Talbott Tidbits: Atomic Habits

I love it when my friends share their favorite things with me, so we’re going to do the same for you! These are bite-sized bits of what’s rocking our world right now. It could be a book recommendation, a podcast, a technology solution…who knows what will end up here? It’s designed to be brief so you can get a quick pulse on whether it’s something you want to check out for yourself, or even share with a colleague. AND, if there’s something you’re loving right now that you think WE should check out, please email and let me know!

- Leah

Atomic Habits by James Clear

This is one of those books that was recommended to me, but I kept thinking it sounded like about five other books I’d already read, so I didn’t add it to my reading list right away. After getting recommendations from three people I know, I decided I had better read it and I'm glad I did. If you decide to read Atomic Habits, please share how it impacts you! Here’s what stuck with me…

CONCEPT: Bad habits can get coupled with good or neutral habits. This is actually great news because I can get better by decoupling them.

ACTION: I examined the bad habits in my life, and the one I felt was giving me the most trouble was snacking late at night – it had led to weight gain and poor sleep. I noticed it coincided with watching a movie or television show in the evening. For me, relaxing with a show after work is a neutral habit, but I couldn’t do it without triggering the bad snacking habit that I had coupled with it. So I made the decision not to watch shows in the evening – and guess what? I stopped snacking late at night. I’ve lost weight and am getting better sleep. What a simple fix for something that’s been giving me trouble for years!

QUOTE: “If you can get 1% better each day for one year, you’ll end up thirty-seven times better by the time you’re done. If you get 1% worse each day for one year, you’ll decline nearly down to zero.”

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