Unpacking 'Getting 1% better every day'

James Clear, the author of "Atomic Habits" podcasted a discussion on the Daily Stoic. Here's my takings:

This is definitely the current talks of society and in workplaces. Don't focus on results. When you put your focus on results and the energy around it, if you don't get it, you will feel negative emotions, whether it's frustration, anger etc. Focus on the behaviour required to get there. I think many of us understand this more these days.

"But I'm doing my best!" For many of us, we aren't really doing our best. Coming from a personal training background, I see people who are pushing and say "This is my best!" But it isn't. It's really the noise they tell themselves, "Ahh I'm at my limit!" The moment you tell yourself this is the limit, that would be your limit. That is very Goggins-like and of course there are moments when it is safer to stop but what I'm saying is, we limit ourselves too much because of our mind. Feelings are valid, but shouldn't be the nucleus as they are so arbitrary, they come and they go.

We need more delayed gratification! I'm seeing a trend here. Yes, being in the moment is extremely important. But be in the moment NOT with your feelings all the time. Context is key. Through hard work and conscious suffering, the delayed gratification after it is a whole new level of energy and vibration. Exercise is the simplest form of this. Do not forget the purpose too!

Yes is a form of a responsibility. We need to learn to say no. Clear talked about no being a form of a credit, yes being a form of a debt. Yes is a commitment, no is a decision. This is definitely applicable to those who are people pleasers.

Detracting here but in moments when I cannot hold a clear mind, I have been training myself to 'get into the zone'. I blink 3 times consciously so I can see the world, the situation in a clearer, calmer manner. Perhaps this was not detraction as Clear then spoke about the '30 second method'. Seeing professional athletes, Clear noticed some of them having a 30 second routine to get into 'the zone'. The zone is a state where you can feel at full focus, in the moment and ready to go. This can be applied to any situation, before a game, before an interview, before an assessment, before anything. Before you wake up, even. Humans are creatures of habits.

This next part was particularly relevant as those that I care around me are victim to this, especially younger people who are still caught between momentary bliss, instant gratification and the seemingly mundane entrapment of 'adult life'. Always travelling, doing something different everyday/hustling forces you to live 'on the go'. Habitual action is tied to context. As a result, if you're always switching context, you will always be switching habits. Having to make new decisions each time is incredibly tiring and exhausting. In fact, the brain has already begun to automate things even in these recurring new situations. Humans are not meant to work like this. Indeed, people with the worst habits, have the worst freedom. Time is one of the few things we have no control over. If we are lax with time, we feel a lack of autonomy.

The most important theme I've come across in my journeys in self-improvement is balance. Finding that middle path. It seems paradoxical and oxymoronic but as much as routine is important, so too is flexibility. Clear talked about COVID where there was VERY LITTLE variation in day to day due to lockdown restrictions. We felt habit and routine was easy! This is not a healthy approach to habit as it devalues the power of flexibility and adaptability. He used the examples of sobriety in prison. You can stay sober because of a lack of accessibility. What about outside? Life is full of chaos and flexibility, supplemented with an effective routine will prevail. My father always says, healthy people take on challenges all the time. If we cannot adapt, we are fragile. We will self-destruct. Things cannot be at the pace of your own home, your own court. We cannot live in a bubble. Don't get too specific, but don't be too loose that you forget the point. Balance! We need multiple pathways but not too many pathways we get confused.

Clear said, A GOOD IDEA IS AN IDEA THAT CAN BE EXECUTED, otherwise it's just a dream that can't be actualised. Once it is an executable, 'good' idea, all one needs is patience and consistency. That sounds light but many understand, patience and consistency is one of the most difficult parts of the journey. Eliminate distractions that make it more difficult. Unsupportive reference groups, excessive social media, too many shortcuts. Balance!

I listen to around 2-3 podcasts a week. To strike a balance, I've found too many podcasts is too much information. For now at least.