Atomic Habits By James Clear

If you haven’t had the chance to read Atomic Habits by James Clear, this article provides a comprehensive summary to help you grasp its core concepts.

The book highlights several crucial principles, such as “focus on the system, not just the goal.” These key ideas are briefly explained below to convey the insights James Clear aims to share.

The whole book emphasizes forming atomic habits. The author says you are identified with your habits.

1. Make a list of everyday habits.

If you want to change your routine then first of all focus on your everyday habits. For this pen down your habits, observe, and analyze whether these habits doing anything good to you.

The author masterfully illustrates this concept with an example, encouraging readers to compare their old photographs with recent ones.

What changes do you observe? If you are finding the changes bad then pay attention to the bad habits you are focusing on. The habits which are responsible for making you look like this? Are you not paying attention to yourself? Ask these questions to yourself. If you are inclining more towards junk food then this is the time to change this bad habit.

2. Connect a new habit with the old habit.

For example, tell yourself that you will walk for 20 minutes daily after eating. One percent improvement daily will make you a hundred percent better in a hundred days.

Instead of working for big goals, divide the goal into small achievable goals and work for them. Consistency is the key.

Focus on enjoying the process rather than fixating on outcomes. By doing so, you’ll build lasting habits, as relying solely on results can quickly lead to boredom.

For instance, if you want to develop a habit of reading newspapers, begin by reading just the headlines. Discuss the headlines or news with your friends, or family, or in groups to understand its details and confirm it by reading the newspaper. In this way, you will enjoy the process as this involves your curiosity and you are not focusing on the outcomes.

3. Make changes in the environment around you.

Adopting new habits doesn’t require motivation; it requires creating the right environment. There is a famous quote by James Clare, “ The environment is the invisible hand that shapes human behavior.” It means the things around us affect our habits. So, make the environment around you suitable for good habits by surrounding yourself with like-minded people.

For example, if you want to start painting then keep the painting brush on the table instead of keeping it in the drawer.

4. Proceed Slowly

Any habit is made with consistency by repeating it again and again. So, divide new good habits into small steps and proceed slowly.

It sounds good to hear less effort and maximum results. This is a fact of life, our mind also prefers the way which requires less effort and time. Do not overburden your mind to make it happy and peaceful.  

Do it less, take small steps, and increase a bit after a few days. When it is done daily for some days, it will become a habit. You will see that your mind will find better ways to make that work possible.

5. Stop Procrastination in 2 minutes.

Procrastination is the biggest hindrance on the path to success. The 2-minute rule is the best way to do that. When your mind starts procrastination, then get up in 2 minutes and start doing work. This will stop your mind from wandering.

Besides these, Atomic Habits Book also answers some significant questions like

How to change the bad habit?

The author says to ask yourself what habits you want to change. What small steps can I take to change it? How can I make it attractive so that I can enjoy it? How can I make it easy, so that I can make it part of my daily life?

Analyze the bad habit you are cultivating. It will demotivate you. Think what bad it is doing, how much time you are wasting on it. These habits do not contribute anything towards reaching your goal. Then see the results of both habits good ones and bad ones. This will help you leave the bad habits.

How to make good habits a habit?

Always remember your goal and reward. Remember, by adopting this good habit, how better and more comfortable tomorrow will become. Make habits attractive.

But, how to make habits attractive?

Connect the new habit with your favorite activity, like running while listening to a podcast. Also, add rewards to the habit so that it becomes regular and remains consistent.

Use Habit Tractor to track your progress.

How to adopt a new habit?

Imagine yourself as who you want to be.

When you want to adopt a habit then ask yourself if this habit helps you in converting you to what you want to be. If the answer you get is yes, it means your mind is ready for the changes.

What is the most important way of starting a new habit?

The author highlights that when someone says they lack motivation, this shows that they are not aware of what they want. They should understand that they are not lacking motivation instead there is a lack of clarity. They are unaware of where they want to go and what they need. Bill Gates always says any individual can be successful who has clarity of his goals.

So, the best way to be successful is to develop clarity. Ask yourself why you want to change the habit. What are you going to give up to break the habit and what are the things to start with to adopt a new habit?

How do you control yourself?

A good habit, once formed, becomes a lifelong companion, continuously enhancing the quality of your life. Sometimes, the human mind gravitates toward bad habits. For instance, during a weight loss journey, encountering something sugary can trigger cravings and lead to a loss of self-control.

 Because of this, they fall into bad habits or bad lifestyles. This shows how important self-control is. For this, it is important to stay away from things that distract you. Surround yourself with feelings, people that keep your spirit high.