Welcome!
Chapter 1: The Surprising Power of Atomic Habits
Atomic Habits should be defined before we dive into our study.
First, Atomic is often thought of as something large like an atom bomb. Atomic actually means something very small, the core unit like atoms in our physical world. The cool thing about the word Atomic is that the very smallest units can be the source of incredible energy.
Next, Habits are simply routines done on a regular basis, often times without thinking. Habits are not inherently good or bad, they are simply practices we have that are essentially on autopilot.
Therefore, Atomic Habits are small routines that have enormous power. Or, as James Clear defines them: “A regular practice or routine that is not only small and easy to do, but also the source of incredible power; a component of the system of compound growth” (p. 27).
Key Theme
Many of us chase goals and search for the next win. The problem is, we fall into the trap of overestimating the importance of one big moment and underestimate the value of making small improvements each day.
Clear introduces the concept of getting 1% better each day. Simple math reveals the power of compound interest, that if you were to get 1% better every day for a year, you would end up 37 times better than when you started. But compound interest and habits work both directions, if we were to get 1% worse each day, after a year we would be almost at 0. This is an illustration of how good and bad habits, repeated on a daily basis, can have a huge multiplying effect on the direction of your life.
“Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement” (p. 16)
The stumbling block for many is that we want to see results now. We want to workout for a week and be fit, apologize once and repair the relationship, take a Spanish lesson and be fluent. We lose motivation because the seemingly insignificant 1% changes are not noticeable in the moment.
Ice Cubes
Clear offers a fantastic illustration with an ice cube. If you have an ice cube in a room at 25 degrees and increase the temperature 1 degree each day, you will not see any change to the ice cube, it will remain frozen, the exact same as the day before. That is until you reach the 7th day, you will finally get to 32 degrees and the ice cube will begin to melt. It is the same incremental 1 degree change each day, nothing more, nothing less, but it eventually makes a dramatic, noticeable change in the composition of the ice cube.
“Change can take years—before it happens all at once” (p. 21).
This is the idea of the Plateau of Latent Potential. As you make small 1% improvements, you don’t see change as your potential is being stored up until you finally break through and the work you have put in is now fully visible.
Due to this lag in the time it takes to breakthrough and achieve a goal, it is easy to get disheartened along the way. This Valley of Disappointment is where many people fall off the wagon and back into comfortable old habits instead of staying the course of pursuing Better Every Day.
Goals
Clear insists that the focus should not be on goals, but instead it should be on our systems. Goals are not bad, in fact they are powerful in the right context, but there are four main problems with goals:
1. Winners and losers have the same goals – The Dodgers and the Padres had the same goal in the playoff game last night, they both wanted to win but only the Padres achieved that goal. Therefore, the goal is not the differentiating factor in success.
“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems” (p. 27).
2. Achieving a goal is only a momentary change – Success is fleeting and only changes us for a moment. To truly change our life, we need to change our systems and the outcomes will take care of themselves. (Inputs)
“Goals are good for setting a direction, but systems are best for making progress” (p. 24).
3. Goals restrict your happiness – Either you achieve your goals and you’ll be happy, or you won’t and you’ll be unhappy. This binary scenario makes contentment in your current situation nearly impossible unless you shift your focus on loving the process of becoming better.
“Time magnifies the margin between success and failure. It will multiply whatever you feed it. Good habits make time your alley. Bad habits make time your enemy.” (p. 18)
4. Goals are at odds with long-term progress – When the goal is the end point, what do you do after the end? Think Yo-Yo Dieting: You want to get fit for vacation so you eat well and exercise and then as soon as you get home, you let yourself go. The goal should be the process which is a lifestyle of “endless refinement and continuous improvement” (p. 27).
“Your commitment to the process that will determine your progress” (p. 27).
Takeaway
My key takeaway is that change takes time and small, consistent improvements make the greatest long-term impact. Do not focus on your goal, focus on your process. Process leads to progress.
Whatever you are struggling with, whatever you would like to change about your circumstances, do not underestimate the power of small habits and do not get discouraged if you do not see results in the short-term. Each day of 1% improvement is one degree higher until one day your ice cube will begin to melt and you will begin to see the fruit of your labor.
I do not intend to have this level of detail in the summary each week, I plan to focus more on the main theme and will work under the assumption that you are reading along with me. Next week we will walk through Chapters 2 and 3 to finish off the first section, The Fundamentals.
If you have comments or takeaways you’d like to share with me, you can comment below or message me on Instagram. I’d love to hear your thoughts!
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