Discipline Expert: The Habit That Will Make Or Break Your Entire 2026! James Clear
The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett
2025/12/11
Discipline Expert: The Habit That Will Make Or Break Your Entire 2026! James Clear
Discipline Expert: The Habit That Will Make Or Break Your Entire 2026! James Clear
The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett
2025/12/11
Building lasting habits isn't about willpower or grand gestures—it's about designing a life where good behaviors become inevitable and identity-driven. This conversation dives into the science of small changes and how they compound into transformative results.
The podcast explores the power of atomic habits—tiny, consistent actions that shape identity and drive long-term success. James Clear emphasizes focusing on systems over goals, as daily processes determine outcomes more than aspirations. Key strategies include the 2-minute rule to reduce friction, habit stacking to anchor new behaviors, and designing environments that make desired actions easier. Habits gain strength through repetition and identity reinforcement, where each action serves as a 'vote' for the type of person you want to become. The discussion highlights the importance of managing energy, leveraging social context, and using feedback loops like habit trackers to maintain momentum. Breaking bad habits involves inverting the behavior change laws—making cues invisible and rewards unsatisfying—while progress thrives not on dissatisfaction but on small wins and consistency. Ultimately, compounding 1% improvements leads to significant transformation, proving that long-term success is less about intensity and more about showing up, even slightly, every day.
00:00
00:00
Habit-building involves Cue, Craving, Response, and Reward.
07:27
07:27
The biggest hurdle for consistency in habits is whether one is interested, engaged, and having fun.
10:21
10:21
Bad days are more important than good days because they build real consistency
14:06
14:06
Mastering the art of showing up is more important than immediate performance.
16:15
16:15
Feeling progress is motivating, but high expectations can derail habits
18:18
18:18
Most life decisions are like hats and haircuts, not tattoos, but we treat them as permanent.
20:59
20:59
Stories where people become the type of person they want to be matter most.
22:29
22:29
Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement
24:49
24:49
Winners and losers often have the same goals; systems are what differentiate them
27:28
27:28
Winners and losers have the same goals; what matters is the system behind the results.
28:14
28:14
One should love the process and lifestyle to be happy while achieving milestones
28:58
28:58
One can be satisfied at every stage of growth while still being encoded to grow, like an oak tree.
31:31
31:31
Comparison is a teacher of skills when narrow and a thief of joy when broad.
34:37
34:37
Working harder has limits; focusing on the right thing yields exponential results
38:28
38:28
Life has seasons; you can't be excellent at everything at once.
41:13
41:13
Starting a business in your twenties makes later success easier
42:02
42:02
The 66-day rule for habit formation is unreliable as the time varies widely.
46:19
46:19
Repeating a habit reinforces one's identity as the type of person who does it.
46:58
46:58
Every action is a vote for the type of person you wish to become.
49:04
49:04
Saying someone is a kind person makes them act kinder than praising a kind act.
50:26
50:26
People are poor at living in contradiction when their identity is threatened.
51:15
51:15
To build better habits, join groups where desired behaviors are the norm.
53:19
53:19
To build desired habits, prime your environment so your desired behavior is normal
56:09
56:09
Most of the time, it's not about removing people but creating environments where positive habits can grow.
1:01:09
1:01:09
LinkedIn ads offer the highest B2B return on ad spend.
1:01:33
1:01:33
Use your current position to build new advantages instead of complaining.
1:03:32
1:03:32
Good habits make time your ally; bad habits make it your enemy
1:11:13
1:11:13
The best and worst decisions in life are related to people
1:11:36
1:11:36
Motivation often comes after starting, so scale down tasks to make them easy to begin.
1:13:29
1:13:29
Choose to emphasize the empowering version of events without ignoring reality.
1:18:35
1:18:35
Feeling progress at work significantly improves daily well-being, according to a Harvard Business Review study.
1:20:58
1:20:58
The paperclip system turned sales calls into a visual game of progress.
1:23:55
1:23:55
All habitual behaviors follow the cycle: cue, craving, response, reward.
1:32:07
1:32:07
Fitness blockchain uses social accountability to reinforce all four laws of behavior change
1:35:25
1:35:25
Immediately rewarded behaviors are repeated; punished ones are avoided.
1:36:25
1:36:25
Bad habits cost in the future; good habits cost now.
1:37:52
1:37:52
Becoming aware of habits can change them, as shown by food journaling studies.
1:40:36
1:40:36
Habit stacking means doing a new habit right after an existing one.
1:45:10
1:45:10
The body operates on a finite energy budget each day
1:54:30
1:54:30
The secret to winning is learning how to lose and recover.
2:05:29
2:05:29
Atomic habits are tiny changes that, when compounded, create powerful results.
