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💣 Three surprising motivators behind lasting habits
And why “Atomic Habits” isn’t working for you
One of the most iconic books on habits is Atomic Habits by James Clear, and you’ll soon see why.
Clear believed that the easiest way to start a new habit is to keep the barrier to entry as low as possible: set a timer for only two minutes and stack the new habit with an established routine.
🏋️♀️ This means that if all you do is drive to the gym and stand in the room for two minutes, then that counts as your exercise for the day.
So I tried Clear’s approach with something I desperately wanted, but couldn’t start for whatever reason ➡️ to write my book.
I dedicated two minutes of writing time after I ate breakfast. I had my laptop open to a Word document right next to my bowl of cereal.
When the timer went off, I closed the lid of my laptop and grabbed my dogs’ leashes. I positioned my writing time between two established routines; eating breakfast and walking the dogs.
📙 And guess what? I wrote for thirty days straight — enough for the first chapter! I was so proud of myself.
But I stopped and haven’t written since 2021. 🫣
