How Awareness Rebuilds Habits and Reclaims Focus

When we consciously try to build a new habit, something inside us has already shifted.
Perhaps we’ve had a moment of insight — or felt the pleasant reward of dopamine and endorphins after doing something meaningful.

But can we build more than one good habit at once?
Can we live, work, and connect with others more intentionally?

Over the past month, I made a commitment to read together with Focusaur users.
During this process, I ran several small experiments that led to unexpected insights.

One month ago, in the article The Power of Habitwe focused on how to build habits.
But I felt that wasn’t deep enough. After reading a few more books, I realized there’s something deeper behind habit formation — consciousness.
Today, let’s explore that.

Understanding Consciousness

Our mind never stops working — it constantly moves between the conscious, preconscious, and unconscious layers.
This three-level model, introduced by Sigmund Freud, helps explain why we often act or react without fully knowing why.

The preconscious is the bridge between what we are aware of and what lies beneath.
It contains thoughts and emotions that are not in our immediate attention but can easily surface when triggered.

For example, emotions such as anxiety, fear, or stress often seem conscious — yet they’re influenced by deeper, preconscious patterns.
These hidden influences quietly scatter our focus and drain our mental energy.

How Habits Move Through the Mind

Do habits belong to the conscious, preconscious, or subconscious level?
This is a psychological question about the layers of consciousness and behavioral automation.

In short, the formation of a habit is a gradual migration from consciousness → preconsciousness → subconsciousness.

1. At first, we act deliberately (fully aware).
2. Then, we perform semi-automatically (preconscious).
3. Finally, it becomes automatic (unconscious).

Habit formation is a gradual process — a migration from conscious effort to automatic behavior.

Once a habit sinks into the unconscious, it runs efficiently — consuming little mental energy.
That’s a gift when it’s a good habit, but a trap when it’s not.

“An unconscious habit” isn’t unchangeable — it simply means: without awareness, it will keep running on autopilot.

The Power of Awareness

For thousands of years, humans have studied the mind’s hidden layers.

Ancient Roots of Awareness

In early Buddhist teachings, the Buddha introduced mindfulness (sati) — the idea that suffering comes not from the outside world, but from the unseen mind.
By observing one’s own thoughts and emotions calmly, unconscious patterns of attachment and fear begin to loosen and fade.
This is the psychological essence of spiritual practice: making the unconscious visible.

Eastern Philosophy

In Chinese philosophy, Wang Yangming taught innate knowing (“zhi liang zhi”) and unity of knowledge and action.
He believed that the human mind is naturally aware but often clouded by external distractions.
When we return to our inner awareness, our actions realign with our authentic intentions — an idea strikingly similar to modern psychology’s integration of awareness and behavior.

Modern Psychology

Modern science has validated these ancient insights.
Both Mindfulness-Based Therapy (MBT) and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) help people become aware of their inner patterns and regain control.

• Mindfulness training cultivates present awareness — helping us step out of automatic thoughts and emotions.
• CBT offers a structured process to identify, question, and rebuild those automatic mental loops.

In both cases, one word stands at the center: awareness.
Awareness is the bridge — the path that connects conscious intention with unconscious behavior.

To regain focus, we must go beneath the surface of thought and reclaim control of the mind.

Practical Ways to Build Awareness

1. Awareness Journaling

It’s this very method that has brought me many unexpected insights — I’ve become aware of quite a few long-accumulated, subconscious patterns that were draining my focus and energy.

Awareness journaling makes the unconscious visible through writing.
The preconscious is blurry but retrievable — writing helps clarify it.

Goal:
Move emotional or distracting thoughts from the mind to paper, reducing their power.

How to do it:
Whenever you feel distracted or emotionally triggered, pause for a few seconds and ask yourself:

1. What am I thinking right now?
2. What am I feeling right now?
3. Why is this distracting me?

Don’t analyze — just write.
Then take three deep breaths, and return to your current task.
This simple act helps bring preconscious content into conscious awareness.

2. Reframe with CBT

For recurring negative thoughts, journaling may not be enough.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) helps reprogram preconscious beliefs through structured reflection.

Try using an Automatic Thought Record:

1. Identify the trigger (e.g., “I felt anxious after being interrupted.”)
2. Write the automatic thought (“They’ll blame me.”)
3. Note your emotion and intensity (Anxiety: 80%)
4. Find counter-evidence (“No one actually blamed me.”)
5. Rebuild a balanced thought (“It was just a short interruption.”)

Repeated practice weakens the emotional grip of these unconscious loops.

3. Reconnect with the Body

Emotions also live in the body.
Stress, fear, and anger often manifest as tightness, shallow breath, or increased heartbeat.
By reconnecting with physical sensations, we calm both body and mind.

Body Scan (Somatic Awareness):
Spend 3 minutes a day scanning your body from head to toe.
Notice where tension sits — and release it consciously.

Mindful Breathing:
A classic yet powerful method.
Focus on your breathing for 5 minutes; each time your mind drifts, gently return to the breath.
It’s a practice of returning home to awareness. You might want to give Focusaur visual breath exercise a try.

Recommended Reading

1. The Power of Habit — Charles Duhigg
2. Atomic Habits — James Clear
3. Thinking, Fast and Slow — Daniel Kahneman
4. The Power of Now — Eckhart Tolle
5. The Miracle of Mindfulness — Thich Nhat Hanh
6. Awareness: The Perils and Opportunities of Reality — Anthony de Mello
7. The Mindful Way Through Depression — Mark Williams, John Teasdale, Zindel Segal, Jon Kabat-Zinn
8. Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy — David D. Burns
9. The Body Keeps the Score — Bessel van der Kolk
10. Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience — Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
11. Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself — Joe Dispenza
12. Tao Te Ching — Laozi
13. The Instructions for Practical Living — Wang Yangming

Final Thought

Awareness is not a distant ideal — it’s a daily practice.
Each time you pause, write, breathe, or reflect, you’re training your mind to see clearly.
That clarity doesn’t just improve focus — it rebuilds who you are.

Awareness is the beginning of transformation.