The ultimate form of intrinsic motivation is when a habit becomes part of your identity. It’s one thing to say I’m the type of person who wants this. It’s something very different to say I’m the type of person who is this.
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In a nutshell
In Atomic Habits, James Clear shares a step-by-step plan for building habits that last a lifetime. He draws on the works of some of the smartest people (Charles Duhigg is often mentioned) and breaks their ideas into actionable and repeatable steps. At the backbone of his approach is the 4 step model of habits: cue – craving – response – reward, steps that are also mentioned in The Power of Habit. And what I think makes this particularly powerful: the simple idea that tiny changes repeated consistently are what create change, not big changes.
Book Club Notes
I’ve read this book twice cover to cover and it is still one I’d read again. Part of the brilliance of James Clear and why I think his book is the one most often cited when it comes to habits; and not Charles Duhigg’s The Power of Habit (which imo is the habit book to read) is how he breaks down complicated concepts into simple language and actionable steps. The simplicity of his advice is what makes it brilliant. By pushing the notion that it is tiny changes that move the needle not huge life changes, he provides an easy gateway to transform your life via small habits. But like any self-improvement book, how good it is, lies in the application.
The 2-minute Rule
If I had to choose the best takeaway from Atomic Habits it would be this: When you start a new habit, it should take less than two minutes to do.
Every habit can be scaled down into a two-minute version. Want to read every night before bed? Read one page. Want to run a marathon? Put on your running shoes. Want to put away your laundry, fold one shirt.
Oftentimes it’s the start of the action you’re trying to do that is the hardest, but if it becomes a two minute action it’s so much easier to follow that with the next action and the next. Those two-minute habits become gateway habits that lead you down a more productive path.
It may seem weird to get excited about reading one page or making one call. But you’re not actually doing one thing, what you’re doing is showing up. Before you can perfect a habit you need to establish it – and that starts with showing up. Once you’ve mastered the art of showing up, that two-minute task becomes the ritual of a larger routine.
One of the ways I’ve applied this to my life is my nightly prep for my 5am morning movement. I want to exercise everyday (habit) and I like to do it first thing in the morning. To make it easier, the night before I spend two minutes prepping – either putting out my clothes, packing my swimming gear, going through my workout or just booking a class.That nightly ritual has become part of my morning movement routine which makes it infinitely easier to wake up and get moving.
Read If
You want to build some good habits, break some bad ones or just make some positive changes in your life.
Rating
Writing – 9/10
Applicability – 10/10
Timelessness – 10/10
Shareability – 9/10
The Nitty Gritty
Published by: Penguin Random House
Genre: Non-Fiction, Self Help
ISBN: 97818477941831
Pages: 253
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A note on our book ratings
Readability: How easy is it to read and understand what the author is saying? Do you need a dictionary or PhD to understand it?
Writing: How well written is the book? Do you find yourself wowed by the writing or unimpressed?
Applicability: How applicable is this book to daily life? Is there enough advice and actions that are easy to start applying?
Timelessness: Is the content of the book timeless or is it something that in a few years won’t have relevance?
Shareability: How likely are you to share the book?
