Change Your Life – One Tiny Step at a Time

Most people have a gap between the person they are and the person they want to be. There are little things you think you should do and big things you ought to commit to, like working out regularly, eating healthy, writing a novel, reading more or simply doing your hobby. 

But it may seem that you must become different to achieve your goals. While other people can consistently put in more effort with discipline and willpower, maybe you find yourself slipping back into your old ways and always seem to fail.

Making a decision to do something is like moving through a real jungle: It's hard.

Your brain hates using energy, so it came up with a trick. All your actions and behaviours leave paths in the jungle of your brain. The more often you do something, the more stamped out the trails become, so you take these familiar paths because it is comfortable and effortless.

This explains why change is hard when your mind is full of established paths.

• A routine is a sequence of actions you carry out the same way every time because they've worked well for you. For example, you get the same ingredients for your favourite dish and cook them the same way because you like the taste of the result.
• Routines can eventually become habits, which feel easier because they are a sequence of actions you do without thinking about them. You don't have to convince yourself to do something that's a habit - you just do it.

If we want to change and introduce a new behaviour into our lives,  we can focus on small changes, not big ones.

Improving your life a little is much better than aiming high and doing nothing.

The best way to make change easier is not to force it with willpower. Instead, convince your brain that it's no big deal.

For example, if you want to become fitter, the first thing to do is break this vague goal into clear, separate actions. The idea is to make the action as easy as possible. It should be so small that it is manageable and so specific that you don't have to think about it a lot. For example, doing ten squats every morning.