Persistence and willpower are the only way to do this. You must first have a good reason why you want to quit. This is the priority and the number one reason that will make you stick with it. There won't be any other reason or anything a person can say to you to make you stop. You have to be the one who wants this so badly that you are willing to give it up, no matter what cost. People can tell you to reduce your intake and gradually get off cigarretes altogether. But his won't work at all. You are still smoking each day. There will be withdrawals and craving associated with stopping to smoke. This is something that you will have to have the willpower to fight on your own. You can take up meditation and condition your mind and body to help you through all of this. If you really want to quit, just throw the pack in the trash and don't touch them again. No matter what people suggest or offer you need to rid your body of the habit-forming nicotine that is there. Until you can do this, you won't be able to quit. Counting days and hours will only make your mind tell your body that you need a cigarette right now and you'll go looking for one. Don't worry about this and just keep telling yourself that you are breathing better, saving money, feel healthier, and you want to be able to run again like you did in high school. You should take up some sports and exercise on a daily basis to be able to increase the blood flow in your body and you'll see how much easier it is to to the simple things in life once you've stopped. In the end, this will all be up to you and how much you are willing to stick to this and see it through.