In today’s lesson, you’ll learn about hitchhiking habits: a simple, proven method to accomplish more.
Video Lesson
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Time: 5:58
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Click full screen (lower right corner) to increase the size
Lesson Summary
Why do we struggle to create habits?
As you and I both know, developing a new habit is hard. Sure, we have great intentions—but turning intentions into habits is easier said than done.
So why do we struggle to create habits, even when we know they’re for our benefit? The answer lies in how your brain is wired.
Neurons and synapses
Your brain is made up of cells called neurons. Neurons process and transmit information to other neurons via electrical and chemical signals. The pathway neurons follow from one to another are called synapses.
By analogy, your brain is like an interstate highway. On this highway, each neuron is a car, and each synapse is an exit route along the highway.
The first time a synapse is used, the exit route is like a rough, rocky path. But after using it a few times, it smooths out; eventually, the path becomes paved and can be traveled with ease.
A new routine is like a rocky road that’s hard to navigate while a habit is like a well-paved road that is so established you can use cruise-control.
Developing new synapses (i.e. habits) can be difficult; but once developed, they’re hard to stop. That’s why it’s so hard to pick up new good habits—and eliminate bad ones.
So rather than develop a new habit from scratch, we’re going to use a technique that I call habit hitchhiking.
Habit hitchhiking
How it works:
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Take an existing habit
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Connect a new habit to it
In the freeway analogy, if one habit is a well-worn route that you’re traveling on, you allow your new habit to “hitch” a ride. This saves you the trouble of having to pave a new road. Plus, you’re more likely to stick to your new habit.
For example:
I wanted to start meditating. And to get started, I just had to sit my happy-ass down, close my eyes, and do nothing for a few minutes every day. Simple, right?
Yet I struggled. Using the highway analogy, I was trying to pave a new road, which takes time and effort. So instead, I simply let my meditation habit “hitchhike” along with another habit: getting up in the morning.
Rather than just say “I’m going to meditate every day” (which, as you’ve already learned, is not a SMART goal). I say “when I wake up in the morning (already one of my daily habits), I’m going to meditate in the living room for at least 1 minute.”
The result?
It worked right away, and I finally stuck to my new habit—thanks to the power of hitchhiking habits.
But that wasn’t enough. Just like having one person in the car is a waste of space, having one or two habits in the same car is a waste of resources. So I wanted to fill this car up with powerful, effective habits. Shortly after I established my meditation habit, I invited another hitchhiker to ride along: writing.
So now my habits look like this:
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If I wake up in the morning, then I meditate in the living room for at least 1 minute.
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If I meditate, then I write at my computer for at least 1 minute.
Groovy. As you can see, we’ve added two highly beneficial habits. (You may also have noticed how I’m using an if-then construct. We’ll cover this powerful secret in future lessons.)
One minute habit
Now, you may wonder why I’ve only selected one minute for each habit. The answer is that, psychologically speaking, getting started is often the hardest part. We can’t help but visualize the amount of time and effort we’re going to spend;; because of that, we don’t even start.
One of life’s sad ironies is that we often spend more time worrying over a task than actually doing it. So, by setting a 1-minute minimum for each habit, I’m making it as easy as possible to start.
Let’s take this a step further and add another hitchhiker: exercise. This new habit would say “If I write, then I will exercise for at least one minute.”
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If I wake up in the morning, then I will meditate in the living room for at least 1 minute.
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If I meditate, then I will write at my computer for at least 1 minute.
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If I write, then I will exercise for at least one minute.
Alright, now we’re hitchhiking! You can stretch this out as long as you like, and even include breaks as a habit.
Do this:
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Add your new habits to your kanban
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Throughout the day, move them from “To-Do” to “Doing” to “Done”
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At the end of the day, move your habit cards back to “To-Do” to restart the process the next day
By writing down your goals—as you’ve already seen—you are more likely to act on them. And by moving those cards into your “Done” column, each and every day, you’ll enjoy a daily dose of completion and closure, which increases your resolve to do it the next day. This creates a wonderfully virtuous cycle, which strengthens your habits.
Once those habits become automatic, stop adding the cards to your kanban. For example, I no longer add “Meditate for at least one minute” in my kanban— it’s automatic.
Module summary:
In this module, you learned that the most successful people in the world create and stick to daily routines.
You learned about closure and completion—and that you need both before moving to your next task. You saw the best way to get closure and completion was to add the task to your kanban; this way, you see that it’s done, and gain closure by moving the task to your “Done” column.
You found out about ultradian rhythms, and why you should work for no longer than 90 minutes at a time, with a 20-minute break in between.
You saw the power of habits, and how to change habits by identifying the cue (or “trigger”), the real reward, and the routine. Once you’ve identified all three, swap the routine for something else that still provides the same reward.
Lastly, you learned about “habit hitchhiking” and why it helps you combine multiple habits for maximum results.
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