Bad habits are the worst enemies you can have. You are punished by those habits. They make you do things you do not want to do, and leave you to suffer the consequences. You must drop bad habits and leave them behind you as you move forward. Every day should be a transition from old habits to better habits. In this coming year make a solemn resolution to keep only those habits that are for your highest good.
The best way to get rid of your undesirable tendencies is not to think about them; do not acknowledge them. Never concede that a habit has a hold on you....You must develop “won't” habits. And stay away from those things that stimulate bad habits. ~ PY.
https://yogananda.org/make-new-determinations-be-what-you-want-to-beI find that habits are so persistent- even good ones - that they are hard to rid them when we want to. I often try to develop my memory and remember people, places and names that I have forgotten. However today while meditating I recognized the power of a good habit being a bad one. I was meditating and suddenly tried to remember a grocery item I had bought that was on sale at the store. I could not remember it but my mind went on obsessing about what the item was despite telling myself I would not think about it. It seemed the more I told myself it wasn’t important and what was important now was meditating I still came back to the thought. Finally I did remember the item and my mind seemed somewhat relieved. The point is that even good habits can plague us in meditating.
Although we may obsess and dwell on thoughts whether they are good or bad. It is, rather, a condition of the mind which is obsessed about various thoughts. The mind has a hard time letting such thoughts flow on when they are no longer appropriate to the situation.