Planning more for my week than I can actually do, former procrastinators, is a constant downer. I set overly ambitious goals I’m not able to reach in six days. (We’re fond of eating, sleeping, etc.)
Sometimes going big with massive change works. Most of us benefit from smaller changes. What are mini habits? Why do they work? Can they help me with projects?
Mini Habits by Stephen Guise explains a small step approach. From him I continue learning:
- The goal in creating habits is to change your brain with repetition.
- The mini habits strategy is forcing yourself to take 1-4 strategic actions every day. (Ten minutes max, all together) These actions are too small to fail, too small to skip. The best habits come from your life values.
- Mini goals should be “stupid small.” When you do that small thing, you’ve succeeded. Yea! You may do more, but no more is required. Do not raise the goal.
- Guise figured on a 30 minute workout but his brain resisted. One push-up? His brain agreed. He now does full workouts. He requires himself to write 50 words per day; he usually writes two thousand. But he’s succeeded with one push up and fifty words.
- Doing a little bit every day has more impact than doing a lot on one day. A big push day ends. A little daily grows into a lifelong habit.
- The subconscious does not fight small steps. By changing one step at a time, you’re cooperating with the subconscious – while transforming it. It’s like you sneaked into the control room.
Mini habits make it easy to do what needs doing when it needs doing.
What ridiculously small step can you take daily to form a habit or achieve a goal?
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