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Atomic Habits Book Review: Is It Worth Reading?

POSTED ON Oct 1, 2023

Written by Sarah Rexford

If you’re unfamiliar with the Atomic Habits book now is the time to review it. A New York Times bestseller , with over one million copies sold, this book has influenced countless readers. Clear’s nonfiction work largely contributes to the success of those dedicated to becoming one percent better every day. Creatives, entrepreneurs, and authors can use his principles to accomplish better work in less time.

This article is an in-depth review of Atomic Habits , James Clear’s phenomenal book on the power of habits to transform your life. Let's dive into Atomic Habits, An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones . 

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The proven path from blank page to 10,000 copies sold - written by 7-time bestselling author, Chandler Bolt

Atomic Habits book: article breakdown

Atomic habits summary.

Whether you will listen to the Atomic Habits audiobook on your commute or read the physical copy, here's a sneak peek of the Atomic Habits book. I’ve found it is helpful to read a summary of a book before I delve into the topic itself. 

Introduction

James Clear begins his Atomic Habits book with an in-your-face (quite literally) first sentence that compels you to continue reading: “On the final day of my sophomore year of high school, I was hit in the face with a baseball bat.” 

This vulnerable introduction preps the reader with background for what plunged Clear into developing his own healthy habits. After setting the scene and sharing what you, the reader, will learn from his own life lessons, the A tomic Habits book begins with chapter one. 

The fundamentals

Before committing to read best business books like Atomic Habits , it’s helpful to understand the fundamental reasons you should. In fact, Clear spends the first three chapters of the Atomic Habits book doing just that: he shares the power of these types of habits, how they shape you, and overviews the four steps he discusses throughout the book. 

The 1st law

The first step, or law, of what Clear calls atomic habits is to make your habit obvious . For instance, if you want to establish a habit of practicing gratitude, you may want to set a gratitude journal in a location you will see every single day. 

The 2nd law

James Clear’s second law is to make your habit attractive , even irresistible. He briefly overviews how friends and family influence our habits as well as pinpoints the root of bad habits and how to fix them.

The 3rd law

Third, make your habit easy . If you want to accomplish big goals, this habit may sound counterintuitive. You may ask, “How can easy habits help me reach big goals? You’ll want to spend some focused time on this law (chapters 11-14) to familiarize yourself with how small steps can create big results.  

The 4th law

The Atomic Habits book finishes its laws by encouraging you to make your habit satisfying . I expand on this below, but essentially, you want your habits to satisfy you so you actually stick with them.  

Advanced tactics 

For the overachiever, the one who truly wants to max out on their potential, you will love these final three chapters. Subtitled, How to Go from Being Merely Good to Being Truly Great, James Clear covers exactly that. 

What are the 4 principles of Atomic Habits ?

The four principles of the Atomic Habits book are: make it obvious, attractive, easy, and satisfying. Sound familiar? You just read them above, but repetition is the mother of learning, so let’s discuss these laws, or principles, in greater detail.

1. Make it obvious

The starting point for the Atomic Habits book lies in James Clear’s simple statement: “Once our habits become automatic, we stop paying attention to what we are doing.”

To establish great habits, habits that create lasting change in your life, it’s crucial to make your habits obvious . Clear states that the process of behavior starts with awareness, so good habits begin with awareness of current habits.

Once you know your current habits and the habits you want to make, make your new habit obvious. 

If you want to write more regularly, make this habit obvious. Let’s say every morning you make loose leaf tea. Consider choosing from a list of daily journals for writers and then journaling a few sentences while your tea steeps.  

2. Make it attractive 

Next up, make your habit attractive . Again, if you want to build a healthy habit of working out five days a week, you can make your habit obvious by laying out your gym clothes the night before. But how do you make physical exertion attractive? 

In 1954, neuroscientists discovered the actual process behind what people crave and what they desire. They discovered that without dopamine there is zero desire, and without desire there is zero action. 

When making a habit attractive, choose to pair the habit you want to form with an aspect of life you desire.

I find it helpful to reserve specific TV shows for my workouts. I allow myself to watch the show (something I desire) while I workout (a habit I want to continue forming). 

3. Make it easy

This law is not equivalent to only taking action if the task is easy, but making the task easy to act on. For instance, if you want to live in a more organized environment, how can you make this goal easy to achieve? 

Years ago I watched a YouTuber explain that when she comes home after a long day, she refused to throw her coat on the couch. If she did, she’d have to pick it up a second time to put it away. 

Effectively, by not putting the coat away immediately, she would have to put twice the effort into the same goal.   

This idea stuck with me. I simply apply the rule to the various objects I engage with. When I’m done working, I reorganize my desk. When I come home, I hang my coat up. When I'm doing cooking, I do the dishes.

The Atomic Habits book creates easy answers to sometimes complicated obstacles. What’s one choice you can make easier to execute? 

4. Make it satisfying 

If you want to persevere with your goal, you need to create results that satisfies you. For example, let’s say you want to invest in some book writing help . Your thought process goes something like this, “ I wrote a book! Now what? I don’t have extra finances to invest in publishing.” 

Your goal is to save up to publish your book. For many people, saving isn’t satisfying in the short term. Let’s say you love buying new books though. Instead of purchasing a new book, borrow one from your local library. 

Every time you borrow a book instead of purchasing one, put the money you saved into a savings account you call “Book Fund” or something similar. Over time, this perseverance creates a sum of money you can put toward publishing your book and achieving your goal. 

In the long run, you will even qualify yourself in how to write about perseverance in a way that impacts your readers.

Is Atomic Habits about ADHD?

While the Atomic Habits book is not specifically about ADHD, it does cover methods that can help if you struggle coping in this area. ADHD can make it difficult to maintain a healthy routine. Daily tasks become a challenge to overcome. 

Reading the Atomic Habits book could help you because it: 

• Identifies healthy habits
• Shows small (atomic) ways to achieve the habits
• Creates a reward system for the one making the habit

Additionally, once you build strong, healthy, atomic habits, you can achieve far-reaching results. Atomic habits, linked together, can help you:

• Write that job application in much less time than it would previously take
• Listen to a podcast episode (such as Using Atomic Habits to write and publish a book ) with focus 
• Keep your car organized and clean 

Whether you want to apply for your dream job or learn how to write a motivational book or how to write a self-help book , the Atomic Habits book provides actionable steps, even if you struggle with ADHD. 

