To Inspire:

The Columbus Metropolitan Club hosted a conversation earlier this week with James Clear, the New York Times best-selling author of Atomic Habits: An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones. Todd Walter and I hosted a table at the event – here are ten takeaways:

1. What do I want to optimize in life – it is these priorities that I want to build habits around.
2. Start small with your habits – aka, reduce the scope and stick the schedule. James shared the habit of one man who wanted to lose 50 pounds in a year. He spent the first several weeks going to the gym each day but only doing one exercise for 5 minutes and then leaving. His choice to start small and build the habit of getting to the gym allowed him to then quickly expand his time there. As James shared, “a habit must be firmly established before it can be improved.”
3. Change your habits as your life changes. We live life in seasons; habits that served you well in one season of life may not serve you in the next. Keep the ones that serve you in your current season of life and drop the others.
4. Good nighttime/wind down habits lead to good morning habits.
5. Structure the environment around you to help you keep your good habits.
6. Use rewards when you keep your habits. The best reward is acknowledging to yourself that a habit is moving you toward the person you want to be.
7. What is a habit I can begin doing today that will also serve me well 10 years from now?
8. Include habits that lead you to focus less on yourself and more on others – that’s where the joy will be found.
9. Develop habits that enable you to learn and grow as a person.
10. Build the habit of once a week investing 30-60 minutes quietly reflecting on your life, your goals and your habits. What progress are you seeing? What changes do you want to make?

Good habits are so important in enabling a person to live to their full potential. Greatness lies in each of us. Build habits that move you in that direction – you’ll be so glad you did. And you’ll impact others powerfully for the better. Now that’s a life worth living!

Written by Matt Palmer, Partner & Co-Founder