Three Lessons James Clear’s ‘Atomic Habits’ Offers Authors for Reaching Their Writing Goals
Jen B. Green
Since it was published in 2018, James Clear’s book, Atomic Habits, has sold over fifty million copies and been translated into fifty languages. The book offers tips for any adult looking to improve their lives with better habits, but for authors and self-employed creatives especially, Clear’s concepts offer a chance to build better, more sustainable business strategies through regular practice.
“Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become,” Clear writes. Authors are aiming for a satisfying, sustainable, and reliable career. Regardless of the presence of financial specifics, goals set the direction. But to get moving in that direction, we need systems and processes that support those goals. Clear’s book shares more in-depth concepts to smooth the way through those uncomfortable changes, but here are three key lessons we can use.
Lesson 1: Use good habits to your advantage to improve by a small margin—even 1 percent—per day. Over time, those small gains snowball into successes and habits that put goals within your reach. For example, if you haven’t been writing at all, scheduling time to write is a step toward your goal. Making it into a habit by sitting down to write with your first cup of coffee will get you another step toward building the habit. This temptation bundling—rewarding the habit you need to form with the one tied to something you want—will cue your brain to do the habit you are trying to form and improve the chances of success.
Lesson 2: Focus on systems instead of goals. Without realizing it, you may have fallen into habits that don’t support your goals. Time to pivot! It’s definitely not easy, but in the example of struggling with writing, you need to build in a system that helps you write. Block out time, and be sure you have the tech, childcare, environment, and space needed to get work done effectively.
Lesson 3: Create your identity and build supportive habits around it. Call yourself a writer, then prove it to yourself over and over again. All it takes is a small win. So when you sit and write, take a moment to think of yourself as a writer. Writers write, so the more often you do this, the more you’ll reinforce the habit of writing—and around the cycle goes.
Jen B. Green