How to apply the concept of atomic habits to the book writing process 

As a writer, chances are you want to read the Atomic Habits book and apply it to your own writing goals. From coming up with your main theme, to book launch ideas , to author book signings and appearances , your early habits matter.

In his interview with Chandler Bolt, James Clear discusses the positive results of using Atomic Habits to write and publish a book . 

Clear states that it took him five years to ideate and then finally complete the Atomic Habits book. Throughout the process, Clear and his team chose to take action on the very ideas people know work.

However, instead of just going through the motions, they chose to upscale these ideas in a big way. 

Email list 

Upon signing his book deal for the Atomic Habits book, James Clear had roughly 200,000 subscribers. He grew this list to about 440,000 by the time the book officially released. At the time of his podcast recording with Chandler Bolt, Clear’s list was over one million. His small efforts created tremendous results.

Book Announcement 

About ten weeks before his book came out, James Clear announced its pending release. This announcement drove pre-orders, but he didn’t linger too long on his announcement. Instead of over-promoting his book, he went back to writing his standard articles. One small change aided the success of his launch.

Bonus packages 

Just two weeks before the Atomic Habits book was released, Clear made another announcement: a suite of bonus packages. Looking back, Clear says he likely wouldn’t repeat this step. While it boosted sales by about 700 copies, the investment didn’t have the payoff he had hoped for. 

Emails during launch week 

Launch week is busy for writers, and this fact applied to James Clear just like it does the rest of us. During launch week he sent four emails to his newsletter list:

• Monday (day before release): an excerpt of the Atomic Habits book
• Tuesday (day of release): Layered his CBS This Morning interview into his email
• Wednesday: break
• Thursday: Another excerpt
• Friday: Last call, bonuses ending, etc. 

Tip: Refuse the urge to stop promoting your book once your release week ends. Instead, put focused effort into continually marketing your new title.

Podcasts 

James Clear recorded 75 podcasts and asked the hosts to release them around the time the Atomic Habits book came out. Podcast hosts released all 75 recordings in the ten days surrounding the Atomic Habits book release, making for a compelling launch with podcasts alone. Not stopping here, over the following six months, Clear engaged in 200 interviews. 

Influencer copies

Before he published his book, Clear reached out to the various influencers he hoped would support him. He sent them a primer on his book and offered to send them a copy if they were interested. This way, he secured influencer support and only sent copies to those truly interested. 

It’s important to note that while James Clear sent the Atomic Habits book to influencers who opted in, he never asked them to promote his book. Instead, he chose influencers he believed would benefit, whose audiences would benefit, and hoped the quality of his book would do the rest of the work. 

Related: How Much Money Can You Make From Writing a Self-Help?

What is the main point of Atomic Habits ?

The main point of the Atomic Habits book is the power that small changes have on large goals. James Clear focuses on two primary points throughout his book: the importance of small habits as well as how crucial it is to choose where you put your focus (hint: it’s not on goal-setting). 

Small habits 

Clear titled his Atomic Habits book appropriately. The smallest of habits can yield massive results. Throughout his book, James Clear stresses how vital small, daily habits are. 

For example, if you want to become physically healthy, you can start with:

• Saying no to the small things (like the extra cookie) 
• Saying yes to the small things (like walking instead of taking the elevator) 

One of the reasons the Atomic Habits book seems to impact so many readers is because of its accessible message. You don’t need to completely overhaul your life to create change. You can start with small, atomic habits that point you in the right direction. 

Systems over goals 

My favorite quote from the Atomic Habits book is a simple statement: “You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.”

James Clear encourages readers to create atomic habits that focus on the system of how you do a task rather than the end goal you hope to accomplish. 

Let’s say your goal is to turn your book into a speech for further promotion. Let’s also imagine you are a morning person. If you choose to work on creating a speech from your book every night when you can barely keep your eyes open, you will fall to the level of your system. Instead, rise to the level of your goals by creating atomic habits that aid you. 

Is the Atomic Habits book worth reading?

For anyone hoping to develop or maintain healthy habits, the Atomic Habits book is worth the time investment to read. While you could choose to spend your time trying to make your current system work, I encourage you to dedicate specific time every day to reading this book.

Implementing these small habits will likely save you time in the long run. 

Even if you feel you are a master at healthy habits, the Atomic Habits book is a great example of how to write about serious topics . At times, everyone struggles to live the life they want to live. 

James Clear calls this difficulty out by sharing his own story, creating small, actionable steps to help, and encouraging readers on every page. While the topic is more serious than, say, a children’s story or cookbook, Clear makes a difficult message available to the average reader. 

Change can feel difficult, but with the proper guidance and habits, anyone can take steps to lead the life they want to.

Related: 14 Books Like Atomic Habits To Read Next

Now it's time for you to move forward with what you just learned from the Atomic Habits book. You can use the Atomic Habits book to change your life and build the writing habits you need to reach your goals. But life change starts with one small step, or dare I say, one small atomic habit. You've got this!

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James Clear’s Atomic Habits has changed the course of my year

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The number one bestseller Atomic Habits has been regaining popularity at the start of 2024, as people tackle their new year’s resolutions. In the book , author James Clear explains the monumental impact that even the smallest of habits can make on your life, as he shares his own story.

Clear states four behaviour change laws that are necessary when it comes to forming a lasting habit. For a new habit to stick, he says you need to make it obvious, make it attractive, make it easy, and make it satisfying. Originally published in 2018, Atomic Habits is currently one of the most-read books available on Amazon and has sold 15 million copies worldwide.

Keep scrolling to find out how I put Clear’s advice into practice, and where you can pick up a copy of the book for yourself.

