Your Morning Routine Toolkit148it is to use choice architecture to create an environment that
helps you make the choices you truly want to make each day.
Tool 3: Tiny Habits
The next step is to start small. Crazy small. In fact, Stanford
University professor and habit expert Dr. B. J. Fogg calls them
tiny habits. He encourages his students to begin a new habit
with a step so small that you can’t possibly skip it because it’s
too hard or time- consuming. His example is for students who
want to build the habit of flossing their teeth. His recommenda-
tion? Start by committing to floss one tooth each night.^5
Remember, we want our willpower to be our last defense.
We want to build a baseline that doesn’t require self- discipline.
But one tooth? I know it sounds ridiculous. But the fact
is the New Year’s resolution approach of massive change all
at once doesn’t work for most people. So why not try some-
thing new?
Dr. Fogg’s research and years of teaching have proven that
the tiny- habits method is extremely effective.^6 A tiny habit that
is truly too easy to quit also helps reveal the true obstacles that
keep someone from moving forward.
If you get off track with a tiny habit, you immediately
know that it wasn’t because it was too difficult. Maybe it was
a habit you feel you “should” do or that someone else expects
of you. Maybe you’re too busy or distracted. Maybe you need
to work on other foundational habits first.
With habits broken down into such small steps, you can be
sure they alone aren’t the reason you’re quitting. The smaller
the changes you make, the easier it is to accurately identify the
obstacles keeping you from long- term change.