BEAVER & BEE BOOK PICK: ATOMIC HABITS BY JAMES CLEAR

Atomic Habits by James Clear was the perfect read in January, an antidote to sweeping changes and short-lived willpower. Instead, it focuses on small (atomic) habits that compound into big results.

Atomic Habits was the perfect combination of easily digestible, understandable and actionable. Better yet, all the practical guidance is backed up a solid scientific understanding of human behaviour by James Clear who is an expert on habits, decision making, and continuous improvement.

Here are our key takeaways:

• Whenever you want to introduce a new positive habit, 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?

  To eliminate a negative habit, do the opposite.

• Try habit stacking
  Identify a current habit you already do each day and then stack your new behaviour on top. ”The habit stacking formula is: ‘After [CURRENT HABIT], I will [NEW HABIT].'            

• Try the “Two-Minute Rule”
  When you start a new habit, it should take less than two minutes to do. This avoids the temptation of going big with initial excitement and trying to do too much too soon. What you want is a “gateway habit” that naturally leads you down a more productive path.

• Get technology to work for you
  Technology can transform actions that were once hard, annoying, and complicated into behaviours that are easy, painless, and simple. It is the most reliable and effective way to guarantee the right behaviour.

• Motivation is overrated
  Don’t rely on willpower as a long term strategy. Perseverance, grit, and willpower are essential to success, but the way to improve these qualities is not by wishing you were a more disciplined person, but structuring your life in a way that DOES NOT require heroic willpower. As humans, we will naturally gravitate toward the option that requires the least amount of work. Create an environment where doing the right thing is as easy as possible.

• You need to be patient
  Small changes often appear to make no difference until you cross a critical threshold and they build on each other and fuel bigger wins that multiply into powerful outcomes.

Atomic Habits is a bestseller for a reason. It's not only great for personal effectiveness, but it can be regarded as a great business book in its own right. You could definitely use the tools to focus on improving financial habits too.

Have you read it Atomic Habits? What did you think? We’d love to know!