‘Atomic Habits’ by James Clear, published by Random House: From £4.99, Amazon.co.uk

After reading this book, I decided to apply Clear’s tips to my new year goal of practising yoga every day. To make this habit obvious, I set up my yoga mat in my living room – an easily accessible location. To make it attractive, I ordered myself some cute yoga sets that make me feel good during my practice. To make it easy, I joined the Yoga with Adriene January Flow program, to be a part of a community. Finally, to make it satisfying, I incorporated yoga into my schedule to correspond with the sunrise – another habit I’ve been trying. So far, with the combination of these laws, I’ve had a pleasant experience with my new habit.

Along with Clear’s four laws, another takeaway from this bestselling book is habit stacking. This is where you add your new habits to old habits that are already in your routine. An example of this, in my case, has been to stack yoga into my routine after I wash my face and before I get dressed and do my make-up for the day. Having a set schedule and flow to your routines makes them easier to stick to with minimal thought.

Atomic Habits has certainly helped me realise my goals, and I would highly recommend this book to anyone who has struggled with sticking to habits and wants their resolutions to last well beyond 31 January.

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Book Review: ‘Atomic Habits’ By James Clear

• by Sam Howard

‘Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones’ by James Clear is a masterclass in habit-forming. I say this with confidence because with the guidance provided in the book, I was able to cut off a bad habit (excessive scrolling on my phone) and develop a couple of good habits (freewriting everyday and getting some steps in). 

The step-by-step guide itself was impressive in its own right, but what I liked about it the most is how simple and actionable it was, plus how James Clear explained everything so convincingly. So now, let me walk you through how he managed to convert a skeptic (me!) into a believer of tiny habits.

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‘Atomic Habits’ Overview

James Clear sets out that picking up a good habit is thought to be tough not because we lack willpower or commitment, but because we don’t have the right systems built to support a habit to form and sustain. So to build these systems, he suggests following the four ‘Laws of Behavior Change’ that can help start and maintain a good habit. They are: 

• Make it obvious
• Make it attractive
• Make it easy
• Make it satisfying 

He suggests inverting these laws to break a bad habit: 

• Make it invisible
• Make it unattractive 
• Make it difficult
• Make it unsatisfying

Clear provides detailed explanations on how these laws work and he accompanies the guided chapters with anecdotes and personal experience, making it easy to see how the practices he’s proposing have a very real impact.

‘Atomic Habits’ Book Review

I (reluctantly) started on ‘Atomic Habit’ back when I was in a reading slump, hoping I can pick up reading everyday again. I figured if the book is as good as a lot of readers said it was, it just might convince me to get back to my TBR. 

So there I was, expecting a noncommittal read and eager to (hopefully) get back to the books I abandoned halfway, and James Clear hit me with an opening narrative so intriguing that I couldn’t help but get hooked on the book. 

He explains his foray into habit forming came after a huge setback during highschool, where he suffered a severe injury playing baseball. Wanting to get back on track, he started practicing small habits like sleeping well, studying consistently, and keeping tidy. I’ve got to say, the results were really inspiring:

“…improving by 1 percent isn’t particularly notable—sometimes it isn’t even noticeable—but it can be far more meaningful, especially in the long run. The difference a tiny improvement can make over time is astounding…” – Chapter 1

1% BETTER EVERY DAY 1% worse every day for one year. 0.99 365 = 00.03 1% better every day for one year. 1.01 365 = 37.78

It’s a little bit of a genius move; put this way, I could see how much impact a small habit can have, especially if they compound over time – which is exactly what Clear suggests. 

So I thought of trying out the ‘atomic’ method of habit forming, going by Clear’s laws of behavioral change. Let’s see how I did!

1. Make it obvious

With the first law of behavioral change, Clear suggests that if we are to be intentional about habit forming, we have to make our habits obvious. 

I loved the example he cited to show the benefit of making it obvious – the ‘Pointing and Calling’ safety practice from the Japanese railway system. This involves all the railway staff pointing and calling out specific details like arrival time, speedometer reading, and signal status. This habit seemed a bit weird to me, but making these safety details obvious by speaking them out loud has actually helped reduce errors up to 85 percent. So Clear’s suggestion here is to make the habit so obvious that you can’t miss it at all:  

“Many people think they lack motivation when what they really lack is clarity. It is not always obvious when and where to take action.” – Chapter 5

I felt like I could relate to this because I often complain I’m not motivated to do something, so I experimented with the first law of behavioral change by trying to make a habit of walking everyday. 

I work at my desk all day, tapping away at my keyboard and often when I stop for the day, it’s too late to go out for a walk or I’m just not too excited for it. So to carve out a time and to ‘make it obvious’ to get up and go, I followed Clear’s habit stacking formula.

The habit stacking formula is: After [CURRENT HABIT], I will [NEW HABIT]

I make myself a cup of coffee everyday around 5 in the evening, so I paired my coffee break with a 20 minute walk. I placed my running shoes right near my desk so when I get up to brew a cup, I’d put the shoes on and go on to make coffee. And since I’m already wearing shoes, what I’m thinking is I might as well step out of the house to take a walk for ten minutes and then back home. 

Believe me, I didn’t think it’d make a difference at first either, but against all expectations this actually worked. Apart from a couple of days where there was a ton of rain, I’ve been out as soon as I’ve had my coffee. And now, when I’m having coffee at a completely irrelevant time, I get the urge to get up and walk which means two things – I’ve successfully hardwired my brain to go for a walk after coffee, and I probably should have stacked walking with another habit 😅.

2. Make it attractive

The second law of behavioral change works by making a habit attractive so we get tempted to do it. 

Clear mentions that this is the practice that fast food companies follow to make their product so irresistible we always crave for more. Years of research have been poured into enhancing the flavor and mouthfeel of these foods; the science behind that is that our brain is attracted to hyperpalatable food so we are likely to go through a couple packs of potato chips or keep ordering thin crust pizza topped with gooey melted cheese.

