Hi there,
Usain Bolt was obviously the best in his time, but did you know this champion didn’t come first in all the races he participated? Why would he run 100m in 9.58 seconds at one event and underperform in another? A major factor Bolt raised during an interview was his weakness in starting fast—that is, making his first few steps as quick as possible. Just like Bolt, we have just started the race of the year. And if I may ask, how well are you spending the first few days of the year? Have you started hitting the ground running? How is your momentum?
January just ended, and assessing your performance in the first month, are you confident saying the year will end greatly for you? Will you meet or surpass the goals you have set? If you were to do an honest evaluation, how would you rate your level of execution? Friends, it is time we start acting and executing our goals. Those New Year resolutions need your commitment, just as mine do!
Moving further, the book I read last month is titled Atomic Habits by James Clear. James says, “Success is the product of daily habits—not once-in-a-lifetime transformations.” In other words, if you want to lose 10kg by the end of the year, you must do certain things daily, whether regulating your diet or exercising every day. Habits are defined by what you do each day. According to James, “Atomic habit is the building block of a remarkable result.”
Have you started building some new habits already? If YES, I’ve got some key points to note as you build those amazing habits in 2023.
1. Habits are Driven by Belief
Our belief system is very important. Most times, we unknowingly do things and pick up new habits that resonate with our beliefs. To build a new habit, you must first check whether it’s compatible with your identity. Your new habits will last if they align with your beliefs. For example, if I believe I am poor and that is the absolute truth, then it becomes difficult to embrace habits that can change my condition. Do you need to adopt a new belief? New and sustainable habits are possible, but you need to start with a new belief—it’s like a change of ideology. James called this identity-based habits.
“Becoming the best version of yourself requires you to continuously edit your beliefs, and to upgrade and expand your identity.”
2. Habits are Influenced by Environment
We are shaped by many factors, one of which is our environment. Some of the habits you and I display daily often come from our perception of local norms. Hence, to build or break some habits, you may need a new environment. This means if Mr. A wants to stop smoking, he needs to distance himself from friends who might tempt him with nicotine.
“One of the most practical ways to eliminate a bad habit is to reduce exposure to the cue that causes it.”
“It is easier to build new habits in a new environment because you are not fighting against old cues.”
3. Habits are Elastic
You can learn and unlearn habits. James offers strategies to help learn good habits, and their reversals can help unlearn bad habits. Here are the points James asserts to create a good habit: 1) make it obvious, 2) make it attractive, 3) make it easy, and 4) make it satisfying. Conversely, if you seek to break a bad habit, James advises reversing the 4 laws above: 1) make it invisible, 2) make it unattractive, 3) make it difficult, and 4) make it unsatisfying.
“Any habit can be broken down into a feedback loop that involves four steps: cue, craving, response, and reward.”
“The ultimate purpose of habits is to solve the problems of life with as little energy and effort as possible.”
4. Habits are Process Driven
Our brain likes to detect reward, and good habits bring reward and satisfaction. But beyond reward, the processes or systems put in place to learn new habits are more important. Focus on systems (the HOW) and not goals (the WHAT). Goals are about the results we wish to achieve, while systems involve the processes that could lead to that result. The goal of a football match, for instance, is to end the game with goals, but this cannot be achieved by staring at the scoreboard. Winning requires good training, strong tactics against the opposing team, and outstanding play. Interestingly, the result will take care of itself—most often, you will end the game with many goals and a win.
“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.”
5. Habits Compound
Small habits can compound. This may not be immediately obvious, but as time passes, our actions accumulate. For instance, if you decide to write a book this year and each day you write about half a page, by December, you’ll have no less than 150 pages. Those few words you consciously pen down are definitely adding up. If you aren’t seeing results immediately, continue! Good habits make time your friend, while bad ones make time your enemy.
“If you want to predict where you’ll end up in life, all you have to do is follow the curve of tiny gains or tiny losses, and see how your daily choices will compound ten or twenty years down the line.”
Conclusion
The key lesson for me is that whatever I want can be linked to a habit. If I want to grow my network, I can link that to social habits. If I need to improve my finances, that can be linked to financial habits. If I need to learn new skills, that demands some personal development habits. As conveyed in the book title, habits are the atoms of every big change or breakthrough. You and I can start embracing some new habits today because they are necessary for our next phenomenal transformation.
I am Samuel Ayankoso | The Quester
