Introduction:
Atomic Habits quickly became a best-seller, and I cautiously purchased it after reading numerous positive reviews. Reluctance since the title explicitly hinted at "self-help" as the underlying subject. All of the self-help books I've come to like have been more subtly self-help — they're either fiction or philosophy books. I chose Atomic Habits since the reviews were overwhelmingly positive, with almost all of them emphasising the book's practical and strong advice. I must say that I have not been disappointed in the least.
In this book, the author, James Clear, gives highly compelling arguments and examples from his extensive research spanning different sectors such as sports, arts, science, business, history, and so on, to pick unique nuggets that serve to push his framework. And his frameworks are really practical, with a fantastic mix of examples and thought-provoking life philosophies.
Analysis and Learnings:
If you're having problems changing your behaviours, it's not your fault. Your system is the source of the problem. Bad behaviours repeat themselves not because you don't want to change, but because you have the improper changing mechanism. You do not achieve your objectives. You are reduced to the level of your systems. You'll find a tried-and-true strategy that can propel you to new heights.
Clear is well-known for his ability to simplify difficult concepts into simple habits that can be used in daily life and work. He draws on the most well-tested theories from biology, psychology, and neuroscience in this book to give an easy-to-follow technique for making good habits unavoidable and bad habits impossible. True anecdotes from Olympic gold medalists, award-winning artists, business executives, life-saving physicians, and star comedians who have used the science of little habits to perfect their profession and rocket to the top of their field will inspire and entertain readers.
Changing habits has three stages:
- Changing outcomes - for example, decreasing weight, running 5 kilometres, and so on.
- Changing the process - entails creating procedures and routines that assist people in achieving their objectives.
- Changing one's identity - entails altering some of one's beliefs, which drive one's actions.
- Cues are environmental triggers and indications that must be made evident.
- Cravings are impulses to pursue; you must make routines appealing.
- The response is the acts we take; habits must be made easier, to begin with, and then harder slowly, so that they do not become too difficult all at once. Making it easy does not imply performing easy things, but rather removing as much friction as possible that stands in the way of doing what you want to achieve.
- Rewards are feedback, and satisfaction for desires; behaviours must be made pleasurable.
Conclusion:
Atomic Habits will reshape the way you think about progress and success and will provide you with the tools and strategies you need to transform your habits - whether you are a team looking to win a championship, an organisation looking to redefine an industry, or an individual looking to quit smoking, lose weight, reduce stress, or achieve any other goal.
Overall, I suggest Atomic Habits because of the way it combines certain practical ideas with powerful anecdotes that correspond to those tips. As someone who has been attempting to change habits for a long time (and failing badly), I must admit that this book helped me take my attempts a little more seriously. This absolutely assisted me in not just increasing awareness in areas such as health and fitness and interests, but also in creating some systems around these that brought some intentionality into how I approached them. That, to me, is the most important takeaway from this book. I would like to rate this book 9 out of 10 for its realistic approach towards life.