So how does this fit in with making a habit attractive? Clear suggests we could heighten the appeal of a habit to immediately draw us to it, using ‘temptation bundling’:

“Temptation bundling works by linking an action you want to do with an action you need to do. In Byrne’s case, he bundled watching Netflix (the thing he wanted to do) with riding his stationary bike (the thing he needed to do).” – Chapter 8

I adopted this technique to get more nutrients in my system. I’ve been warned by the family doctor that I take in way less micronutrients than I’m supposed to and unfortunately, most foods I’m supposed to consume for micronutrients are not the most appealing. So, inspired by Mr. Byrne in Clear’s example, I resolved to watch Netflix only when I’m eating healthy. At first, this meant my time watching Netflix went down drastically, but a show I wanted to watch so badly got released and I had to go for some leafy greens and whole grains just to watch it. 

How did I manage to not watch Netflix until then, you ask? Well, I just got my partner to change the password to our family account and asked him to not share it with me under any circumstance (unless I was having the right food). This is also a couple of Clear’s techniques in action; the first is getting an accountability buddy to make sure you stick to your resolve and second is the reverse law of making a habit difficult (by adding the barrier of the password).

3. Make it easy

With this one, James Clear suggests applying the ‘Law of Least Effort.’ He elaborates that when deciding between two similar options, we tend to lean toward the option that requires the least effort. Humans are hardwired to find ways to do things so it delivers best possible value for low effort, so Clear suggests programming our habits that way as well. 

“The idea behind make it easy is not to only do easy things. The idea is to make it as easy as possible in the moment to do things that payoff in the long run.” – Chapter 12

Now, our brains can resist doing the right thing even if we make it attractive (remember me avoiding Netflix so I won’t have to eat spinach?); this is where ‘make it easy’ comes in. So to put the third law of behavioral change into action, I tried to make a habit easy with the 2-minute rule. This rule pushes you to do something for two minutes and not a second more, BUT you do it everyday. 

I’ve always wanted to build the habit of freewriting because I feel like I lose ‘my own writing time’ since I’m always writing for a particular reason. I’ve tried journaling and morning pages, but I’ve always fallen off the wagon (or page!) probably because I perceive both as big tasks. So I challenged myself to free-write everyday for two weeks to see how I do with the 2-minute rule. 

To my surprise, I felt no hesitation starting free-writing when my alarm rang signaling the time to write, because I limited it to two minutes only. I’ve been free-writing for over a year now, and I have this sense of fulfillment whenever I open my notebook. Funny thing is, I get the urge to write whenever I see my designated notebook – I’m not very sure what kind of brain conditioning happened there, but I’m not complaining!

Oh and by the way, the reverse rule of this helped me cut down my screen time because I activated an app blocker that cuts you off from accessing certain apps for a period of time. All my social media apps are blocked from 6 am to 6 pm, and it’s a pain to unblock it even if I wanted to. So I don’t check on social media at all during my working hours, and it has made me productive because I’m less distracted.

4. Make it satisfying

The final law of behavior change is to make a habit satisfying. Now, the challenge with this, as Clear explains, is how we can’t exactly see the progress we are making, especially with small habits. Waiting until the habit compounds is not exactly motivating at the moment, because we never know how long it will take to make a difference. 

“Making progress is satisfying, and visual measures—like moving paper clips or hairpins or marbles—provide clear evidence of your progress. As a result, they reinforce your behavior and add a little bit of immediate satisfaction to any activity. Visual measurement comes in many forms: food journals, workout logs, loyalty punch cards, the progress bar on a software download, even the page numbers in a book. But perhaps the best way to measure your progress is with a habit tracker.” – Chapter 12

I tried tracking my newfound habit of walking, with a visual habit tracker. It felt like a hassle at first, but I resolved to make a tick on the tracker that I hung on the corkboard above my desk immediately before sitting down to work after my walk (habit stacking!). I have to say, ticking off each day feels really good because I’ve successfully done something I couldn’t get myself to do before. With the tracker, I’ve also got the added challenge of maintaining my streak because I don’t want to leave a day unticked. I have missed a day or two, but then I remember what Clear said: 

“No matter how consistent you are with your habits, it is inevitable that life will interrupt you at some point. Perfection is not possible. Before long, an emergency will pop up—you get sick or you have to travel for work or your family needs a little more of your time. Whenever this happens to me, I try to remind myself of a simple rule: never miss twice.” – Chapter 15

So I try to never miss two days in a row, and so far, I never have.

When I read this chapter, I realized I’ve been using this law of making it satisfying without realizing it, with my language learning habit. My current streak on Duolingo is over 400 days long, and knowing the pain of losing the streak (I lost my earlier streak at 342 days😅) I fight tooth and nail to get my language lesson in everyday before midnight. 

There you have it, all the laws of behavioral change in action. This is exactly what I meant when I said James Clear’s book is simple and actionable. When I started reading, it didn’t seem to take a lot out of me to start forming a habit so I thought “I might as well try” and that went on for three months before I finally admitted to myself that ‘atomic habits’ actually work. 

One thing I have to mention though, I felt the content could have been a bit shorter considering it’s self-help. James Clear had made the book digestible with chapter summaries and simple graphics, but I still felt like it took forever to finish the book (it could be me, I was in a reading slump after all). 

Considering I managed to get out of my slump plus build a few good habits along the way, I suggest giving ‘Atomic Habits’ a try (even if you have a less than enthusiastic attitude to forming habits like me). Inside the book, you are highly likely to find nuggets of wisdom that appeal to you, and simple ways of tricking your brain to do good that make you want to try out a new habit just for the fun of it.

Who Should Read ‘Atomic Habits’

Anyone who wants to pick up good habits or to break a bad habit should read this book, as it can give you that gentle push you’re looking for. 

If you want to understand what influences human behavior and how we form habits, this book is a solid starting point.

Books Similar to ‘Atomic Habits’

No products found. is a refreshing take on life, perspectives, and how we tackle challenges when they come our way. If you need a self-help read backed by science, experience, and wisdom punctuated by ruthless humor, this book is an awesome choice.

If you’d like to read more about how small actions compound into creating a big impact, No products found. is a captivating read that can change the way you approach personal challenges and professional tasks. 

Also, if you’d like to find more self-help recs, my collection of self-help book reviews and lists of recommendations can point you in the right direction!

