Habits matter

 

EVERY ACTION YOU TAKE

IS A VOTE FOR THE TYPE OF PERSON

YOU WISH TO BECOME

James Clear

James Clear, the author of Atomic Habits, defines habits as small decisions we make and actions we perform every day.  He suggests that we are in fact the sum of our habits.  What we do over and over again influences everything about us – what we believe, how we behave, what we achieve or don’t achieve.

So, how do we get better at creating good habits?

Most people’s initial instinct is to turn to willpower - I am sure we have all had the experience of looking at other people’s habits and wishing we had half of their willpower, I know I certainly have.  But actually, what the research tells us is that willpower is not the answer.  What we now know is that willpower is like a muscle, the more we use it throughout the day (avoiding the cake tin, not binge watching Breaking Bad) the less willpower we have at the end of the day.  This means that relying on willpower to create new habits can be very erratic, some days you might just have enough left in the tank and other days it is completely empty.   

So, how do we create a new habit (or return to an old habit) if we can’t rely on our willpower?

The answer lies in picking something so small that we don’t need any willpower or motivation to do it. Instead of choosing to go for a 20-minute run we start with a 5-minute run, instead of committing to 30 minutes of writing each day we commit to 5 minutes…. or even just 1 minute.  Christine Carter, a sociologist in the States calls this “the better than nothing habit” and explains that the harder something is the more motivation we need.  She explains that humans, more often than not, follow the law of least effort – meaning that when our chosen activity requires high levels of effort, we are much more likely to choose the easier option and return to the couch.  

If we think about this from an evolutionary perspective it makes a lot of sense.  Travelling back thousands of years our ancestors had to work incredibely hard just to provide the basics - food to eat a shelter to live in, fire to keep people warm- they would never waste energy on a task that was not meaningfully contributing to survival.  What this means is that our brains are actually programmed to rest and conserve energy as much as possible. So, when you start thinking about putting on your running shoes to go for a run your brain is literally telling you to stay at home and preserve energy (aka watch Netflix).  This is why, for so many of us, it takes SO much effort to actually get out the door.  To counter this natural evolutionary phenomenon what the research is suggesting is that we pick something so tiny that we are no longer fighting against our evolution.

I am not sure about you but the thought of getting all my running gear on and only going for a one-minute run feels totally counter intuitive…. but here is where the science is really helpful.  When we choose something that it is only marginally better than doing nothing at all, we don’t require motivation or willpower.  And that’s not even the best bit - by repeating this tiny minuscule step over and over again we will start to develop a new neural pathway in our brain.  Karen Young has a really helpful way of explaining this.  She talks about our neural pathways as light bulbs in our brain.  The light bulbs for the things we do regularly are really bright – the brushing our teeth light bulb, the driving a car lightbulb…. you get the picture.   When we start a new habit (or re-engage with an old habit), the light bulb is initially very dim but once we hardwire the habit into our brain (by committing to tiny but consistent) we will eventually be able to do it without thinking so much which greatly reduces the effort (and willpower) that is required.  This is because the brighter the lightbulb is the more automation we have in our brains – meaning that our brains will start to do whatever the habit is on autopilot freeing us up to focus on new tasks. 

Putting this into practice

1.       Abandon grand plans and choose something completely unambitious

2.       Focus on consistency over intensity

3.       Observe your light bulb (neural pathway) getting brighter

4.       Enjoy the huge advantages of your brain going on autopilot

5.       Once the habit feels secure very gradually increase the intensity

Remember every action you take is a vote for the person you wish to become – a runner, a writer, a comedian, a knitter - every time you take that small miniscule step you are powering your lightbulb and taking a step closer to whatever it is you wish to become.

 

https://www.ted.com/talks/christine_carter_the_1_minute_secret_to_forming_a_new_habit