What’s the secret to developing healthy habits and maintaining organization?
Small habits can make big changes.
“It doesn’t matter how successful or unsuccessful you are right now. What matters is whether your habits are putting you on the path toward success.” – James Clear
Get 1% better everyday
Forget goals and focus on the system.
Goals = Results
Systems = Processes that lead to results
If you’ve tried changing your habits but haven’t changed, perhaps the issue isn’t you. The issue is your system. Bad habits repeat themselves.
“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.” – James Clear
Build an identity-based habit
“The key to building lasting habits is focusing on creating a new identity first. Your current behaviors are simply a reflection of your current identity. What you do now is a mirror image of the type of person you believe that you are (either consciously or subconsciously).
To change your behavior for good, you need to start believing new things about yourself. You need to build identity-based habits.
Changing your beliefs isn’t nearly as hard as you might think. There are two steps.
- Decide the type of person you want to be.
- “I am an organized and tidy person.”
- Prove it to yourself with small wins.
- Actions speak louder than words
Your identity emerges out of your habits.” – James Clear
Every action you take contributes to the type of person you want to be.
How to grow a good habit
Make it Obvious
- Be specific with your actions
- “I will [BEHAVIOR][LOCATION] when [TIME] every [DAY].
- I will organize my home when I wake up every Sunday morning.
- Use Habit Stacking
- “After [CURRENT HABIT], I will [NEW HABIT]
- “After drinking my coffee, I will declutter paper mail.
- Design your space around your routine. Make cues of positive habits visible and obvious
- Place a hook near the front door for your keys to hang.
Make it Attractive
- Pair an action that you want to do with an action you need to do
- “Before I hangout with friends, I will tidy up my room.”
- “When I get food delivered, I will wash the dishes.”
- Join a culture where your desired behavior is the norm.
- Online: tidy lifestyle community group, declutter groups, minimalist groups, simple living groups
- In-person: tidying workshops, women’s groups, parent groups
- Create a positive ritual. Do something you love immediately before a unfavorable habit
- “Before I tidy up, I will treat myself to my favorite coffee.”
Make it Easy
- Reduce friction. Decrease steps for good habits
- For example: I always set out my outfit, purse and shoes the night before a work day. Then I get to enjoy my morning drinking coffee and preparing for work.
- Prime environment. Design your space to make future actions easy
- Strategic storage spots. In the closet closest to the main door, store your coats, shoes, and most used accessories. When you walk out the door, you can grab everything with ease
- Master the moment. Optimize the small choices with the biggest rewards
- Physical checklists are extremely helpful to keep productivity up and feels rewarding.
- A simple walk during your day allows you to clear your mind and appreciate the moment. This small action can cascade into your state of mind at work and your interactions with others.
- Use the 2 minute rule
- Any habit can be condensed into 2 minutes. The key is to begin incorporating the habit slowly and then eventually 2 minutes becomes 3, then 4, etc.
- Example: Fold one piece of clothing right after you take a load out of the dryer.
- Automate your habits to lock in future behavior
- Practice putting your keys and wallet in the same place each day
- Tidy up every Sunday
- Set a deadline of one month for all sale items. If you don’t sell it, have the courage to let go and let it be used/loved.
Make it Satisfying
- Make the habit enjoyable
- Turn on music, put on a tv show, dance a little, sing!
- Reinforce good habits. Reward yourself immediately after a positive habit
- After I tidy up, I will take myself out to my favorite lunch spot! Yey!
- When doing a difficult habit, remind yourself of the benefits
- When I fold laundry it is easier for me to pick out outfits, feel less guilt of it sitting in a basket, and frees up floor space.
- Track your habits
- Write a list of all of your habits both good and bad. Reflect on this list and make more mindful choices.
- Never miss twice. When you miss a habit, jump right back in
- Don’t get discouraged because you haven’t organized your home for a week. It’s never too late to get back on track!
How to break a bad habit
Make it invisible
- Reduce exposure. Out of sight, out of mind
- Hide the TV remote, keep snacks on a high shelf in a cabinet, place cigarettes in a box in a hard to reach spot
Make it unattractive
- Reframe. What are the benefits of avoiding bad habits?
- I feel more productive, present, healthier, lighter, motivated when I don’t watch tv.
Make it difficult
- Increase friction. Increase the number of steps for bad habits
- In order to get a bag of chips I have to get a step latter, reach up to the highest shelf, take down the bag before eating
- Use a commitment device. Limit future choices to only the ones that help
- Higher a professional organizer and commit to the process
- Buy a gym membership and commit to a better physical and mental state
Make it unsastifying
- Team up with an accountability buddy. Support each other and hold yourselves accountable.
- Make the costs of your bad habits public
“Whenever you want to change your behavior, you can simply ask yourself: How can I make it obvious? How can I make it attractive? How can I make it easy? How can I make it satisfying?”
– James Clear
Dive Deeper and Read Atomic Habits!
Everything in this blog post is from James Clear author of Atomic Habits.
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The information from this blog post is sourced from the book Atomic Habits by James Clear and his website.