Final Thoughts

James Clear’s No products found. is exactly the book you need to read if you want to develop a good habit and break a bad one. Clear promises no magic, but instead, he shares with us a whole lot of convincing anecdotes, digestible research findings, and simple, actionable tips to make any big habit possible. So if you want to read any self-help book on developing habits and improving yourself, let it be this one.

Yes! It’s a simple, easy-to-follow guide on how to form good habits and break bad ones and it’s worth reading because it’s actionable and reliable.

The four rules, or rather laws, of behavioral change in ‘Atomic Habits’ are, make it obvious, make it attractive, make it easy, and make it satisfying.

‘Atomic Habits’ is so popular because it helps you build systems of habits instead of goal-based habits. That way, you are focused on sustaining the habit without being overly focused on the outcome.

Although ‘Atomic Habits’ doesn’t claim to be written for people with ADHD, a lot of ADHD-friendly practices like the 2-minute rule, body doubling, Pomodoro technique, etc. are included and encouraged in the book.

Yes. ‘Atomic Habits’ draws on relevant research and concepts from biology, psychology, and neuroscience to explain how we can get massive results by compounding a lot of small habits.

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5 ways reading 'Atomic Habits' helped me stop procrastinating and change my life for the better

• Dayana Aleksandrova is a copywriter and digital nomad based in Costa Rica.
• She read "Atomic Habits" by James Clear to improve her productivity and address distractions.
• Decluttering, auditing her day, and creating temptation have helped her avoid procrastination.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Dayana Aleksandrova , a 30-year-old copywriter, mentor for online entrepreneurs, and digital nomad based in Costa Rica, about her experience reading " Atomic Habits ." The following has been edited for length and clarity.

When I expanded my online business from copywriting to business mentorship for online entrepreneurs, I started getting a ton of questions from clients about building good habits and time management. 

So I asked some of my high-performer friends who do 20 things at once and make it all look effortless what book they could recommend for improving upon this — and they unanimously said " Atomic Habits: An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones " by James Clear. 

I decided to read it in order to best serve my clients. So far, the lessons I've taken away from the book have worked at an 100% success rate — especially when it comes to addressing procrastination.

Here are five ways that my life changed for the better after I tried Clear's principles:

1. I beat distractions in my space

According to "Atomic Habits," the first law of behavior change is to "make it obvious." In the book, Clear refutes the idea that we're organized due to our willpower or genes and argues that our habits are a product of our environment. 

I'd been feeling very distracted at work, constantly jumping from one project to the next and leaving incomplete Notion tasks and half-finished emails. So, following the book's advice, I decided to upgrade my space.

My desk used to be a complete mess — sticky notes, pens, journals, and clementine peels everywhere, alongside multiple half-drunk takeaway coffee cups. 

After reading "Atomic Habits," I set an alarm for 20 minutes so I'd get it done under pressure and separated everything into three piles: essentials, nice-to-have, and extras. The "essentials" on my desk now are my laptop, a podcasting microphone, a journal with a single pen, and a water bottle. I stashed all my "extras" — my Kindle and any hardcover books, pencils, business cards, and highlighters — in my closet.

Getting rid of the clutter has helped me focus, and I no longer lose ideas. Now everything that crosses my mind is in that one journal rather than spread across 20-odd sticky notes. Plus, all the tasks I start actually get done. 

Clear's book inspired me to do the same inside my laptop, too. I grabbed all of my desktop folders and put them in one "Omega" folder, so now I enjoy a pristinely empty screen that doesn't give me anxiety. 

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Finally — this was the toughest — I began closing all my browser tabs before bed. I try to have no more than five open tabs at any given time now, which are my email, Canva , Teachable , and one or two Google docs.

2. I stopped dreading video calls

"Atomic Habits" advises making new habits attractive and dividing them into small increments that over time build up to produce massive changes.

One habit I wanted to improve upon was being comfortable on Zoom, especially after two years of video fatigue. So to emulate what the book said, I started asking people I admire to join me on 20-minute long "coffee dates." I would sit down with creators, CEOs, authors, podcasters, astrologers, and coaches — most of whom I met on Instagram — and just talk about work and life. 

When my timer went off, we'd wrap it up. That way, I could look forward to the next conversation. 

These calls went on for about two months. Finally, I'd totally forgotten why I started them, and Zoom no longer intimidated or drained me. As James Clear says, small habits generate big changes, as long as you don't quit.

3. I created more time and comfort in my day

When I read Clear's suggestion to "audit" my day by writing out every little thing I did for 24 hours, I found it painstaking, which is how I could tell it was going to be worth it. 

First, it made me realize that waking up at 7 a.m. was too late for my sleep chronotype. I was shocked to find out how much time I wasted on Netflix every evening — close to four hours — and how many consecutive hours I'd sit in a chair without getting up for a walk.

After this eye-opening audit, I began waking up at 5 a.m. and immediately felt in control versus "late to the party." The extra two hours per day allowed me to get a headstart on writing, and by the time 10 a.m. rolled around, I'd get up for an hour-long walk. I incorporated two more walks into my day — one around 3 p.m. and one at 8 p.m. when my Netflix binge would have been taking place. 

Adding these extra walks to my day has been a game-changer for my lower back, which hurts a lot less than before. My eyes feel less fatigued as well, as I'm spending less time looking at a screen, especially late at night. 

4. I made chores and dreaded tasks more manageable

Clear teaches his readers to do something called "temptation bundling." This means marrying two opposing actions: something you dread and something you love. 

I hate folding laundry, so inspired by Clear's idea, I "bundled" that task with listening to my favorite YouTube playlist. Whenever I feel too lazy to work out or do my daily walk, I pair that exercise with listening to my favorite podcast. I have two picks: one on manifestation and spirituality, and one on marketing. 

I now also save voice notes I get from my coaching clients to listen and reply to while I'm on my walk. That way, time flies and I get work done in the process. Plus, many of my clients love hearing the waves when I message them from the beach instead of the hollow echo of my home office. 

