Atomic Habits: Tiny Changes — Remarkable Results!
“All big things come from small beginnings. The seed of every habit is a single, tiny decision.
Growth is a process! Growth takes time. Just have one good day, then REPEAT!” — James Clear
I am happy to say, I am finally done reading the Phenomenal Bestseller — Atomic Habits by James Clear. I can confidently say that I am steadily putting into practice the concepts I learned from the book and I am proud to say, I am making progress.
“Sustaining an effort is the most important thing for any enterprise. The way to be successful is to learn how to do things right, then do them the same way every time.” — James Clear
Let me do you the honors of sharing with you some of my takeaways from the book.
Forget About Goals — Focus On Building Systems
If you want to see remarkable results in any area of your life, you may want to focus on building systems that will help you improve daily and in the long term, help you achieve your goal. Let me quote directly from the book.
What’s the difference between systems and goals?
“Goals are about the results you want to achieve. Systems are about the processes that lead to those results.” For example,
- If you’re an entrepreneur, your goal might be to build a million-dollar business. Your system is how you test product ideas, hire employees, and run marketing campaigns.
- If you’re a musician, your goal might be to play a new piece. Your system is how often you practice, how you break down and tackle difficult measures, and your method your receiving feedback from your instructor.
- If you’re a writer, your goal might be to be a top writer on Medium. Your system is how often you write and share and learn from top writers already in the game.
So one system I’ve designed to help me to read every day is reading for 45minutes to 60minutes, and if I happen to be super busy, I read for about 30minutes. I also track this with my habit sheet by marking the sheet to ensure I am on track and not breaking the chain. As we speak, I am already on my third book and it’s just February 5th, 2021. (Something I have never done before)
I’ve not set a goal to read one book a month, I’ve just designed a system to help me ready every day and the system is taking care of the goal!
“The purpose of setting goals is to win the game. The purpose of building systems is to continue playing the game.” — James Clear
No Matter What Happens! Show Up! — The Greatest Threat To Success Is Not Failure But Boredom.
“Mastery requires practice. But the more you practice something, the more boring and routine it becomes. Once the beginner gains have been made and we learn what to expect, our interest starts to fade. Sometimes it happens even faster than that. All you have to do is hit the gym a few days in a row or publish a couple of blog posts on time and letting one day slip doesn’t feel like much. Things are going well. It’s easy to rationalize taking a day off because you’re in a good place” — James Clear
I must admit my discipline & motivation dwindled slightly over the past two days after seeing how I hit my targets last week and early this week.
But I have come to realize that, the goal is to show up every single day! James Clear puts it so beautifully below,
“Missing once is an accident, but missing twice is definitely the beginning of a new habit” — James Clear
It’s okay to have an off day. But the problem is when the off day is becoming a new habit without your knowledge. All of a sudden, it is gradually creeping in without you knowing it, and boom! It takes over!
Anyone can work hard when they feel motivated. It’s the ability to keep going when work isn’t exciting that makes the difference! — James Clear
Yes! The ability to keep going! The tiny changes! The one sugar grains at a time! These are the ones that will produce remarkable results in the long term.
Remember, “Professionals stick to the schedule, amateurs let life get in the way” — James Clear
Always remember that it's the systems you design that will help you achieve your goals and once you get that done, show up every day!
Thank you for spending your precious time with me by reading this piece! I hope to deliver more articles this year!
Building the system to make me a top writer on Medium soon!
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