"ATOMIC HABITS" (Chapter 11): Walk Slow, But Not Backwards | Keto Mom Book Club
Updated: Oct 11, 2021
Keto Mom here!
If you're following me and every other Keto person in the world, gathering recipes, all of the tips and tricks, your motive is there, but if you don't take action, then it doesn't matter. The only way you're going to get fat loss, more muscle, make better choices, move your body have a better relationship with your kids, or anything that you want to accomplish, you have to take action on it. Not perfection, but you have to do something. You can think about I want to drink more water today, but picking up that water bottle and drinking it, is the action that actually produces the result.
Points to Ponder
00:18 "Atomic Habits" by James Clear
01:19 Self development
02:29 Getting your mindset right
03:13 Learning how to have self control
04:27 "Walk Slowly, But Never Backwards"
05:00 Group A and Group B
07:38 Action is the key
08:06 "The Best is the enemy of Good"
08:12 "Don't mess up good for perfect"
09:00 In Motion vs Taking Action
10:37 "Miracle Morning" by Hal Elrod
12:46 Putting in your reps is one of the most crucial steps
12:57 The only way you fail is if you quit
14:16 The point is the repetition
15:21 The third law of behavior. Make it easy
16:22 Take action on one thing
16:48 The system is the repetition
Full Episode Transcript
Good morning! Welcome to the Keto Mom page, we're diving into what I truly feel is one of the most important chapters of this book. All of it is important though, and we're going to talk about walking slow, but never going backwards. So if you're brand new, and you're tuning into the page, we're going through "Atomic Habits" by James Clear. We've been going through a book for the last almost two months, and the point of me going live about a book, a podcast or getting your mindset right, is to understand the power of mindset in anything that you're doing. Specifically on this page, if you don't have your mindset right, then you're going to grab the doughnut, or you're going to go backwards, or qui. I truly believe after six years of hopping on this page, and doing lives and talking to hundreds of people all the time. It's the mindset that gets people frustrated, it's the "I don't believe I can do it".
The negativity, and not being around people that push them. It's lack of accountability, and it's lack of purpose. So I just realized it the spring, if people are truly not developing themselves, or self development, then it doesn't matter.
And I'll tell you, I have been spoiled with self development. It was our CEO pushing me in a good, respectful way, to get me out of my comfort zone and to grow. I told myself you should be reading every day, if your goal is to be a better you. You should be taking care of you whether you're a mom or a dad, or you own a business, or you were an employee, or you're an athlete. I am shocked at the lack of self development that people don't do.
And in my head, I've been doing it for six years. So I'm like of course I read everyday, of course I listen to podcasts. And I am careful of who I surround myself with one hundred percent.
And then I hear people going, I haven't read a book since high school. I'm like, really? I've been so ingrained in working on me, working on my kids, and sharing with other people, that I forget that most business and companies, colleges and even high schools don't talk about getting your mindset right, waking up with a grateful heart, and watching the words that you speak. There are things that our children need to be learning. I've never been more aware of the things that as adults, I wish we would have been taught in high school. What I need to be teaching my kids is, most subjects can be learned.
We can go Google something or ask Siri and she's going to tell you. Or ask Alexa, and she'll tell you how many times the sun rotates around the Earth. But what matters is learning how to have self control, learning how to handle your EQ, your emotions, and being adaptable in life circumstances. Being able to have discipline, in all areas of your life, your words matter, the things that you're listening to, what you're watching and reading matter. Those are the things that we need to be teaching our kids. And as adults, you have to learn it so that you can be a positive influence, and your children can watch you and do the same thing. So with all of that, I don't know where it came from, but that's why I do these lives, mainly because it holds me accountable to getting up and reading every single day. I love to help other people do that, if you're not going through the book, then you can follow me and I'll walk you through the book. This is what we're going through, and when we're done we're going to go through a new book, So we're on chapter 11 and this is one of my favorite chapters.
If you've never tuned in before, this is the best chapter to start with. I would encourage you to grab the book, but if not, go watch the other videos I do every day. If you're brand new, post new below. Okay so
"Walk Slowly, But Never Backwards"...
