Build better habits with James Clear

Clear’s best selling novel outlines how small daily changes can lead to big effects.

Atomic+Habits+by+James+Clear+book+cover.

Atomic Habits by James Clear book cover.

AIDEN SEGREST, SNN Staff Writer 

“Atomic Habits” by James Clear is an award-winning book about the science of habits. Its main selling point is creating a framework to help you build and maintain good habits while breaking bad ones.
Clocking in at over 15 million copies sold, “Atomic Habits” is popular for a reason. It shows how things like your environment and unconscious habits can dictate your life before you make a single decision.
“You don’t rise to the levels of your goals. You fall to the levels of your systems.” This quote stuck with me while reading the book. Anyone can have the goal of becoming rich, fit, or successful, but it’s not someone’s goals or motivation that propels them to this point. It’s their habits, the things they do without thinking, and the things that define a person.

But how do you control your habits?

The habits that you implement and follow throughout your daily life determine how you end up. “Outcomes are the lagging measure of your habits.” This is all well and good, but it means nothing if you don’t know what you need to do to change these habits. That’s where “Atomic Habits” comes in. This book can teach you about the value of 1% changes, the seemingly meaningless sacrifices or choices that build up to a breaking point, and how they boil over into your daily life. This book shows you how to utilize the 4 steps of habit-building and how to ensure that your effort is put to a minimum while still reaping the rewards.
This book helped me add habits to my hygiene routine every day. Instead of just brushing my teeth at night, now I also use a water pick for cleaner teeth. And instead of looking at LED lights after 11 pm, I read a book in warmer light. This book has helped to alter my daily routine, and it can do the same for you if you’re interested.
“Atomic Habits” is rated 4.8 stars across the board for a good reason. This is overall my favorite book of all time, and if anything I’ve said interests you, I highly recommend giving “Atomic Habits” a try.

“Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement. The same way that money multiplies through compound interest, the effects of your habits multiply as you repeat them.”