Our first Pro Book Club conversation is tomorrow on Atomic Habits. Ahead of that, I wanted to compile some summary, thoughts and takeaways for those who haven't finished reading yet or want to come with a few questions thought of before hand.
Questions for our chat tomorrow:
Did you enjoying reading this book? Why/why not? (Did you finish...)
What stories, anecdotes and examples throughout, highlighting the different concepts stuck with you the most? Ie, British cycling team on 1% improvements, ice cube melting for latent potential, experimental chess family for power of the tribe, etc.
What do you think of the 4 laws of behavior change? (get the cheat sheet here)
What is one habit you'd like to add to your life? Have you started already?
What is one habit you'd like to break? Have you started already?
Overall, what were some of the greatest takeaways you had from reading this book?
Would you recommend this book to family and friends? Why or why not?
Helpful Book Summary, credit below: https://samuelthomasdavies.com/book-summaries/self-help/atomic-habits/
Summary/highlights and some visuals:
If you find yourself struggling to build a good habit or break a bad one, it is not because you have lost your ability to improve. It is often because you have not yet crossed what James calls, the “Plateau of Latent Potential.”
“Getting 1 percent better every day counts for a lot in the long-run.”
“Changing our habits is challenging for two reasons: (1) we try to change the wrong thing and (2) we try to change our habits in the wrong way.”
“There are three layers of behavior change: a change in your outcomes, a change in your processes, or a change in your identity.”
How to Build Better Habits in 4 Simple Steps
Whenever you want to change your behavior, ask yourself:
How can I make it obvious?
How can I make it attractive?
How can I make it easy?
How can I make it satisfying?
“The Four Laws of Behavior Change are a simple set of rules we can use to build better habits. They are (1) make it obvious, (2) make it attractive, (3) make it easy, and (4) make it satisfying.”
“One of the best ways to build a new habit is to identify a current habit you already do each day and then stack your new behavior on top. This is called habit stacking.”
Motivation is Overrated; Environment Often Matters More
“Environment is the invisible hand that shapes human behavior.”
“Temptation bundling is one way to make your habits more attractive. The strategy is to pair an action you want to do with an action you need to do.”
“We tend to imitate the habits of three social groups: the close (family and friends), the many (the tribe), and the powerful (those with status and prestige).”
“The first three laws of behavior change—make it obvious, make it attractive, and make it easy—increase the odds that a behavior will be performed this time. The fourth law of behavior change—make it satisfying—increases the odds that a behavior will be repeated next time.”
“Habit trackers and other visual forms of measurement can make your habits satisfying by providing clear evidence of your progress.”
“The Goldilocks Rule states that humans experience peak motivation when working on tasks that are right on the edge of their current abilities.”
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With good conversation, we'll record and share it post-live for folks who want to be part of the conversation after the fact but couldn't join day of.