A habit has two parts: an impulse, and the behaviour that follows it. The impulse comes from a cue in your surroundings or in your head, and the behaviour arrives without you deciding anything about it. You only notice it when it does not happen. Not washing your hands after using the toilet, or going to bed without flossing, feels uncomfortable, and that discomfort is the proof that the behaviour no longer rests on a choice.
A habit like that is learned, not innate. That is exactly why it is useful: once the behaviour runs automatically, your attention is free for something else. Your brain outsources it, the way you stop thinking about changing gear after years of driving. So habits are not evidence of discipline, but of something that no longer needs discipline.
From that follows the limit that is easy to forget: not every behaviour can become a habit. Anything that asks for a judgement each time, or consists of a series of steps you have to think about, keeps demanding attention. That is a routine you run deliberately, not a habit that starts by itself. If you want something to become truly automatic, keep the behaviour small and attach it to a cue that comes back in the same place every day.
