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In his best-selling book Atomic Habits, James Clear defines the titular concept as “a regular practice or routine that is not only small and easy to do, but also the source of incredible power; a component of the system of compound growth.”
This definition of atomic habits does a lot to unpack the simple but powerful premise of the entire book: tiny positive habits we perform each day can be transformative, changing our lives for the better. Conversely, equally minuscule bad habits we consciously or unconsciously cultivate can derail us from what we want to achieve, taking us further away from the person we want to be.
Fully grasped, this concept is powerful and can alter how we think about getting what we want out of life: we achieve our aims though intentional but incremental steps, not “once-in-a-lifetime transformations.”
If this is your only takeaway from the 271-page book, you’ve gotten your money’s worth. But Atomic Habits is a full-fledged instruction manual on building habits and making them stick for the long-haul. Here are five lessons from Clear worth integrating into your own life as you set your eyes on your next ambition –– whether that’s getting in shape or saving money for the future:
Create identity-based habits
When it comes to making a change, Clear advises readers to focus on identity rather than outcome. Rather than focusing on what you want to achieve, concentrate on who you want to be. For instance, Instead of “avoiding wasting money,” become a “saver.” This distinction means that your behaviour will change over the long-term to become consistent with your new identity; a financially-savvy person naturally avoids frivolous shopping sprees and invests their money instead. Forming a new identity instills a sense of pride that propels us to create positive habits –– each time you fulfill one, it reinforces your identity. One the other hand, think critically about the identities you already adopt that may not be serving you, for instance identifying as “not-a-reader” or a “procrastinator.” As Clear notes, “true behavior change is identity change.”
Stack habits
To start a new habit, consider “stacking” it with an existing one. For instance, plan your day after drinking your morning coffee at the kitchen table or do a 5-minute stretch after finishing work for the day at 5:00 PM. Your original habit, preferably location- or time-based, acts as a cue for your desired habit. Once you’ve mastered these small stacks, Clear suggests advancing towards “chain[ing] numerous habits together, each one acting as the cue for the next.” Over time, this habit chain becomes a routine that helps you achieve your ambitions.
Embrace the power of the tribe
On some level, we all hold the desire to “fit in, to bond with others, and to earn the respect and approval of our peers.” In some cases, this is for the worse –– we can bow to peer pressure, drinking more alcohol than we should or cruelly gossiping about others to fit in. But Clear suggests we can use this natural inclination to our advantage, immersing ourselves in a culture where our desired behaviour is the default and surrounding ourselves with people who we admire and want to emulate. To improve your musical talents, join a choir. To become a better software engineer, find a mentor at work to peer-program with. Imitation can be a gateway to our ambitions.
Use immediate reinforcement
In Atomic Habits, Clear shares The Cardinal Rule of Behavior Change: “What is immediately rewarded is repeated. What is immediately punished is avoided.” We can use this heuristic to get our habits to stick by making them satisfying and providing ourselves with an immediate reward. For instance, to motivate yourself to study for an exam, do it outdoors with your favorite beverage. During a workout, listen to your favorite podcast or curate a fun playlist. In most cases, habits have delayed rewards; this method attaches an immediate one, tapping into our brain’s powerful reward system. Eventually, our good habits yield intrinsic awards and we can be less preoccupied with these extras. However, when getting started, they’re a push in the right direction.
Track your habits
On a day-to-day basis, we can forget about the progress we’re making. Recording our habits can make our effort, and our progress, legible. Logging our workouts, recording the new recipes we try, or listing off the books we’ve read provides a feeling of satisfaction; a nod to a job well done. This is the power of habit tracking. You can use apps like Headspace to track meditation sessions, Strava for exercise, and Streaks for all-purpose habit tracking like flossing our teeth or making our beds. For a paper-and-pen option, there are endless ways to track your habits using the Bullet Journal Method. But habit tracking doesn’t only record our success, it pushes us towards more by becoming an aim in itself: don’t break the chain. Tracking our habits can build a sense of satisfaction that propels us forward.
I highly recommend reading Atomic Habits in full for strategies on becoming the best version of you. You’ll come to learn the power of doing something that feels small in the present, for the difference it makes in the future.
Productively,
Fadeke and the Doist Team
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Ambition & Balance
