Oct 26, 2023 11 min read

How to build good habits

Systems over goals

Do you ever feel that sometimes you’re just floating through life and that you’re far away from becoming the person that you want to be?

Do you find yourself in the cycle of making a goal that you desperately want to achieve and then end up falling short, only for you to be back at the starting point?

And do you sometimes think that the key to breaking this cycle hinges on a moment of inspiration or motivation?

So I get this question quite a lot.

How do I work at the hospital, exercise consistently, read books, do YouTube, and eat healthy around the clock?

Want to know the secret?

Humans are creatures of habit.

If you want to know how to ingrain a new habit to supercharge your life, read on.

In this article I’m going to talk about the science behind habit formation and how you can ingrain a new habit to improve your life.

I’m also going to talk about a few key points from the book Atomic Habits by James Clear and my takeaways and tips.

What is a habit?

Habits are automated behaviours that we repeat constantly and they tend to occur subconsciously, often without much thought or decision-making.

Why are habits important?

Some studies suggest that up to 45% of our daily behaviours are habitual rather than intentional.

This means that many of the things we do each day, like waking up the same time, brushing our teeth, making coffee, reading, exercising, checking social media, watching netflix or commuting to work, are done out of habit rather than as a conscious or proactive decision.

So before we talk about strategies, let’s briefly go over the science.

I think it’s important because by understanding these mechanisms, we can better understand how habits are formed and how they can be changed or modified.

The easiest way to explain habits formation is with the habit cycle which consist of 3 stages:

Cue, behaviour and reward.

A cue is something that triggers a behaviour.

It can be a physical or environmental cue, such as a time of day, a location, or an emotional state.

The behaviour is the action that follows the cue, and the reward is the outcome that reinforces the behaviour.

Think about your alarm clock in the morning, it triggers you to hit the snooze button or wake up.

With the reward being an extra 10 minutes in bed or getting up and starting the day.

The process of habit formation is driven by changes in the brain, particularly in the basal ganglia, which is a region responsible for habit learning and execution.

The science behind habit formation involves a feedback loop between behaviour and reward, which reinforces the behaviour and increases the likelihood of it being repeated in the future.

When a behaviour is repeated in response to a specific cue, the brain begins to form neural pathways that associate the cue with the behaviour and the reward.

Over time, these pathways become stronger and more automatic, so that the behaviour is performed without conscious thought.

The basal ganglia plays a critical role in habit formation by integrating sensory information from the environment with motor responses.

As behaviours become more automatic, they shift from being controlled by the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for conscious decision-making, to the basal ganglia, which can execute the behaviour without conscious effort.

The process of habit formation can be influenced by a variety of factors, including motivation, context, and feedback.

For example, habits are more likely to form when the reward is immediate and tangible, rather than distant or abstract.

Habits are also more likely to form in a consistent context, such as a specific location or time of day.

Ultimately, repetition is what the brain decides is important.

There is no substitute for repetition.

Let’s talk strategy.

Atomic Habits is a step-by-step system for creating good habits and breaking bad habits.

The purpose of the book is to help you achieve results efficiently and methodically.

I have 5 main takeaways from this book.

1: The 1% rule.

2: Using systems rather than goals.

3: Behaviour change.

4: 4 laws of habit formation.

5: Accountability.

1. The 1% rule

“Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement.”

The idea behind the rule is that small, consistent improvements in behaviour can lead to significant changes over time.

The 1% rule suggests that if you can improve your habits by just 1% each day, over the course of a year, those small improvements will compound into a 37x increase in overall improvement.

For example, if you commit to doing just 1% more exercise each day, that might mean adding just one more rep or walking just a little bit further.

While this may seem like a very small improvement, over the course of a year, those small changes will add up and you will have significantly improved your fitness level.

The key to the 1% rule is consistency.

By focusing on small, sustainable improvements that you can maintain over time, you can avoid burnout and achieve significant results in the long run.

Additionally, the 1% rule emphasises the importance of patience and perseverance in habit formation.

It can be easy to become discouraged if you don't see immediate results, but by focusing on making small improvements each day, you can build momentum and achieve lasting change.

