The Habit Loop

The cue triggers a craving, which motivates a response, which provides a reward, which satisfies the craving and, ultimately, becomes associated with the cue.

Together, these four steps form a neurological feedback loop—cue, craving, response, reward; cue, craving, response, reward—that ultimately allows you to create automatic habits.

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The Habit Loop: 5 Habit Triggers That Make New Behaviors Stick

jamesclear.com

Key Ideas

The Habit Loop

The cue triggers a craving, which motivates a response, which provides a reward, which satisfies the craving and, ultimately, becomes associated with the cue.

Together, these four steps form a neurological feedback loop—cue, craving, response, reward; cue, craving, response, reward—that ultimately allows you to create automatic habits.

5 primary ways that a new habit can be triggered

Cue 1: Time - Most common way to trigger a new habit
Cue 2: Location - Most powerful driver of mindless habits and also the least recognized
Cue 3: Preceding Event - Many habits are a response to something else that happens in your life
Cue 4: Emotional State - emotional state is a common cue for bad habits
Cue 5: Other People - people you surround yourself with can play a role in your habits and behaviors.

EXPLORE MORE AROUND THESE TOPICS:

The Ultimate Habit Tracker Guide

jamesclear.com

This article includes an excerpt from Atomic Habits, my New York Times bestselling book. If you want to stick with a habit for good, one simple and effective thing you can do is keep a habit tracker. Here's why: Elite performers will often measure, quantify, and track their progress in various ways.

Key Ideas

Habit tracking

Is a simple and effective thing to do if you want to stick with a habit for good. No matter the format (calendar, journal, app), it provides immediate evidence whether you are making progress or...

The power of habit tracking:

It creates a visual cue that can remind you to act.
It is motivating to see the progress you are making. You don't want to break your streak.
It feels satisfying to record your success in the moment.

To make habit tracking easier:

Manual tracking should be limited to your most important habits.
Record each measurement immediately after the habit occurs.

one more idea

The Habit Ladder: How To Make A New Routine Stick

riskology.co

When one good habit triggers another, the speed of success doubles. I can hardly remember what my mornings look like these days. It's taken years and much trial and error, but I have a routine now that needs no thought to be completed. Each action, all morning long, is pre-scripted, memorized, and controlled by habit.

Key Ideas

Habit Ladder

This is a system that is automated by you. It is called a habit ladder because, from the time you wake up to finishing your first work task of the day, you're climbing up one rung at a t...

How Habits Work

A habit - a mini-system that once you create, becomes automatic to your body, with minimal interference from the brain.

The Habit Loop is a breakdown of a habit put it into three sections:

Cue: A certain trigger that awakens the habit
Routine: The action you perform without thinking.
Reward: The change you experience making you want to do more of the same.

Making a Habit Ladder

Keep a trigger cue ready and stack up the routine in such a way that your tasks become a habitual routine without any friction, each trigger cue and routine stacked over the next one.

Example: Put on running shoes instead of slippers in the morning and that's your cue to go out for a walk, then when you are back and feeling sweaty, that's your cue to take a bath.

How to Make Your Future Habits Easy

jamesclear.com

This article is an excerpt from Atomic Habits, my New York Times bestselling book. While researching Atomic Habits, I came across a story that immediately struck me with its simplicity and power. It was the story of Oswald Nuckols, an IT developer from Natchez, Mississippi, and his simple strategy for making future habits easy.

Key Ideas

Priming the Environment

Whenever you organize a space for its intended purpose, you are priming it to make the next action easy. This is one of the most practical and simple ways to improve your habits.

Ideas to prime your environment

To draw more: Put your pencils, pens, notebooks, and drawing tools on top of your desk, within easy reach.
To exercise more: Set out your workout clothes, shoes, gym bag, and water bottle ahead of time.
To improve your diet: Chop up a ton of fruits and vegetables on weekends and pack them in containers, so you have easy access to healthy, ready-to-eat options during the week.

Make bad behaviors difficult

If you watch too much television, unplug it after each use. Only plug it back in if you can say out loud the name of the show you want to watch. (Which prevents you from turning on Netflix and “just finding something” to watch.) This setup creates just enough friction to prevent mindless viewing.