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Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones

The #1  New York Times  bestseller .  Over 4 million copies sold! Tiny Changes, Remarkable Results No matter your goals,  Atomic Habits  offers a proven framework for improving--every day. James Clear, one of the world's leading experts on habit formation, reveals practical strategies that will teach you exactly how to form good habits, break bad ones, and master the tiny behaviors that lead to remarkable results. If you're having trouble changing your habits, the problem isn't you. The problem is your system. Bad habits repeat themselves again and again not because you don't want to change, but because you have the wrong system for change. You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems. Here, you'll get a proven system that can take you to new heights. Clear is known for his ability to distill complex topics into simple behaviors that can be easily applied to daily life and work. Here, he draws on the most proven ideas from biology, psychology, and neuroscience to create an easy-to-understand guide for making good habits inevitable and bad habits impossible. Along the way, readers will be inspired and entertained with true stories from Olympic gold medalists, award-winning artists, business leaders, life-saving physicians, and star comedians who have used the science of small habits to master their craft and vault to the top of their field. Learn how to:    •   make time for new habits (even when life gets crazy);    •   overcome a lack of motivation and willpower;    •   design your environment to make success easier;    •   get back on track when you fall off course; ...and much more. Atomic Habits  will reshape the way you think about progress and success, and give you the tools and strategies you need to transform your habits--whether you are a team looking to win a championship, an organization hoping to redefine an industry, or simply an individual who wishes to quit smoking, lose weight, reduce stress, or achieve any other goal.

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Book Summaries

Atomic habits book summary: key takeaways & review | clickup.

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January 11, 2024

How many times have you grabbed a motivational book only to lose your new-found motivation as soon as you finished reading it?

Motivation is that sudden push to make a significant change happen, but it tends to fade with time. What comes next once you’ve nailed that big goal you’ve been eyeing?

However, if you have a system set up, you’ll keep making progress daily. Those small changes add up and build lasting momentum. Instead of just aiming for a goal, concentrate on building an identity for yourself that guides you to take the right actions.

If you’re constantly struggling to feel motivated every day, it’s time to stop that.

Habits shape your identity. This Atomic Habit summary will help you dive into productivity hacks that will help you form new habits that bring lasting change. 

Atomic Habits Summary at Glance 

Key takeaways from atomic habits by james clear , law #1: make it obvious, law #2: make it attractive, law #3: make it easy, law #4: make it satisfying , popular atomic habits quotes , take charge of your life with atomic habits and clickup.

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

Atomic Habits by James Clear is a book that talks about the power of small habits in creating lasting changes in your life . Unlike generic and repetitive motivational books, this book tells you that real change comes from countless small decisions, not just motivation. 

A considerable emphasis is given to building a system instead of focusing on goals . 

With exceptional storytelling, personal anecdotes, and real-life examples, Clear takes you on a journey of self-improvement. Every concept you learn about is backed by scientific research, making it clearer that you will achieve results.

Whether it’s the habit loop, 2-minute rule, identity-based approach, habit stacking, or most of the other concepts, they all have a reason why they work. 

Clear also breaks commonly followed notions like chasing immediate positive changes. Instead, he explains how you need to improve by 1% every day consistently. For instance, if you go to the gym one day, you won’t build your abs. But consistently going to the gym for four weeks will positively change your body. 

He also breaks the myth that habit is an endpoint. He explains how taking a cab to the gym is what builds the habit rather than the end point of reaching the gym. Clear gives examples of some of the greatest achievements in different fields and brilliantly connects the dots to help you understand how these tactics work no matter what stage you are at. 

So, Atomic Habits is your go-to- guide if you’re stuck in a bad habit labyrinth or find yourself asking, “Why on earth do I do that?”. Whether you’re already achieving and craving more, or just aiming to improve and grow, this book can help. 

• Focus on making tiny adjustments to your behavior, as small changes lead to lasting improvements   
• Strategically use the habit loop–cue, craving, response, and reward –to build a new habit
• Align your habits with the identity you want to build , and let your habits reinforce the person you aspire to be 
• Integrate a new habit into an existing routine. Existing cues and human behavior make it easier to establish and maintain new habits 
• Have patience , as the progress in habit formation is often not immediately visible 
• Design your environment to support habit formation 
• Breaking down habits into two-minute tasks makes them more manageable 
• Habit formation is an ongoing process of continuous improvement. So, be willing to adjust your habits as circumstances change  

Forming Good Habits: A Breakdown of Atomic Habits’ 4 Laws

Clear’s four laws of human behavior change stem from the concept of the Habit Loop. This loop comprises four stages:

Stage 1 – Cue: The cue acts as the trigger, initiating the good habit loop, and can be anything from a specific time to an emotional state. 

Stage 2 – Craving: Following the cue, there is a craving—a motivational force representing the desire for the reward associated with the habit.

Stage 3 – Response: The response is the actual behavior or action performed in response to the cue and craving, constituting the habit itself.

Stage 4 – Reward: Finally, the reward is the positive outcome or satisfaction resulting from completing the habit, reinforcing the loop, and increasing the likelihood of habit repetition.

Based on these four steps, Clear created four laws that help you build a successful habit loop. In each law, he gives three to four tactics for habit-building and one tactic to break it. 

Let’s see how we can use both aspects to enhance productivity. 

Are you aware of the habits you must build and break? If not, there’s no way you can train your mind to act a certain way. 

You see, human minds act on cues and bad habits repeat. When you experience something repeatedly, your reaction to it becomes natural. There’s a cue that gives your brain a signal to act a certain way, and your behavior or response becomes automatic. 

As Clear mentions, “ Museum curators have been known to discern the difference between an authentic piece of art and an expertly produced counterfeit even though they can’t tell you precisely which details tipped them off.”

Why? Because they have been repeatedly identifying authentic art for years. 

The little gaps become so relevant that a single glance catches it. 

We might not think it’s real, but invisible cues trigger their minds. To pick up on these cues and automate behaviors, you’ve got to become more aware. Here are some ways to do this:

1. Habit scorecards

A habit scorecard is like a checklist where you jot down your daily activities. Then, you figure out if each habit is positive, negative, or neutral in its impact.

The goal of your habit scorecard is to gain awareness and identify patterns contributing to or hindering progress.

Creating it is simple; all you need to do is: 

• List your regular daily activities at work or home
• Categorize each activity as positive, negative, or neutral
• Rate each habit based on its overall impact 
• Understand how your current behaviors affect productivity 

Let’s put this into action. 

