Atomic Habits, James Clear

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  • Author:: Clear, James
  • Full Title:: Atomic Habits
  • Category: productivity
  • 

• Summary

  • TODO
  • The 4 laws of Habit making

• Main takeaways

  • The compounding power of habits
    • Improving any skill at a rate of 1% per day compounds to 37 times increase at the end of the year
      • Conversely, a decrease of 1% per day compounds to 0.03
    • Habits can compound for you or against you

    • Your outcomes are a lagging measure of your habits

      • net worth = lagging measure of financial habits
      • weight = lagging measure of eating habits
      • knowledge = lagging measure of learning habits

      • You get what you repeat

      • Good habits make time your ally. Bad habits make time your enemy

    • Plateau of Latent Potential
      • 
      • Small changes compound over time, but in the beginning they can make one feel that they don’t make much difference, and many give up because of it. This plateau is called Plateau of Latent Potential
      • There is often a gap between expectations and actual results in the early stage of habit building
        • We often expect progress to be linear, but it is closer to an exponential curve, with a rather flat area in the beginning, the author calls “Valley of disappointment”
        • Be patient and trust the process!
    • Identity can be changed with 2 steps
      • 1) decide the type of person you want to be
      • 2) prove it to yourself with small wins

      • Your identity emerges out of your habits . Every action is a vote for the type of person you wish to become (Location 587)

  • A system of habits has to be tightly coupled to one’s Identity for it to be successful
    • Identity affects our habits, and our habits affect our identity
    • The author describes 3 layers of behavior change, going progressively deeper
      • Outcomes
        • Concerned with the actual results of the change, like “losing weight”, “publishing a book”, etc.
        • That’s were most goals reside
      • Processes
        • Changing habits and systems, creating new routines, etc.
      • Identity
        • Changing one’s beliefs, the person we are trying to become
    • Identity-based habits are more powerful than Outcome-based habits
      • “I can’t smoke” => “I don’t smoke”
      • “I can’t drink because I’m pregnant” => “I don’t drink because I’m pregnant”
    • Behaviors that are not in phase with the self (Identity) usually don’t last

      • You have a new goal and a new plan, but you haven’t changed who you are

  • Goals vs Systems
    • The author believes that focusing on goals can be detrimental to success and happiness
      • Many of the goals we set to ourselves are inspired by the success of others, which may not apply to us

        • “Goal setting suffers from a serious case of survivorship bias”

        • “Winners and losers have the same goals”

      • Achieving a goal changes your life only for a brief moment
      • Setting goals can restrict happiness if they are the only focus

        • “Once I reach my goal, then I’ll be happy”

        • If I can earn a million dollar, I’ll be happy. But then once reached, we feel it’s not enough and set another one, “I’ll be happy at 2M”, and so on
    • In order to build powerful habits and be successful with your endeavors, you need to have solid systems

      • ”You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fail to the level of your systems” resonate

      • A system of compound growth is composed of atomic habits
        • individual routines that are small and easy to do
  • Building a habit can be divided in 4 steps: cue, craving, response, reward
    • They correspond to what the author calls the 4 laws of habit building
    • To create a good habit | break a bad habit
      • cue: Make it Obvious | Make it Invisible
      • craving: Make it Attractive | Make it unattractive
      • response: Make it Easy | Make it difficult
      • reward: Make it Satisfying | Make it Unsatisfying
  • 1st Law: Make in Obvious
    • Our brain, with sufficient practice, can associate certain cues with particular outcomes (in particular the desirable ones) without us knowing; thank you System 1
    • Because our brain can perform cue detection and its automatic response unconsciously, we need to be aware of our habits in order to tackle them
    • We can start by doing an analysis of what we do daily, and list all the corresponding habits on a Habit Scorecard, in order to rate them
      • Fundamentally, there are no good or bad habit, just efficient or inefficient at solving the problems that are important to us
      • We should rate the listed habits based on wether they are helping us becoming who we want to be
  • 2nd Law: Make it Attractive
  • 3rd Law: Make it Easy
  • 4th Law: Make it Satisfying
• Comparison with Hooked

