The Four Laws of Behavior Change

The Four Laws of Behavior Change are from the famous book Atomic Habits by James Clear. It builds upon elements of the Power of Habits' Cue Routine Reward. These laws help you have more control over your habits.

Make it obvious

Surround yourself with cues for your desired action. If you want to read more, leave the book on your desk or set the alarm every day as a reminder. This simple step brings to your attention what needs to be done. Conversely, if you want to avoid a specific behavior, remove them from sight. If you are trying to cut down on junk food, don't place them anywhere to trigger you.

This law is my personal favorite. It reminds me to be more conscious with placing things around the house and has allowed me to filter in or out the things I care about.

Make it attractive

Intensify the initial cue by making it more attractive. Think of creative ways to remind yourself why the desired habit is worth the effort. Initially, it may be hard to find that intrinsic attraction, so a technique you can use is to bundle behaviors you want to have with your already loving behaviours. For example, if you love drinking coffee and want to get out more, instead of making coffee at home, start walking to get your coffee.

Make it easy

Changing behavior and building habits require action, not just planning. Make sure you are taking action no matter how little. The amount of time you have been performing a habit is not as important as the number of times you have performed it.

Suppose you want to get fit, instead of working out for 2 hours 2 times a week. Spread that out to 20 minutes every day and work up from there. Doing something every day instead of X times per week also means you need to make fewer decisions about when to work out during the week and potentially forget to do it.

Make it satisfying

Keeping track of metrics or daily streaks will help you see your progress. This can be a good option to make the behavior more satisfying.