2. Systems over goals

“Goals are about the results you want to achieve. Systems are about the processes that lead to those results.” True long-term thinking is goal-less thinking. It’s not about any single accomplishment. It is about the cycle of endless refinement and continuous improvement.”

The author argues that there are problems with goals.

A key problem with goals are that goals are finite, whilst systems are continuous.

Goals are specific outcomes that we want to achieve, such as losing weight, writing a book, or earning a promotion.

Once we achieve these goals, we tend to lose motivation and stop working towards them. Systems, on the other hand, are ongoing processes that can be continually improved and refined.

Another problem is that once a goal is achieved, it produces a momentary change in that persons life.

Goals can also introduce an either or conflict.

Meaning that achieving a goal equals success and missing a goal equals failure.

Another problem is that goals are at odds with long term progress.

Systems focus on the journey, not just the destination.

Goals are often focused solely on the end result, but systems allow us to enjoy the process of getting there.

By focusing on systems, we can create habits and routines that are enjoyable and sustainable over the long term.

A good quote from the book is “The purpose of setting goals is to win the game. The purpose of building systems is to continue playing the game.”

Remember: “You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.”

The systems you implement can prevent you from falling into your old routines and bad habits.

3. Behaviour change

There are 3 layers of change:

Outcome change. Process change. Identity change.

The first and outer layer is changing outcomes.

Winning the competition, losing the weight or getting that job.

Outcomes are what you get at the end.

The second layer is process change.

Which refers to changing your systems and habits.

And the innermost layer is identity change.

Most people focus on the outcome but the most impactful way of changing your habits is to focus on your identity.

I’ll give you an example.

When I was losing weight my goal was to get a 6 pack and look as lean as possible.

So I came up with a programme to eat healthy whilst being in a calorie deficit and train up to 15 times a week. Link below for the video.

So I thought, once I do those things I’ll get lean and achieve my goals.

What happened in the end?

Yes, I lost weight.

Yes, I got in good shape.

Did it last?

Not for long.

Can you see how that method was outcome orientated?

After reading the book I’ve taken on a identity-based approach.

I am a person that’s interested in my own health and wellbeing.

Therefore, eating healthy food and going to the gym regularly is important and it will help enable me to achieve a good physique.

So how do you change your identity?

The author refers to habits as being “votes for your identity”.

So first: Decide the type of person you want to be.

Then, prove it to yourself with small wins.

“Identity change is the North Star of habit change.”

When there’s something in your life that you are aspiring to, you can let it become part of your identity.

If you do that your behaviours will follow suit.

4. The 4 laws of habit formation

We talked about the habit loop before, but the author introduces another step called craving.

Let me explain.

You have the cue, then the craving, then the response, then the reward.

An example would be your phone buzzing with a new message.

This is the cue.

The craving is that you need to know what it says.

The response is you grabbing your phone and reading it.

The reward is satisfying the craving of knowing what the text said.

Now lets talk about the 4 laws that can help you build habits.

The first law is to make your desired habit obvious.

You need to create a clear signal or cue that prompts you to take action.

For example:

Putting your running shoes by the door to remind you to go for a run in the morning.
Setting an alarm on your phone to remind you to meditate at a specific time each day.
Put your book on your bed once you’ve made it in the morning to remind you to pick it up and read it before you go to sleep.

Another technique to make it obvious is using the implementation strategy.

In other words, set a time and a place and state your intentions using the formula:

“I will [behaviour] at [time] in [this location]”

For instance, I used to say “I’ll try to read each day”.

Now I say: I will read for 20 minutes at 6:30am each day.

The method I use the most for making your habit obvious is habit stacking.

It ties in the habit you want to achieve with a habit that’s already ingrained in you.

For example, I wanted to start meditating, reading and journaling every morning.

So after I brush my teeth and get dressed, I’d go downstairs and start meditating then journal and then read.

Stacking habits into a chain like this can help you build momentum.

The habit stacking formula is “After I [CURRENT HABIT], I will [NEW HABIT].”

The second law is to make your habit attractive, which ties in with the craving step.

You need to associate your habit with a positive emotion or outcome because the more rewarding the habit is, the more likely you’ll repeat it.