• Highlights first synced by Readwise December 3rd, 2020

  • changes that seem small and unimportant at first will compound into remarkable results if you’re willing to stick with them for years . (Location 157)
  • Habits are the compound interest of self - improvement . (Location 261)
  • Your outcomes are a lagging measure of your habits . (Location 284)
  • You get what you repeat . (Location 286)
  • Good habits make time your ally . Bad habits make time your enemy . (Location 290)
  • If you find yourself struggling to build a good habit or break a bad one , it is not because you have lost your ability to improve . It is often because you have not yet crossed the Plateau of Latent Potential . (Location 328)
  • When you finally break through the Plateau of Latent Potential , people will call it an overnight success . (Location 331)
  • THE PLATEAU OF LATENT POTENTIAL (Location 340)
  • Goals are about the results you want to achieve . Systems are about the processes that lead to those results . (Location 359)
  • Goals are good for setting a direction , but systems are best for making progress . (Location 370)
  • Winners and losers have the same goals . (Location 372)
  • Goal setting suffers from a serious case of survivorship bias . (Location 373)
  • Goals restrict your happiness . (Location 388)
  • The purpose of setting goals is to win the game . The purpose of building systems is to continue playing the game . (Location 402)
  • You do not rise to the level of your goals . You fall to the level of your systems . (Location 407)
  • Changing our habits is challenging for two reasons : ( 1 ) we try to change the wrong thing and ( 2 ) we try to change our habits in the wrong way . (Location 431)
  • Behavior that is incongruent with the self will not last . (Location 468)
  • You have a new goal and a new plan , but you haven’t changed who you are . (Location 471)
  • The ultimate form of intrinsic motivation is when a habit becomes part of your identity . (Location 480)
  • The biggest barrier to positive change at any level — individual , team , society — is identity conflict . (Location 508)
  • Decide the type of person you want to be . Prove it to yourself with small wins . (Location 554)
  • “ Habits are , simply , reliable solutions to recurring problems in our environment . ” (Location 625)
  • The process of building a habit can be divided into four simple steps : cue , craving , response , and reward . (Location 649)
  • The labels “ good habit ” and “ bad habit ” are slightly inaccurate . There are no good habits or bad habits . There are only effective habits . That is , effective at solving problems . (Location 875)
  • “ Does this behavior help me become the type of person I wish to be ? (Location 880)
  • The Diderot Effect states that obtaining a new possession often creates a spiral of consumption that leads to additional purchases . (Location 964)
  • After I pour my cup of coffee each morning , I will meditate for one minute . (Location 978)
  • Motivation Is Overrated ; Environment Often Matters More (Location 1042)
  • You don’t have to be the victim of your environment . You can also be the architect of it . (Location 1089)
  • If you want to make a habit a big part of your life , make the cue a big part of your environment . (Location 1114)
  • habits can be easier to change in a new environment . (Location 1138)
  • A stable environment where everything has a place and a purpose is an environment where habits can easily form . (Location 1167)
  • The people with the best self - control are typically the ones who need to use it the least . (Location 1200)
  • Self - control is a short - term strategy , not a long - term one . (Location 1239)
  • You can download a printable version of this habits cheat sheet at : atomichabits.com / cheatsheet (Location 1258)
  • the reward system that is activated in the brain when you receive a reward is the same system that is activated when you anticipate a reward . (Location 1342)
  • Your brain has far more neural circuitry allocated for wanting rewards than for liking them . (Location 1356)
  • The habit stacking + temptation bundling formula is : After I [ CURRENT HABIT ] , I will [ HABIT I NEED ] . After [ HABIT I NEED ] , I will HABIT I WANT
  • Running against the grain of your culture requires extra effort . (Location 1521)
  • When changing your habits means challenging the tribe , change is unattractive . When changing your habits means fitting in with the tribe , change is very attractive . (Location 1522)
  • Desire is the difference between where you are now and where you want to be in the future . (Location 1613)
