Gretchen Rubin

Like my friend said, the minute I lose 10 pounds, I'm going to have a big piece of chocolate cake. The one kind of reward that is good is a reward that takes you deeper into the habit. So let's say you're doing a lot of yoga. You would buy yourself a new yoga mat because the person who does a lot of yoga needs a new yoga mat.

Or let's say you're doing a lot of work on a side project and so you buy a new fancy laptop because the person who's doing all this extra work needs technologic support. That makes sense. I talked to one company that had a really smart reward, which was that if you exercise 75 times in a year, you got the next year free. So the reward for exercise... was more exercise.

Or let's say you're doing a lot of work on a side project and so you buy a new fancy laptop because the person who's doing all this extra work needs technologic support. That makes sense. I talked to one company that had a really smart reward, which was that if you exercise 75 times in a year, you got the next year free. So the reward for exercise... was more exercise.

So that's a reward that's taking you deeper into the habit. It's not irrelevant to the habit or actually undermining the habit. It's just making it easier for you to do the habit and more pleasant. And that's good because the easier and more pleasant, more convenient it is to do a habit, the more likely you are to stick to it. That's my strategy of convenience.

So that's a reward that's taking you deeper into the habit. It's not irrelevant to the habit or actually undermining the habit. It's just making it easier for you to do the habit and more pleasant. And that's good because the easier and more pleasant, more convenient it is to do a habit, the more likely you are to stick to it. That's my strategy of convenience.

But you don't want a reward that's not related to it or that actually pushes you in the opposite direction. So rewards are dangerous. They're tempting. It's a tempting solution, but I think it's often counterproductive when it comes to habits.

But you don't want a reward that's not related to it or that actually pushes you in the opposite direction. So rewards are dangerous. They're tempting. It's a tempting solution, but I think it's often counterproductive when it comes to habits.

I think we often think of habits as forming very gradually. And I was surprised when I really started looking at the pattern in my habits and how often habits change very quickly. People say to me all the time, like, I want to go through my day making healthy choices. And I'm like, no, you don't.

I think we often think of habits as forming very gradually. And I was surprised when I really started looking at the pattern in my habits and how often habits change very quickly. People say to me all the time, like, I want to go through my day making healthy choices. And I'm like, no, you don't.

You don't want to spend your day making healthy choices because you'll probably choose wrong a lot of the time. You want to choose once, then no more choosing. Are you going to bring lunch today? Yes, you are. Are you going to eat fast food today? No, you're not. Are you choosing? No, you're not. That already happened. That happened months ago. You don't revisit that choice. There's no emotions.

You don't want to spend your day making healthy choices because you'll probably choose wrong a lot of the time. You want to choose once, then no more choosing. Are you going to bring lunch today? Yes, you are. Are you going to eat fast food today? No, you're not. Are you choosing? No, you're not. That already happened. That happened months ago. You don't revisit that choice. There's no emotions.

There's no debate. There's none of that inner struggle. It's just so tiresome and boring. Today, tomorrow doesn't count. You know, it's done.

There's no debate. There's none of that inner struggle. It's just so tiresome and boring. Today, tomorrow doesn't count. You know, it's done.

Well, the easiest kind of habit is when it happens in exactly the same way every day. So like if you get up and the first thing you do is you brush your teeth, like that's what I would call a fixed habit. Like it happens exactly the same way. And so that's easier. You use the same strategies. So I have, I identify 21 strategies that people use to shape their habits.

Well, the easiest kind of habit is when it happens in exactly the same way every day. So like if you get up and the first thing you do is you brush your teeth, like that's what I would call a fixed habit. Like it happens exactly the same way. And so that's easier. You use the same strategies. So I have, I identify 21 strategies that people use to shape their habits.

You use the same strategies to make a habit or break a habit. It's the same strategies. And so with a simpler habit, it might take less to cement it in. But if there's a more complex habit, then there has to be more thought put into, like, how do you get this into your life and keep it in there? How do you safeguard it, too?

You use the same strategies to make a habit or break a habit. It's the same strategies. And so with a simpler habit, it might take less to cement it in. But if there's a more complex habit, then there has to be more thought put into, like, how do you get this into your life and keep it in there? How do you safeguard it, too?

I feel like the idea of a habit is it's completely automatic, and that's really what we strive for. But I think for a lot of habits, they're never 100% automatic. Like, you know, if every day is a little bit different and you have to kind of think about your exercise every day, you might be in the habit of exercising, but it takes a little bit of work every time. Like, when am I going to go?

I feel like the idea of a habit is it's completely automatic, and that's really what we strive for. But I think for a lot of habits, they're never 100% automatic. Like, you know, if every day is a little bit different and you have to kind of think about your exercise every day, you might be in the habit of exercising, but it takes a little bit of work every time. Like, when am I going to go?

What am I, you know? Right. And so you need to, and one of the strategies is the strategy of safeguards, which is what are the things that you do to protect a habit once you've got it going? If you do this, then do that, which I would call the strategy of if-then planning, which is if this happens, then I do this. You go ahead and figure that out in advance.