Atomic Habits is a practical guide for breaking bad habits and adopting good habits to transform your life. It is a self-help book showing readers how to transform their life by changing habits. 

Atomic Habit is a routine or habit that is followed regularly. 

This book is written by James Clear, an author, writer, speaker, and blogger. He has written about self-improvement, procrastination, intermittent fasting, and many more topics.

Atomic Habits was published in 2018. It is a bestseller, selling over 3 million copies worldwide. And it has been the most-reviewed book on habits to date. 

James has explained a lot in his book, but we have picked the top five lessons from the most practical book, and you can implement them to achieve the desired goals.

Lesson One: Goals vs. System

It would be better if we were more precise about our goals in general. When we want to accomplish something, we set a goal for ourselves. However, we don’t think beyond it. We must remember to set up plans and steps to achieve the goals because we are tunnel-visioned toward the goal. And as a result, when we accomplish our goal, we need guidance about what to do next.

So it would be best if you focused on the system. First, the system is a step-by-step process to achieve your goals. 

Lesson Two: The 2-minute Rule

The beginning part of any habit should only take 2 minutes. As you start, 2 minutes become a ritual at the beginning of a more extensive routine. If you feel a new pattern is more challenging, you will need more resistance in being consistent. 

Start habits that are easy to adopt, e.g., meditation for two minutes or reading one page of a book. Your end goal might be to run 5 kilometers but to achieve that goal, you must start a daily two-minute walk. That’s how you follow the two-minute rule. 

Lesson Three: The Habit Loop

Numerous theories and philosophies have been around for thousands of years that try to comprehend human behavior. James accepted this as an enormous responsibility.

The book Atomic Habits provides a step-by-step framework for comprehending and altering human behavior.

Here are four steps, which James refers to as the laws:

Cue>Craving>Response>Reward

To form your new habits, you need to examine your daily practices and choose the right cues to start new behavior based on the regularity and the time of the day you want to start the new habit.

Lesson Four: Every Day, Get 1% Ahead

Atomic Habits shows that tiny habits play an essential role in our life. Small habits can make a little difference every day, but they can deliver enormous differences over a year. James says that improving 1% of daily routines can bring drastic changes. Whether it’s good or bad, you are what you repeat or what your habits are. 

James has written that “Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement.” Whenever you repeat your habits, its effect also multiplies in the same way that money multiplies through compound interest. 

Lesson Five: Change Your Identity To Change Your Habits

In the book Atomic Habits, James has explained the three layers of behavior change; (1) outcomes, (2) process, and (3) identity.

Outcomes: Outcome-based habits are connected to changing your outcome: becoming fit, writing a book, or winning a trophy. On this level, you set up your end goals. 

Process: Altering your routines and procedures, such as starting a meditation routine. You primarily develop habits at this level.

Identity: Changing your beliefs or your viewpoint. Most of your biases, presumptions, and ideas are related to this level.

Focusing on who you want to become rather than what you want to accomplish can help you modify your habits.

Identity change is behavior change. When a habit becomes a part of who you are, that is the highest level of intrinsic motivation. Any habit’s ultimate goal is to transform you into something you want to be. Therefore, you must switch to an identity-driven habit system from an action- or outcome-driven one.

Summary

It is one of the best self-help books you might also enjoy reading and learning much from. The book is full of motivational and inspiring quotes. You will get helpful insights and lessons from the book. 

Atomic Habits must be read if you want a deep knowledge of how habit-changing works.