Atomic Habits by James Clear can be concluded in a few sentences. The entire concept or the key takeaway of the book is centralized on getting better everyday. As you cannot change your entire world on a daily basis, therefore, you must focus on getting better in smaller bits. At an atomic level. Working on creating good habits and breaking bad ones is indeed an effective way of getting better. And I think we all know that it is easy said than done. James Clear provides many strategies in his book to create good habits, and to get rid of the bad ones.
But… One small habit at a time. It is his theory that all these small small changes ultimately comes together to make a huge difference in your life.
The very fact that the entire book can be concluded in a few points makes the book a really long read. I didn’t find the writing style to be very interesting. The last time I tried to read it during my daily commute, I generated this “habit” to fall asleep as soon as I started to read the book. My father, a 74 year old man was able to read the entire book in two days. When I asked how? Was it that interesting that you couldn’t keep it down? He answered, “No, it was just very simple to read”. There are just a few points to ponder and a lot of explanations surrounding it. The entire book is written in a fairly simple language. For some, it can be an added advantage, but not for me, as it hardly had any punchlines to remember. Many of my friends enjoyed reading it though. Because of the long explanations of each point, after reading the entire book, it is very difficult to forget James Clear’s key takeaways, which I think is a very positive thing.
Do I agree with it? Definitely. It makes total sense. Making huge changes in your lifestyle is tough. Making a small adjustment in the better direction is easier. What is key is to be consistent. Show up. Keep working. Don’t give up. If you do this, the small adjustment will become a part of your life. It will become a “habit”. As per James Clear, the task will become automated. Once you achieve that, think about improving further. Make another small adjustment. I am not going to give away all the strategies discussed in the book though. I would just say that I see potential in his strategies and it is a good read if you are looking for a step by step life improvement.
The main question comes down to this – Did it help me? I cannot say it didn’t. Although, I have always been my self critic who analyses her every move, this book gave me another way to look at my habits. It has definitely provided me with a niche to improve. I am trying to implement his strategies in my life, but it will be too soon to say if they are working or not.
Conclusion
What James Clear wants to convey is a very strong point. He has done his homework well, put up some fairly good evidences to back up his theory, and the strategies he has provided in the book seems to be effective enough to create a positive change in anyone’s life. Although as a read, I found it difficult to submerge myself in the book. It didn’t make me think enough whenever I closed the book at the end of the day. It didn’t make me ponder.