Incredible! So he tells a story, so there's a lot of science in the book, a lot of data, there's stories and then there's always an action step. So in the beginning of this chapter, there was a professor who was teaching a photography course and he split the class into two.
He said here's how I'm going to grade you, Group A all you're going to do is submit one piece of art. That's it, and you're going to be graded over the entire semester of this one piece of art. And then Group B, you are going to be graded on how many projects you create over the course of the semester. You have to have at least 100. So you've got one group who has to submit only one really good project and you've got the other group who has to submit at least a hundred pieces of art.
Before I finished the paragraph, the group that only had to do one was who I thought will actually do better. I forgot I have read this before, and I forgot. And then as you read it, the group that had to create at least a hundred pieces of art, did the best. It wasn't the quality, it was the quantity that created the best outcome, and that's where we're going to start. He talks about "In the process of creating hundreds of photos, they honed in on skills'... So what happened was, the people that only had to do one project focused on perfection. They didn't learn new skills, they didn't fail and pick up and try again. They didn't figure out the real piece of art that they loved. They were so focused on perfection of one, that they did not do very well. However, the group that focused on quantity did incredible. Because they had to try new things, they failed and they figured out new things. They had a different perspective and overall, had better art. So here's where I thought it was super powerful, I've got almost a page to read to you. I promise you, if you're not reading the book, you should listen but if you're reading the book then go through this yourself.
"The quality group didn't focus on perfection, in the end, they had a little to show for the effort of their unverified theories. So they just were mediocre. It is easy to get bogged down by trying to find the optimal plan for change... The fastest way to weight loss, the best program to build muscle, the perfect idea for a side hustle. We are so focused on figuring out the best approach that we never get around to taking action"...
Action is the key. I coach my team in the business world, if you are learning from me on how to do things, social media, or whatever it is. If you are not taking action, it doesn't matter. If you're following me and every other Keto person in the world, gathering recipes, all of the tips and tricks, so your motive is there, but if you don't take action, then it doesn't matter. So he says "The Best is the enemy of Good"... We love to say in our home "Don't mess up good for perfect". Whether it's on business, relationships or trying this Keto diet. Or working out, so don't mess up good for perfect. Good is good, and you're going to somehow fail if you're taking action, but the only way that you truly Fail is if you quit. If you quit, you failed. But if you fail and get back up, then you learn a lesson and keep going.
He says "I refer to this as a difference between being in motion and taking action"... So he talks about there's motion, all of you here are in motion and you're learning. You're enhancing your brain, you might be taking notes, or putting these little golden nuggets right here. You're in motion of learning something, and then the key is action.
"The two ideas sound similar, but they're not. When one is in motion you're planning, you're strategizing you're learning. So all of you are in motion right now. Those are all good. But they do not produce results"...
The only way you're going to get fat loss, more muscle, make better choices, move your body have a better relationship with your kids. Or anything that you want to accomplish is, you have to take action on it. Not perfection, or not a perfect action, but you have to do something. You can think about I want to drink more water today. I'm going to plan to drink more water today. I'm going to even set up my water bottles around my house to drink more water today. But picking up that water bottle and drinking it, is the action that actually produces the result. I read this chapter and I realized this is the number one thing that people need to hear.
"Sometimes motion is useful, but it will never produce an outcome by itself. It doesn't matter how many times you talk to a personal trainer, the motion will never get you in shape. Only the action of working out will get you there"...
So are you in motion or are you in action? That is the question I want you to answer in whatever your goals are. So we've talked about goals, we've talked about systems, we've talked about creating habits. Stay tuned, don't check out because he's going to talk about how long do I have to do something before I create a habit. For those of you who are reading the "Miracle Morning" by Hal Elrod, your goal was 30 days of a consistent habit. I'm also going to tell you what James Clear says in the book about the habit. So he talks about "Motion makes you feel like you're going to get things done"... I'm planning I'm watching.
Motion makes you feel like you're doing something, oh, I've got my calendar written out. I've got my menu planned. I'm writing all of my action steps. I take notes every day, and it makes you feel productive, doesn't it.