Look at the lowest score— submit completed tasks by the deadline (2). Now, observe how the tasks related to your submissions also have a low score. 

If you want to change this and submit your tasks on time, you need to: 

• Work more on high-priority tasks 
• Check progress and adjust plans 
• Reflect on the day and make better plans for tomorrow
• Wrap up the tasks you set for today 

If not, you will continue to miss deadlines, and the burden will shift to the next day. 

2. Implementation intention

Implementation intention involves planning when and where to take specific actions to reach your goals.

First, spot the gap in your existing habits. For instance, in the example mentioned earlier, you finish the task but don’t allocate time for reflecting on the day.

Now, set a goal like this— “I will reflect on my day and plan for tomorrow at 5 PM.”  

Secondly, you can use habit stacking, a technique to pair a new habit with an existing one. For example, “After I am done working on my current tasks, I will reflect on the priority tasks I couldn’t complete.”

Lastly, induce the cues of better habits in your environment. As Clear states, “.. motivation is overrated; the environment often matters more.” 

If you want to reflect on your goals better, look for goal-tracking apps that help you keep up with your progress. You can also set a vision board that compels you to take action. 

3. Breaking a bad habit–make it invisible 

Do you know that people with high self-control tend to spend less time in tempting situations? 

They reduce exposure to the cue that causes bad habits, to eliminate them. 

For example, you wait for the day to end to go out for a drink, spend time with your spouse, or do something productive. But towards the end of the day, you find yourself browsing through social media.

In this scenario, you must distance yourself from these cues (your phone) until you do what you intend to do. Make it a pact not to use social media before planning the next day. 

Keep your phone silent and eliminate any other distractions in your environment as a part of your time management strategies. 

In his second law, Clear mentions that habits operate on a dopamine-driven feedback loop. Put simply, when dopamine goes up, so does the urge to take action. The anticipation of rewards is so powerful that it pushes you to act. 

Clear suggests the use of temptation bundling to achieve that. In this technique, you pair up an action you want to do with an action you need to do. 

Temptation building strategy

Let’s say you aim to minimize distractions and stay focused during work. But you also want to watch a podcast you love. 

Here’s what you can do:

• Designate specific time blocks for focused work (e.g., 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM)
• Listen to one episode of the podcast you love when you take a break at 11 AM

For instance, commit to 90 minutes of focused work on your marketing report. Take a 20-minute break, during which you can watch the podcast. 

This way, you train your mind to work consistently for 90 minutes before you get to do what you want. 

Combine habit stacking with temptation bundling

Clear also suggests combining two techniques to enhance your productivity. 

Here’s the formula:

After ( CURRENT HABIT ), I will ( HABIT I NEED ) 

After ( HABIT I NEED ), I will ( HABIT I WANT )

It looks something like this: 

After lunch, I will work on my marketing reports for 90 minutes.  

After working for 90 minutes, I will watch one episode of my favorite podcast. 

Another crucial aspect that helps is surrounding yourself with the right tribe. If you hang out with people who hate their jobs, you will start hating your job, too. 

But if you hang out with a crowd discussing progress, motivation, and goals, you will likely reflect on yours and set the bar higher for yourself. 

Breaking bad habits–reprogramming your mind

Now, let’s talk about breaking the bad habits we’ve built over the years. 

Let’s say you wake up at nine every morning and you have to leave to work at 10. You’ve been trying to break this loop and want to wake up early. 

So you keep telling yourself, “I have to wake up at 5 AM, but I’m unable to.” 

With a little shift in attitude, you can break this habit–replace have to with get to. 

“I get to wake up at 5 AM every morning and feel the pleasant breeze, exercise, and reflect on my personal goals.” 

The idea is to associate hard habits with positive experiences. How will starting the day at the right pace make you feel? Make it so attractive that your body craves those experiences. 

This change in perspective is so powerful, you’ll find it mentioned in many books on focus . 

“The most effective form of learning is practice, not planning.”

The more you repeat a habit, the more your brain gets used to it. The structure of your brain changes and you become efficient in it. It is scientifically proven that repeating a habit leads to physical changes in the brain. 

Clear further states, “ The amount of time you have been performing a habit is not as important as the number of times you have performed it.”

The law of least effort 

We as humans naturally gravitate towards the things that require the least effort. 

That’s where an environment shift helps. You need to create an environment where doing the hard thing is as easy as possible. 

Let’s say you introduce a new project management software in your organization. The old system, though outdated, is familiar and requires minimal effort. 

In this scenario, the law of least effort is evident as employees may resist the change. 

That’s where you can make the shift easy with training sessions, user-friendly guidelines, and a dedicated support team to address issues. 

Here, you make the environment conducive to learning and maximize the perceived difficulty of adopting the new system. Such changes lead to lasting work habits where employees welcome change with open arms. 

The two-minute rule

Our brain is programmed to avoid doing difficult things. 

Throughout our days, we make many decisions. For example, the decision to complete your work or watch another episode of your favorite series on Netflix. 

Clear states that habits are immediate actions. For instance, you take a cab to the gym every day. The habit is taking the cab , not hitting the gym. Habits are the entry point, not the endpoint. 

When starting a new habit, Clear suggests you should follow the two-minute rule. Anything new you take up, shouldn’t take longer than two minutes. 

Now, you might think that’s ridiculous, but you can break down any habit into a two minute-version: 

• If you want to build a reading habit, you can start with reading one page a day 
• If you want to start doing yoga for 30 minutes, you can start by taking out the yoga mat
• Or, in our project management example, you can put the shortcut software on your employees’ desktop so they can quickly log in 

This two-minute version makes you realize that starting is pretty easy. And you take away the power of hard habits. Such tactics are often mentioned and practiced in some of the most popular growth hacking books . 

The takeaway? Start a gateway habit that takes you down to a more productive path. 

Breaking bad habits–make it impractical

Clear states that to break habits, you need to make them impractical. 

Technology plays a significant role here. Let’s say you spend excessive time on social media during work hours. You can install an app blocker that automates social media blocking during certain hours. 

