good qualities of people you love (e.g., friends, family members)

• Spend five minutes writing down reasons why people in general are generally good

Conscientiousness

• Put your phone in your pocket during class, and do not look at it for the whole class period

• Begin preparing for an event 10 minutes earlier than usual

• Organize the app icons on your phone’s homescreen

• Spend at least 5 minutes journaling about the benefits (e.g., for the future, your career, for you personally) of being thorough, hardworking, and productive

• Write down a list of people who are counting on you (e.g., to attend events, to contribute to assignments/work, to provide supplies)

• Show up 5 minutes early for a class, appointment, or other activity

• Set out your clothes the night before

• Carefully proofread an email or text before you send it

• When you notice something you need to buy (e.g., household supplies), make a note on your phone

• When you notice something you need to do (e.g., an assignment/chore/bill) make a note on your phone and/or calendar

Emotional Stability

• When you wake up, say aloud to yourself, “I choose to be happy today”

• When you feel overwhelmed, stop and take several deep breaths

• Before you go to bed, write down a positive thing that happened to you during the day, and how it made you feel

• Take at least 5 minutes to intentionally smile. This can be on your own, or while performing an activity (e.g., driving, walking to class)

• Hug a close friend or family member

• When you wake up, spend at least five minutes mentally listing everything you are grateful for (e.g., friends, family, safe place to live, clean air)

• Schedule 30 minutes to engage in an activity you enjoy

• Express gratitude to another person (e.g., thank a teacher for a good lecture; tell a friend why you appreciate them)

• Before you go to bed, write down one good thing you can look forward to tomorrow

• If you are religious, spend at least 5 minutes praying. If you are not religious, spend at least 5 minutes meditating.

Openness to Experience

• Read a news story about a foreign country

• Read a news story about recent scientific discoveries and technologies

• Watch a new movie that you’ve never seen before

• Watch an episode of a new TV show that you’ve never seen before

• Subscribe to a new podcast and listen to the first episode

• Spend five minutes reflecting on your goals and values in life

• Try a new entree that you’ve never had before at a restaurant you like Visit a museum or art gallery

• Read a news story about political beliefs that differ from your own

• Spend five minutes imagining where you would go and what you would do if you could time travel

• Spend five minutes imagining what you would do if you could fly”

Fever Feels Horrible, but is Actually Awesome!
Kurzgesagt

Lights, Camera, ...
Fever isn’t just a nuisance—it’s one of the oldest and most effective tools of the immune system, evolved over 600 million years. It creates a hostile environment for invaders by cranking up your body’s thermostat, stressing and weakening microbes while supercharging your immune cells. Though mild fevers (below 40°C/104°F) are generally safe and may help you recover faster, modern medicine has made it easy to suppress them with drugs, which can trade short-term comfort for a weaker immune response. The takeaway? Fever isn’t the enemy—unless it’s dangerously high, it’s your body’s fiery ally in the battle for health.

Action!

• When you have a fever below 40°C (104°F) and can tolerate it, rest, hydrate, and allow your body to fight the infection naturally. Only use fever-reducing medication if the fever becomes unbearable, dangerously high, or if advised by a doctor.

Why You Should Abandon Time Blocking and Use This Instead
Stephanie Vozza

Lights, Camera, ...
Time blocking can be an effective productivity tool, but its rigidity isn't for everyone. While it helps structure your day and minimize distractions, it can stifle creativity and create stress when unplanned tasks arise. If this sounds familiar, consider alternatives like day theming and the Kanban system. Day theming dedicates entire days to specific focuses, like specific work projects, rest, or family, providing balance and clarity. The Kanban system, on the other hand, visually organizes tasks into "to-do," "doing," and "done" categories, limiting multitasking and building flexibility. These approaches can enhance creativity, strengthen relationships, and adapt better to life’s unpredictability.

Action!

1. Identify Key Areas of Focus: List the main aspects of your life or work (e.g., marketing, project “x”, content creation, rest, family time).

2. Assign Themes to Days: Dedicate specific days to focus on one area (e.g., Mondays for planning, Tuesdays for creative work, Sundays for rest).

3. Group Related Tasks: Align tasks with their designated day to avoid multitasking across themes.

4. Communicate Your Schedule: Inform colleagues or family about themed days to set expectations.

5. Stay Flexible: Allow room for adjustments while prioritizing the day's theme.

TOOL TIP

Unhook Browser Extension: One of my biggest distractions: YouTube. To be more specific, it has been going down YouTube rabbit holes, always starting from either the home feed, comment section or recommended videos curated by YouTube across their app and website. Unhook is a browser extension that gives you full control over your YouTube experience in browser. Features you might consider: Hide Home Feed, Video Sidebar, Comments, Shorts, End Screen Cards, and Autoplay. This leads to your YouTube experience being much more intentional than the typical experience of algorithm-driven time wormholes.

FUN FACT

The match was invented after the lighter. The first lighter was invented in 1823 by German chemist Johann Wolfgang Döbereiner. His device was often referred to as “Döbereiner's lamp.” While various forms of matches have been around since ancient times, the first successful friction match (like the ones we use today) was not invented until 1826 by English chemist John Walker.

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Disclaimer: The information provided in this newsletter is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Please consult a medical professional for advice, diagnosis, or treatment. We are not liable for any risks or issues that may arise from using this information.