  • Anyone who has tried meditation for more than three seconds knows how frustrating it can be when the next distraction inevitably pops into your mind . You can transform frustration into delight when you realize that each interruption gives you a chance to practice returning to your breath . Distraction is a good thing because you need distractions to practice meditation . (Location 1639)
  • You can reframe “ I am nervous ” to “ I am excited and I’m getting an adrenaline rush to help me concentrate . ” (Location 1645)
  • But more often than not , we do it because motion allows us to feel like we’re making progress without running the risk of failure . (Location 1722)
  • And that’s the biggest reason why you slip into motion rather than taking action : you want to delay failure . (Location 1724)
  • Reduce the friction associated with good behaviors . When friction is low , habits are easy . Increase the friction associated with bad behaviors . When friction is high , habits are difficult . Prime your environment to make future actions easier . (Location 1911)
  • Habits are like the entrance ramp to a highway . They lead you down a path and , before you know it , you’re speeding toward the next behavior . (Location 1930)
  • Every day , there are a handful of moments that deliver an outsized impact . I refer to these little choices as decisive moments . (Location 1938)
  • Decisive moments set the options available to your future self . (Location 1946)
  • “ When you start a new habit , it should take less than two minutes to do . ” (Location 1956)
  • Binge - watching becomes a habit because you have to put more effort in to stop looking at the screen than to continue doing so . (Location 2129)
  • The average person spends over two hours per day on social media . What could you do with an extra six hundred hours per year ? ) (Location 2138)
  • By utilizing commitment devices , strategic onetime decisions , and technology , you can create an environment of inevitability — a space where good habits are not just an outcome you hope for but an outcome that is virtually guaranteed . (Location 2148)
  • The human brain did not evolve for life in a delayed - return environment . (Location 2253)
  • Behavioral economists refer to this tendency as time inconsistency . That is , the way your brain evaluates rewards is inconsistent across time . * You value the present more than the future . (Location 2264)
  • Put another way , the costs of your good habits are in the present . The costs of your bad habits are in the future . (Location 2278)
  • Habit tracking also keeps you honest . Most of us have a distorted view of our own behavior . We think we act better than we do . (Location 2375)
  • manual tracking should be limited to your most important habits . It is better to consistently track one habit than to sporadically track ten . (Location 2406)
  • The first mistake is never the one that ruins you . It is the spiral of repeated mistakes that follows . Missing once is an accident . Missing twice is the start of a new habit . (Location 2423)
  • The human mind wants to “ win ” whatever game is being played . (Location 2449)
  • When we choose the wrong measurement , we get the wrong behavior . (Location 2451)
  • The secret to maximizing your odds of success is to choose the right field of competition . (Location 2617)
  • Our genes do not eliminate the need for hard work . They clarify it . They tell us what to work hard on . (Location 2735)
  • Work hard on the things that come easy . (Location 2744)
  • the optimal level of arousal as the midpoint between boredom and anxiety . (Location 2787)
  • The greatest threat to success is not failure but boredom . (Location 2853)
  • The downside of habits is that you get used to doing things a certain way and stop paying attention to little errors . You assume you’re getting better because you’re gaining experience . In reality , you are merely reinforcing your current habits — not improving them . (Location 2867)
  • Conversely , never reviewing your habits is like never looking in the mirror . (Location 2961)
  • reflection and review offers an ideal time to revisit one of the most important aspects of behavior change : identity . (Location 2965)
  • For many business owners , their identity is something along the lines of “ I’m the CEO ” or “ I’m the founder . ” If you have spent every waking moment working on your business , how will you feel after you sell the company ? (Location 2982)
  • Habits + Deliberate Practice = Mastery (Location 3001)
  • The tighter we cling to an identity , the harder it becomes to grow beyond it . (Location 3002)
  • As Caed Budris says , “ Happiness is the space between one desire being fulfilled and a new desire forming . ” (Location 3072)
  • We can only be rational and logical after we have been emotional . (Location 3091)
  • Satisfaction = Liking – Wanting (Location 3117)
  • “ Being poor is not having too little , it is wanting more . ” (Location 3118)