The Fundamentals: 2. How Your Habits Shape Your Identity (and Vice Versa)
/In the second chapter, How Your Habits Shape Your Identity (and Vice Versa), James Clear addresses why it is so easy to repeat bad habits and so hard to form new ones.
In essence, it's difficult to change habits because not only do we try going about it in the wrong way, but we also try changing the wrong thing.
But what does James Clear mean by this? Why are we doing it wrong and what is it that we should be changing?
Simply put, we must consider that there are three levels at which change occurs:
On the surface level, we change our outcomes. This occurs through goal-setting and accomplishing things like losing a certain amount of weight, publishing a book, or winning an award. Here, only a result is achieved or a goal is met.
Next, on the middle level is changing our processes. This refers to our habit-building and systems. For instance, implementing a new routine at the gym, cleaning our desks and workstations on a regular basis, and developing a meditation practice. Here, this change occurs regularly rather than being just a one-hit-wonder; this is how habits are built.
Finally, our deepest level of change: Identity. Change that occurs here affects our identity. This can mean changing beliefs: i.e worldview, self-image, judgements about ourselves and others. Our beliefs, assumptions, and biases are associated with this level.
It's important to note that neither one of these levels is necessarily better than the other, in fact, they all have their uses. However, each level does have its own benefits depending on the kind of change you are hoping to achieve. As James Clear says, “Outcomes are about what you get. Processes are about what you do. Identity is about what you believe.”
The downfall that many experience when trying to change their habits is that they focus on what they want to achieve rather than who they wish to become in the process of building those habits. When it comes to building habits that last, it’s in our best interest to start with changing our identities rather than just our outcomes.
By setting goals and creating processes without considering our beliefs and thought systems, we don’t shift how we view ourselves. And it is this obsolete identity that sabotages our progress.
James Clear states that “the ultimate form of intrinsic motivation is when a habit becomes part of your identity. It’s one thing to say I’m the type of person who wants this. It’s something very different to say I’m the type of person who is this.”
Therefore, it is safe to say that true behaviour change begins as identity change .
Once we develop, adopt, and become one with a certain identity, we are more likely to pursue actions and maintain habits that align with that identity. This can be both an advantage and hindrance. As individuals, we blindly follow norms and expectations that are attached to our identities, and for this reason, it can be difficult to break out of that box and do something different - to build a different habit.
Some examples provided include phrases such as “I’m terrible with directions”, “I’m not a morning person'', “I’m bad at remembering people’s names”, “I’m always late”, “I’m not good with technology”, and “I’m horrible at math.”
So how do we break out of this and become who we want to be? What are steps we can take to change a habit?
James Clear highlights two:
Deciding on what type of person we want to be
Proving it to ourselves, one small victory at a time
In Clear’s words, “[This change] is a gradual evolution. We do not change by snapping our fingers and deciding to be someone entirely new. We change bit by bit, day by day, habit by habit. We are continually undergoing microevolutions of the self.”
Therefore, we can conclude that reaching the best version of ourselves is the same as reaching the best version of anything - through small continuous upgrades, revisions, and adaptations. We must consistently work on strengthening the foundations of our desired identity by revisiting and refining our beliefs.