Hey Friends! If you’ve ever struggled to make permanent changes or build good habits, you are likely familiar with James Clear’s bestselling book, Atomic Habits. Atomic Habits There are a lot of useful tips in it that can help you make healthier habits, get rid of bad ones, and alter your life one small step at a time.
Today, I’m going to break down Atomic Habits into simple lessons and useful advice that you can start using right away, no matter where you are in your journey. This review will help you decide whether you want to improve your health, your job, your relationships, or your spirit.
Are you ready? Let’s get started!
What Are Atomic Habits?
Atomic habits are small, step-by-step habits. They are tiny changes that may not seem important on their own, but over time they add up to big benefits. James Clear calls these “the compound interest of self-improvement.”
Think about what it would be like to get better by simply 1% every day. It may not seem like much, but over the course of a year, it adds up to a lot of growth. On the other hand, ignoring tiny behaviours leads to a steady decline. That’s why little habits are so important.
Instead of trying to make big changes happen overnight, work on creating small changes every day. These little things you do every day will shape who you are and how well you do in the future.
Four Rules for Changing Your Behaviour
James Clear says that to make healthy habits and get rid of bad ones, you need to follow four basic rules, which he calls the Four Laws of Behaviour Change:
1. Make It Clear
Your surroundings and cues make you do things. Make the cue clear to help you form a good habit.
For example, if you wish to read more, put a book on your desk or pillow to remind you.
Clear says to undertake a “habit scorecard” by writing down your everyday habits and marking them as good, bad, or neutral. Knowing this will help you figure out which habits you need to modify.
Tip: Stack habits by connecting a new one to an old one. For example, “After I brush my teeth, I will meditate for two minutes.” This helps new behaviours stick to things you already do, reinforcing them.
2. Make It Look Good
We tend to do things again and again that make us feel good. Make excellent habits enticing to help you stick to them.
For example, you could listen to your favourite podcast while you work out to help you create a habit.
Clear talks about “temptation bundling”, which means combining something you want to do with something you need to do. For example, only watch your favourite show while you work out.
Your brain is more inclined to desire to do something again if it is fun.
3. Make It Simple
Make the habit easier to do by lowering friction and getting rid of obstacles.
For example, if you want to eat better, plan your meals ahead of time and have nutritious snacks out in the open.
Clear talks about how powerful “the two-minute rule” is: it says that any new habit should take less than two minutes to do. Instead of saying “read more”, say “read one page”.
You may develop momentum and prevent feeling overwhelmed by making habits easy.
4. Make It Enjoyable
We do things that make us feel good over and over again. To stay motivated, give yourself rewards right away or keep track of your accomplishments.
For example, you may use a habit tracker app or write an X on the calendar every day you do your habit.
Clear says that fast rewards are vital since the brain likes to get what it wants right now. Tracking your habits gives you a visual reminder that helps you stay on track.
He also says that recognising little triumphs might help people keep doing good things.
Habits Based on Identity: Think About Who You Want to Be
One of the best concepts in Atomic Habits is to change your focus from results (“I want to lose 10 pounds”) to who you are (“I want to be a healthy person”).
This change means that your habits are no longer about reaching a goal but about becoming the kind of person who has those habits.
Think about what kind of person might conduct this habit. Then do modest things to show yourself that it’s true.
Instead of saying “I want to run a marathon,” say “I am a runner.” Every time you run, you strengthen that identity, which makes it easier to keep going.
The Environment’s Role
Your surroundings have a bigger impact on your behaviour than your willpower. One of the best ways to help yourself stick to your goals is to make your environment work for you.
If you want to eat better, get rid of junk food in your house. If you want to focus, put your phone in another room.
Clear makes it clear that willpower is a limited resource and can’t be relied on alone. Instead, make the environment do the hard work for you so that good habits become automatic.
For example, if you want to play the guitar every day, leave it out in its case where you can see it.
How to Stop Bad Habits
Clear says that to stop negative habits, you need to turn the Four Laws upside down:
- Take away anything that reminds you of the bad behaviour so it can’t be seen.
- Reframe your mind to focus on the bad things to make it less appealing.
- Make it hard—add friction to the harmful habit.
- Make it less fun by adding penalties or making people responsible.
To stop spending money on things you don’t need, for example, delete apps that are distracting or keep your credit cards out of reach.
This, along with changing bad habits for good ones, will make the change easy.
The Strength of Small Victories and Consistency
Small victories keep everything going. Even if it feels like progress is slow, make sure to show up every day. These small modifications add up to amazing outcomes over time.
Aristotle said, “We are what we do over and over.” So, excellence is not something you do once, but something you do all the time.
Being consistent is better than being perfect. It’s better to do a habit imperfectly but often than correctly but not very often.
The Goldilocks Rule: How to Stay Motivated
Clear talks about the Goldilocks Rule, which says that people stay motivated when they work on things that are “just right”—not too hard or too easy.
When your habits are too hard or uninteresting, you lose motivation. Change your habits so they are hard enough to keep you interested but not so hard that you get burned out.
The End: Small Habits Can Have a Big Effect
Atomic Habits tells us that to make genuine changes, we don’t need to put in a lot of work or willpower. We just need to make small changes, change our surroundings, and think about who we are.
Begin small, stick with it, and see how your habits change your life for the better.
Do Something Today
Pick one small behaviour to start or one bad habit to stop. Make a plan based on the Four Laws of Behaviour Change, and promise to follow it every day. Your self in the future will be grateful.
Did this review help you? Sign up for more book summaries that will change your life and tips to help you improve your habits, attitude, and success!