How to Stick to Your Goals with Atomic Habits
Big goals are exciting, but they can also mess with your head. They’re so far away that every day you don’t reach them feels like a failure. It’s hard to stay motivated when it feels like you’re losing more often than you’re winning.
That’s where Atomic Habits by James Clear gives us some practical advice to work with: focus on systems, not goals. Goals point us in the right direction, but systems are what actually get us there. They’re what we can do today, right now, without waiting for some far-off achievement to feel good about our progress.
Take yoga, for example. When I started, I was intimidated. I didn’t know the poses, and I felt lost when I tried classes. So, I decided to make it simple: spend a little time on my mat (working with the simplest yoga instruction) every morning before breakfast—just one minute counted. That small commitment was manageable, and over time, I began feeling comfortable flowing through poses. Little by little, I learned the poses, built strength, and became more confident. Now, yoga is part of my morning, every morning. My body feels stronger, more flexible, and less achy.
It didn’t happen overnight, but it also couldn’t have. The goal of “changing my body” was there in the background, but what made the difference was the system—the small, consistent actions I could take every day.
That’s the reminder I need: don’t fixate on the end result. Focus on what you can do today to build the habits that will carry you forward. Every day you stick to the system, you’re not only making progress—you’re becoming the person I want to be.
ACTION: Think about your goal and create a system to support it. What’s the smallest, most manageable step you can take every day? Keep it simple and doable—something you can stick to no matter how busy or unmotivated you feel. Start today and build from there.
