The Power of 1 Percent: A Strategic Guide to Atomic Habits and Personal Growth

Allie Kaiser

Allie is a member of the GLPG Marketing team and a contributor to the Current and the Notepad. Read full bio

James Clear’s book, Atomic Habits, is a practical guide to building good habits and breaking bad ones. An “atomic” habit refers to a small change or a 1 percent improvement. They are little habits that are part of a larger system. “Just as atoms are the building blocks of molecules, atomic habits are the building blocks of remarkable results.”

In Atomic Habits, James Clear explains what habits are, how they form, and why they matter in our lives. He recommends thinking about habits as tools for learning new skills. He discusses the Four Laws of Behavior Change as a framework for building better habits.

The 1st Law: Make it Obvious

If a habit is not obvious, you will not do it. It will be overlooked. If you have a habit in mind that you would like to develop, make it more visible. Design your environment to help build the habit.

To make a task more obvious, you can:

• Use a planner
• Mark it on a calendar
• Keep a post-it note close by
• Set up reminders.

The 2nd Law: Make it Attractive

The more attractive a habit is, the easier it will be to stick over time. Sometimes the attractiveness of a habit is not solely tied to how much we enjoy the task. “If a behavior can get us approval, respect, and praise, we find it attractive.” Reframing your mindset of a task to highlight the benefits can improve the likelihood of committing to building the habit.

One of the easiest ways to make a habit more attractive is to practice temptation bundling. To utilize temptation building, couple one task that you want to do with a task that you need to do. For example, couple walking on the treadmill while watching a new episode of your favorite show.

The 3rd Law: Make it Easy

The easier the task, the more likely you can begin committing to it. This law emphasizes the importance of practice. Practicing a task over and over again is more important than doing it perfectly every time. The more you practice, though, the easier the task will become. Using technology and reducing the friction in your environment can make a task easier with time.

To make a task easier, you can:

• Invest in a habit tracker. This can be in the form of a notebook or a digital habit tracking app.
• Divide the task into small chunks and build on it over time. For example, starting with meditating for 2 minutes every day.

The 4th Law: Make it Satisfying:

The human brain is driven by the desire to be rewarded. The best way to get a habit to stick is to feel successful. If one feels successful, it is more likely that one will continue to work towards the task to make it a habit.

To make a task more satisfying, you can:

• Have an accountability partner
• Create a habit contract

As we approach the New Year, many of us have a variety of goals for ourselves. At Great Lakes Psychology Group, you can find a therapist within our network to help keep you accountable to accomplish your goals. For more tips on cultivating positive habits, read here.