Book Summary:
A framework for creating good habits and getting rid of bad ones. Based on the latest research and real life, it aims to teach you how to change your life with the power of habits.
Related Book Summaries:
Getting Things Done – David Allen – Book Summary
7 Habits of Highly Effective People – Stephen Covey – Book Summary
Mindset – Carol Dweck – Book Summary
Quotes:
You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.
You should be far more concerned with your current trajectory than with your current results.
Book Summary Notes:
- Can small habits make a big impact?
- Habits are behaviours we perform automatically, often completely unaware.
- Small habits repeated every day cause huge results.
- We don’t notice small habits because their effect is negligible. Eating a pizza tonight won’t change you tomorrow. Eat a whole pizza every night for a year though and watch the change (and weight) pile up.
- Change requires a great deal of patience and confidence that your small habits are keeping you on the right trajectory.
- It is more motivating to focus on your trajectory rather than your current progress.
- Habits are often learned through experience. We often come across satisfying solutions to life problems and then internalise and repeat the actions that caused the solution.
- Habits begin with a cue, that is a trigger to act.
- The second stage is the craving for a change of state.
- Followed by our response, usually an action, and ultimately the reward. Every habit is subject to the same process.
- Building new habits requires obvious cues and proper planning.
- Simple changes to our environment such as removing obstacles can make a big difference.
- Make habits more attractive by tying them to rewards. Even anticipation of a reward is enough to make some people do something.
- Use temptation bundling, such as tying something you don’t enjoy to something you do.
- If you want to adopt a new habit make it easy on yourself.
- Reduce the friction in starting your habit or activity to make it easier. Wanna play more guitar? Leave it in the centre of your room all set up and ready to go.
- Use the 2 minute rule – make the habit small enough to start within 2 minutes. Don’t say Ill read a chapter a night, start with 2 pages.
- Make your habits immediately satisfying. Try to attach something immediately gratifying to Habits, especially ones with a delayed return.
- Make sure to manage and track your habits. This alone can be a form of motivation for some people, don’t break a streak!
