Gaurav Saxena

Atomic Habits authored by James Clear is a book known to many and is truly a very well-written book. In my opinion, it is a must-read book for all individuals, especially students, early-career professionals, and people who aspire and are willing to strive hard to achieve a goal in life. The spinal cord of the book Atomic habits is based on a very simple fact: 'Cue ignites a craving. A craving prompts a response. And finally, the response leads to a result.' Analysis of these four makes up the four main sections of this book which have been categorized as the four laws. There are two other sections: one, an introductory section where the author discusses how an individual's identity and habits are interlinked, and a conclusion. Now let me briefly review the four laws of habit formation (and the reverse will work for getting rid of a bad one). The first law is to make it obvious what you want to do. You must shape your surroundings in a manner that remind you of the activity you need to do/start to form a habit. However, even if there are enough clues around you to remind you to do that activity, you might lose the motivation to do it soon (as you are not habitual of doing that activity). To avoid this, the book gives you ideas on how you can make it attractive. Even thinking about it must motivate you. Quoting the book "Habits are a dopamine-driven feedback loop...It is the anticipation of a reward--not the fulfillment of it--that gets us to take action" and therefore "It is the craving that leads to the response". One way to build such a craving is to bundle a temptation with a particular activity. Another way is to be part of a group. When we are low on motivation ourselves, we find motivation from external sources such as joining a group that is already doing what you want to do and enforcing the identity on you. The book mentions three groups in particular, imitating whom can help us keep up the motivation: The close (family, friends, a group of like-minded people, etc.), the many (what is everyone doing, thinking, etc., and not being the one to be the odd one out), and the powerful (you want to play like your favorite sportsperson, bake like your favorite baker, etc.) Now once there is enough motivation (i.e., craving) to carry on an activity, it will not last long if it is not simple enough for you to do it. Remember that "The best is the enemy of good." Just by being focused on and thinking about what we want to achieve, we will not achieve it. This is called 'motion'. 'Action' on the other hand is actually taking the steps needed to move towards the goal and achieving it. To go from motion to action, we need to break down the path in steps that we can take, neither too easy nor too difficult, but just the right amount of ease with the right amount of difficulty will both pull us towards the goal and will keep us motivated. And lastly, once the action is taken and completed, make it rewarding. Reward is what will help you keep up the craving for tomorrow. Also, the rewards should not pull you away from the direction in which you are moving. You cannot reward yourself with a high-carb diet when you plan to lose weight. Quoting the book again "...it is important to select short-term rewards that reinforce your identity rather than ones that conflict with it." Moreover, the inverse of the above four tactics also works to get rid of a bad habit. With these ideas, one can build a habit or break free from bad ones. Further, these habits will shape your identity but remember to be flexible and leave room for improvement.