As the tool restricts access to social media sites, it makes it impractical (or even impossible!) for you to engage in the habit during those hours. 

You are more likely to repeat a behavior when the experience is satisfying. Clear says that we, as humans, are conditioned to prioritize immediate rewards over delayed rewards. 

While building great abs on the first day of gymming sounds impossible, there is another way to look at it. 

The cardinal rule of behavior change

“What is immediately rewarded is repeated. What is immediately punished is avoided.” 

To make habits inevitable, you need to feel successful immediately in some way. 

If you put the above laws into practice—making things obvious, appealing, and effortless—you’re more likely to carry out the behavior.

But what if you do it only that one time? 

That’s where making it satisfying increases the likelihood of doing it again.  

Let’s say you’ve set a goal to exercise regularly. After each workout, you treat yourself to a healthy smoothie or a favorite snack. By rewarding yourself with something enjoyable after exercising, you make the activity satisfying. 

As a result, you’re more inclined to repeat the workout routine because you link it with a positive and satisfying experience. The idea is to associate immediate pleasures to continue moving towards your big goals. 

Habit tracker

Imagine you’re convinced you’re making progress, but suddenly, you find yourself feeling lost and confused without realizing how it happened.

A habit tracker can be a lifesaver. It helps you monitor your progress with new habits. By visualizing and measuring these habits, you get solid proof of your progress. It creates a streak where you keep working on the habits you’re building. 

Breaking bad habits–get an accountability partner

Having an accountability partner is great because they offer support, encouragement, and a sense of responsibility. Sharing goals with someone who checks in on our progress boosts motivation and keeps us committed to our objectives.

Knowing that someone else is aware of our goals and holds us accountable can provide a sense of external motivation to stay on track and avoid slacking off or falling back into old habits.

• “You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.”
• “Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become. No single instance will transform your beliefs, but as the votes build up, so does the evidence of your new identity.”
• “Success is the product of daily habits—not once-in-a-lifetime transformations.”
• “You do it because it’s who you are, and it feels good to be you. The more a habit becomes part of your life, the less you need outside encouragement to follow through. Incentives can start a habit. Identity sustains a habit.” 
• “You should be far more concerned with your current trajectory than with your current results.”

Apply Atomic Habits principles with ClickUp

Now, you probably have many ideas for boosting productivity using atomic habits principles. But to consistently apply these principles in your workplace, you need an all-in-one solution like ClickUp. It helps measure progress, automate tasks, and ramp up productivity.

ClickUp Tasks allows you to break down larger tasks into more manageable tasks to make incremental improvements each day. You can set due dates for tasks to establish a routine of consistent effort (1% better each day). 

To further ensure you complete your tasks, it lets you visualize your work in multiple ways. When you have a clear view of what needs to be done, your everyday progress is never hindered. 

But just breaking down your tasks is not enough. 

Clear talks about the importance of habit tracking , which means that you’ve got to turn these tasks into trackable goals. ClickUp Goals helps you manage all your habit-tracking goals in one place and measure success over time. Easily create sprint targets, weekly sales targets, and more. 

Then comes ClickUp Reminders which helps you in habit stacking or following your new habit with an existing one. When you have made a habit scorecard, you know which new habit you need to fit in between. 

ClickUp will drop in gentle reminders to ensure you successfully ingrain the new habit in your current schedule. It’s not just helpful for you but also for your team as you can send out reminders and avoid delays. 

When we’re focused on professional goals, we tend to overlook the importance of tracking our personal goals. But it’s crucial to grow and develop healthy habits in all areas of your life. So, here’s a personal habit tracker template to get you started: 

Whether you want to build an exercise routine or a reading habit, or simply drink more water, this template will help! 

The principles of Atomic habits, when combined with the right tools, will help you boost productivity in the workplace. 

Remember that building habits take time, and automating your tasks, goals, and reminders gives you the extra push to continue. 

Through steady progress, you’ll eventually build the necessary habits while breaking the ones you don’t. If you want to know more about how ClickUp can assist you in this, reach out to our team today!

Questions? Comments? Visit our Help Center for support.

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Atomic Habits: the life-changing million-copy #1 bestseller Paperback – 1 Jan. 2018

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THE PHENOMENAL INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER: 1 MILLION COPIES SOLD Transform your life with tiny changes in behaviour, starting now. People think that when you want to change your life, you need to think big. But world-renowned habits expert James Clear has discovered another way. He knows that real change comes from the compound effect of hundreds of small decisions: doing two push-ups a day, waking up five minutes early, or holding a single short phone call. He calls them atomic habits. In this ground-breaking book, Clears reveals exactly how these minuscule changes can grow into such life-altering outcomes. He uncovers a handful of simple life hacks (the forgotten art of Habit Stacking, the unexpected power of the Two Minute Rule, or the trick to entering the Goldilocks Zone), and delves into cutting-edge psychology and neuroscience to explain why they matter. Along the way, he tells inspiring stories of Olympic gold medalists, leading CEOs, and distinguished scientists who have used the science of tiny habits to stay productive, motivated, and happy. These small changes will have a revolutionary effect on your career, your relationships, and your life. ________________________________ A NEW YORK TIMES AND SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER 'A supremely practical and useful book.' Mark Manson, author of The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F*ck 'James Clear has spent years honing the art and studying the science of habits. This engaging, hands-on book is the guide you need to break bad routines and make good ones.' Adam Grant, author of Originals ' Atomic Habits is a step-by-step manual for changing routines. ' Books of the Month, Financial Times 'A special book that will change how you approach your day and live your life.' Ryan Holiday, author of The Obstacle is the Way

• Print length 320 pages
• Language English
• Publisher Random House Business
• Publication date 1 Jan. 2018
• Dimensions 22.9 x 15.2 x 1.93 cm
• ISBN-10 1847941834
• ISBN-13 978-1847941831
• See all details

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• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Random House Business; 1st edition (1 Jan. 2018)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1847941834
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1847941831
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 22.9 x 15.2 x 1.93 cm
• 1 in Guides to Success
• 1 in Business Careers
• 1 in Arts & Photography

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