I recently read the book “Atomic Habits” by James Clear. It is a best seller and here I outline a summary in my own words.

The 3 foundational steps James Clear espouses are (a) Your Identity – The kind of person you wish to be (b) The Process (c) The outcomes. James Clear argues that the outcomes are just that – an outcome. Focus on the identity and the process.

Recognize the need for Change

Are you able to recognize the cues for change? Can you notice what habits might help you develop the identity you desire for yoursefl?

Are you able to carve out an implementation intention to do what you want to do about it?

Are you willing to put yourself in environments that allow you to follow through?

You must want that change and for that start with Why

What is your “Why”? What do you want in life? Are you clear about what you want? Are you willing to give up something for what you want? Can you introspect what it is that holds you back from getting it? And what steps will set you up on that journey? Can you even exaggerate to yourself the impact the steps you take can have in getting to a different place than where you are? Even for a simple act like learning to play the guitar, you need to be clear why you want to learn to play the guitar. The more tangible in your head, the benefit of learning the guitar (e.g. satisfying your ego, being more popular), the more likely you are going to be wanting to take the step towards learning.

Are you willing to surround yourself with the people who are following the things that you need to do? Are you willing to change your company or your environment to achieve what you want?

And if there is something that you should not be doing, and yet do it, can you exaggerate how bad the influence of that can be? For example you can write a full essay about how bad the distraction is and how that distraction can be a huge disservice to the type of person you want to become

Don’t aim too high in terms of the steps you need to take

Sometimes we have to just take a single simple step. And keep repeating it. For instance, every Saturday I will turn up, no matter what, for my meditation practice! On Sundays, I join an exercise group. And the very fact that I turn up even if I am the weakest in the group, has moved my fitness up many notches. Likewise, I have had a trainer visit me every week for years now and while I may not look like an Arnold Schwarznegger, I think I am much better that what I might have been

We are naturally lazy. We are programmed to follow the easy path than the hard one. But at the same time if we know we can get something better than what we have now, we are willing to take that extra step. But the step cant be too hard. Can you find a simple ritual that you can start that will set you on the path of the action you need to take? With respect to exercise, for me it is my trainer turning up on a Friday morning at 6:15 a.m. So it is not my exercise that I need to worry about. That sounds too hard. The simple step I have taken is to get my trainer to turn up. For my Saturday meditation sessions, the easy ritual I have adopted is inviting others to join me. The meditation itself is hard but the simple step of asking another person to join me ensures, I will not miss my meditation.

Remove distractions. When I wake up, I have a habit of picking up my phone or ruminating over things that I think dont work in my life. Now I have resolved to picking up my exercise weights instead and start moving as soon as I wake up. The weights are kept next to my bed in my bedroom the previous night. Sometimes I put my phone away because I know I get distracted by my phone.

Celebrate the steps rather than the outcome

Can you be excited about following through on whatever process you have decided to follow? Can you take the process as your reward? Remember the time when you went to a new city and you just walked not knowing what you would find. There is a certain curiosity in you that wants to discover where it takes you. Who knows where you will end up? Just ticking a box when you follow a process can be satisfying. Visual measures help to make the act itself satisfying. So I make a note in my diary on something I have decided to do regularly. The act of writing down what I have done feels very satisfying.

Eventually, you will be able to maintain the commitment because the process and outcomes will feed each other into a virtuous loop. And the commitment becomes a reward in itself and you will find you are cruising in flow with the habit that you have taken up.