One of the ways we do this is by triggering the dopamine-reward response in our brains.

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that is associated with pleasure and motivation, and when we do something that makes us feel good, our brains release dopamine as a reward.

By creating a positive feedback loop between the behaviour and the dopamine reward, we can reinforce the habit and increase the likelihood that we will continue to engage in it.

An example is exercise:

When you exercise, your body releases endorphins, which are natural painkillers and mood boosters.

These endorphins can trigger the release of dopamine in your brain, creating a positive association with exercise.

Over time, this positive association can make it easier to stick to your exercise routine and even make it something you look forward to.

Another example is Social Media:

Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok are designed to trigger the dopamine-reward response in our brains.

When we get likes, comments, or shares on our posts, or when we see posts that resonate with us, our brains release dopamine as a reward.

This can create a powerful addiction to social media, as we seek out more of these rewards.

What’s interesting is that dopamine isn’t just a reward hormone, it’s also an anticipation hormone.

An example is in gambling addicts have a dopamine spike not after they win like you’d expect but in the moments just before placing the bet.

Think about the thinking and planning of a vacation is sometimes better than the actual vacation.

It’s the anticipation of a reward and not the reward itself that causes us to take action.

A strategy you can use is called temptation bundling.

“Temptation bundling works by linking an action you want to do with an action you need to do.”

For instance I bundle watching podcasts on YouTube with going on the step machine or treadmill in the gym.

This also works on the flip side, if you want to break a bad habit.

Make it as unattractive as possible

The third law is to make your habit easy.

You need to reduce the friction associated with your habit and make it as effortless as possible. Some examples of how to make a habit easy include:

Starting with a small, manageable habit, such as doing one push-up a day, and gradually increasing it over time.
Preparing your gym bag the night before so you don't have to spend time looking for stuff in the morning.
Breaking your habit down into smaller steps, such as reading one page of a book at a time, to make it more manageable.

Again, you can apply this law to break bad habits as well.

For instance, if you watch too much TV at home after work or on the weekends, just unplug the TV or put the remote in a place that’s out of reach so it takes more effort to watch TV.

The fourth law is to make your habit satisfying.

You need to create a positive feedback loop that reinforces your habit and motivates you to continue.

A good thing to do is creating a habit tracker.

A habit tracker is a visual way to track your progress in developing a habit.

You can create a habit tracker in a notebook, on your phone, or using an app.

Each time you complete the habit, mark it on the tracker.

You can track your progress by recording your workouts in a fitness app or crossing off completed tasks on a to-do list.

Seeing progress can be satisfying and motivating.

It’s like levelling up in a video game.

5. Accountability partner

Having one can be a powerful way to help stick to a habit or build new ones.

An accountability partner is someone who shares your interest in developing a particular habit and who agrees to provide you with support and feedback along the way.

I have a friend who I talk to nearly every day and we keep ourselves accountable with our actions.

I think it’s really helped because we help each other stay motivated, grounded and stay accountable to our goals.

For example sometimes when I’m not feeling like going to the gym I remember that in the morning I told him that I would be going in the evening.

So it provides a sense of motivation when you feel like giving up.

Another important reason why you should get an accountability partner is that they can provide you with feedback on your progress.

They can help you identify areas where you are doing well, as well as areas where you need to improve.

This feedback can be critical to your success in developing a habit.

Also by partnering with someone else who shares your interest in developing a particular habit, you can create a sense of community.

This can be incredibly motivating, because you know that you are not alone in your efforts to develop the habit.

Overall, having an accountability partner can be a powerful way to help you stick to a habit. Whether you're trying to exercise more, eat healthier, or develop a new skill, having someone to share the journey with can make all the difference.

Just make sure you choose someone who is reliable, supportive, and shares your interest in the habit you're trying to develop.

If you’re unsure where to start with all this.

Keep it simple.

The first step is to be aware of yourself.

If you can see your processes and your regular habits, you can change them.

If you can’t see them then, then you can’t change them.

Over the course of a few days, write down every thing that you do.

All the small habits and behaviours and try to be honest with yourself.

Remember.

You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.

The goal is to reach automaticity.

Meaning that it takes less mental and physical effort to perform a certain task.