"But really, you're just preparing to get something done. When preparation becomes a form of procrastination, you need to change something. I don't want you to be planning, you have to practice and you have to put what you're learning into practice. If you want to master a habit, the key is to start with repetition, not perfection. You don't need to map out every feature of your new habit. You just need to practice. This is the first takeaway of the third law, you just need to get the repetition in"... I don't have to sit down and prepare of all the things I'm going to do all weekend, or go look at the menu at the restaurant. I mean, you can prepare if you know you're going out and you need to prepare to make the right choice. But if in the end, you get to the restaurant, and then you don't do it, then what was the point. If you have some plans this weekend, and this is the restaurant we're going to, I looked at the menu and I've got goals so here's what I'm going to eat. So you plan it all, and then you feel really good about yourself, because did it. You planned it, you're going to do great this weekend. You've got serious goals, you've got habits and systems you're creating. Then you get to the restaurant and you don't do it. Then what was the point?.
Of course, there are times when you slip up, but it is the action that's going to get you to where you want to go. We're almost done, and I'm going to let you go. He has a whole bunch of science in here, a whole bunch of little graphs talks about habit lines. This means that simply putting in your reps is one of the most crucial steps that you can take in encoding a new habit, you have to do it over and over again. You might fail, but you do it again, the only way you fail is if you quit.
Here's what he says at the very end "One of the most common questions is how long does it take to build a new habit?"...
If you read the Miracle Morning with us, it said why don't you try doing the 30 day Miracle Morning challenge. It doesn't mean it's going to become a hundred percent Habit, but he's giving you action steps to do. Here's what it says in "Atomic Habits"... By the way if you find value in this, I would love for you to press the share button, Sharing is caring. So many other people just need an accountability or a place to tune into to learn. So I'd love for you to share. But what people really should be asking themselves is,
"How many does it take for me to form a new habit?. That is, how many repetitions are required for me to make a habit automatic"...
He goes, sometimes you can't label a day. You can't say in thirty days, I'm going to have this habit created. In twelve days, twenty one days or even a hundred days, I'm going to have this habit created. Sometimes it's more than that or sometimes it's less than that. The point is the repetition of doing it every single day. "What matters is the rate of which you perform the habit. How could you do something twice, in thirty days, or two hundred times. It's the frequency that makes the difference. Your current habits, what you're doing today, good or bad, have been internalized over the course of hundreds of times or thousands of repetitions"...
You don't have the habits you have today because of just two times, but instead you've done them over and over again. "New habits require the same level of frequency.
You need to string together enough successful attempts until the behavior is firmly embedded in your mind and you can cross the habit line". You have to do it over and over again until you do it without thinking. "What matters is that you take the action that you need to take make progress. Whether the action is fully automatic or less important to build a habit, you need to practice it. And the most effective way to make practice happen, is to adhere to the third law of behavior. Make it easy"...
What do you need to do now you've learned what to do. I will teach you on this page, I'll give you recipes. I'll teach you about net carbs and total carbs and how to track your food and, all of the things. The "Miracle Morning" actually maps that out for you. If you can own your morning for the first sixty minutes, and you create a habit out of that. Then you're going to have success long term, because you're creating a system to own your day. What he's saying is stop getting in your head about perfection. Stop trying to make everything look perfect, your refrigerator looks perfect, and your timing is perfect. I can't do it, because I've got a graduation or a party or wedding, I'll start on Monday.
Make one thing better, take action on one thing. Drink more water, get up five minutes early, do something because just thinking and planning is motion, but until you put it into action, it doesn't matter.
We're going through this 30 days of the "Miracle Morning" and you're on day eleven and that's awesome. I don't want you to get to day thirty and go, it didn't work. You have to keep putting in the reps every single day. If you have a goal, the system is the repetition of doing it over and over again. Don't mess up good for Perfect. Thank you for tuning in, I would highly recommend you grab the book and go through it, highlight it, internalize it, take action on it. And that's all I've got for you, I love this chapter. It's my favorite chapter right now until we get to the next one. So I hope that made sense. I'd love to have a little bit input from you. And then if you ever have any questions, post your questions below and I'll come back and answer those later.
Otherwise, I hope you have an incredible day and we'll talk to you soon. Bye
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