Photo credit:Lala Azizli
Atomic Habits comes highly recommended by book readers all over social media. But what makes it such a best seller? Atomic Habits by James Clear is an engaging, relatable, accessible book. The informal tone catches the attention of all its readers and will make you feel like you are reading a long blog post written by a loved one.
James Clear starts out by explaining the meaning of the term Atomic Habits. The meaning he gives summarizes the whole concept of the book. Basically, a small change in your habits will cause significant improvements. So, if you keep making small changes in your life, you will eventually improve and become a better version of yourself.
Atomic Habits comes highly recommended for those of us who:
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Struggle with sticking to our resolutions
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Are trying to change or improve their habits
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Feel discouraged because of not accomplishing their goals
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Struggle with setting clear goals
James Clear lists four steps to building a new habit and examines how behavior change takes place. It took me two weeks to complete the book and the most powerful takeaways for me are:
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Forget about your goals and focus more on the process that leads you to the goal
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Be very specific when listing down your goals. Vague goals make it easy for you to create exceptions and lose momentum.
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Habits appear not to make a difference until you reach a critical threshold and unlock a new level of performance.
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It's easier to build habits when they fit into the normal flow of your life.
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Small changes add up to great improvements.
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The more you repeat an activity, the more the brain changes its structure to become efficient at that activity.
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Your personality influences your habits. So, build habits that are in tune with your personality.
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Be more focused on your trajectory rather than your results.
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Your motivation peaks and remains constant when you work on tasks that are in line with your abilities. Therefore, not too hard and not too easy!
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Build your self-control by spending time in a less tempting environment. Spending time in tempting environments is self-sabotage.
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Mastery requires time and patience.
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If you are not aware of your actions, you will set yourself up for failure. Create a system that makes you more aware of your negative habits.
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Choose a habit because it suits you, not because it is the most popular.
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You don’t have to wait for the right time to change - Don’t be a dreamer, be a doer.
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The greatest threat to success is not failure but boredom.
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Habits shape your identity and your identity shapes your habits.
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The costs of your good habits are in the present and the costs of your bad habits are in the future.
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Everyone is born with different abilities so don’t compare yourself to others.
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The more immediate the pain, the less likely the behavior.
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If you cling too much to your identity, you become brittle and weak.
I also appreciate how Atomic Habits summarizes every chapter at the end. This makes it easier for people who want to scheme through the book every once in a while. If you appreciate self-improvement books, you will realize that this is not a one-read type of book. You will want to keep connecting with your subconscious once in a while, and Atomic Habits will help you do just that. The summaries at the end of every chapter help you remember the concepts without forcing you to re-read the entire book.
Don’t get me wrong, none of the statements listed above are new ideas. However, they are not instinctive to us and that’s what most of us don’t realize. Atomic Habits highlights concepts that are already in our subconscious. The book focuses on making small steps towards your goals rather than focusing on big leaps. As you read, you will see these statements repeated throughout the book.
If you want to create new habits and get some knowledge on how to replace negative habits with good ones - get yourself a copy of Atomic Habits. The advice is sane, doable, and easy to implement. However, if you are looking for new ideas then steer clear of this book. As I said earlier, the book just echoes what is already in your subconscious and makes you more aware of yourself. Most people who are looking to gain more knowledge, feel like this book is a waste of time.
Conclusion
It’s no secret that most of us are more focused during the first half of the year. More people are picking up a book or two and trying to figure out how they can become better. What better way to stay motivated than to get yourself a copy of Atomic Habits?