Putting the Habit Loop Into Action Part 4: Behavior/Response
Our brain-hacking quest continues with the part of the habit-loop that many of us jump to first: the behavior itself.
But now we know our desired behavior can become an automatic “response” to an associated cue and craving.
Our aim is to build that association which can only happen by doing the behavior *each time* the cue is presented. The best way to do this is to use James Clear’s 3rd Law of Behavior Change (my favorite law!) Make it Easy!
This gets you into the habit of *showing up* for the habit.
Imagine you’re pushing wheelbarrow. The hardest part is the initial nudge to get it moving. But once the wheel starts turning, momentum does a lot of the work for you. That’s when we can gradually start pushing uphill. We want to avoid the energy-suck of stopping and re-nudging (especially on an incline), which may make us ditch the wheelbarrow altogether.
Perhaps you’ve said something like: “No more excuses! I’m going to work out 1 hour a day!” But that’s a high-friction, uphill expectation!
If we start with ease, we’re more likely to show up and create momentum.
Try some of these examples when your chosen cue is presented:
-Exercise: Throw on your workout clothes and do 30 jumping jacks, then change again (it seems so silly I know! That’s how small these can be!)
-Meditation: Close your eyes, and do a quick mental body scan.
-Journaling: Write 2 sentences about how you feel right now.
-Writing: set a timer for 10, 5, or even just 2 minutes and write until the timer goes off.
-Singing: Sing along to your favorite song, or find a short video of exercises to sing along to (I use Andrew Byrne's 8-Minute Warmup Video
Most 10-Min-A-Day club members find themselves saying on the tough days: “It’s just 10 minutes!” Then, get into a zone and want to do another 10! This is great! But not the goal to start. The goal is simply to show up for the first 10!
As James Clear says, “standardize before you optimize”
These small steps might not feel as sexy as giant leaps, but you’re more likely to build consistency which will take you farther… usually faster!