What you need to know if you want to stop being lazy

We bet you have often desired that you weren't so lazy.

Whether it is your work, your exercise regimen or dieting, sometimes we all wish that we were more productive.

One of the most popular books that deals with this topic is James Clear's “Atomic habits”.

Check out these atomic habits that can help you become less lazy.

No1: You need to design your environment Your environment influences your behavior.

You can enter any room and by the position of the furniture, you can easily conclude what the owners like to do.

If every piece of furniture points towards the TV, you can guess with certainty they like watching TV a lot.

If you want to stop being lazy and adopt new habits, your environment should make it easy for you.

You'll need to organize your living room, your kitchen, your office, even your computer or any digital space so that they enable you to do what you need without difficulties.

Challenging our behavior and adopting new habits is already hard and challenging enough without your surroundings making it more difficult for you.

For example, if you want to adopt a good habit of reading, and want to break the bad habit of watching TV unnecessarily, place your books in a prominent place in the room and place your TV somewhere you're less likely to see it.

A wisely structured environment can encourage you to do the right thing without much effort.

No2: Make it easy with the “2-minute rule” Adopting a new habit is not as easy as we would like it to be.

But, there is one simple trick that can make it easier for you.

It is called the 2-minute rule.

It states, “When you start a new habit, it should take less than two minutes to do.”

If your habits are too demanding or too complicated, you are setting yourself up for failure.

For example, do you want to make exercising your new habit?

Use the 2-minute rule and just put your running shoes on.

It takes you even less than 2 minutes and it brings you a little closer to ending procrastination.

Anyone can put on running shoes.

People often think that it's pointless.

But a new habit should not be too much of a challenge or you simply won't adopt it.

You can't write a book if you can't even write a single sentence.

You can't get into shape if you never do any physical exercise.

Even if it's just one word or just a walk around the block, it's better than nothing.

The point of this rule, however silly it may sound, is to get you to stick with it and constantly show up.

Do the easy thing on a more consistent basis and then you will slowly master it.

No3: Master entry points of habits This tip relies on the previous one.

If you can master the first step of a habit, you can do all of the other steps.

For example, if you can put on your running shoes and step out the door, you can do the rest of it easily.

When you do that first step right, you are going in the right way and the momentum keeps you going.

What you do is defined by the first 30 seconds of your behavior.

You always have a choice.

Either you will turn on TV and binge watch some random TV show or you will take a book and read it as you promised yourself you would do.

It all comes down to that first step.

Either you take the remote or the book.

Your latter behavior is determined by that first step.

This is really encouraging if you think about it that way.

You have around 5-10 of these decision points each day that determine what you will be doing for the next period of time.

Master that entry point and you will never be lazy again.

No4: Join the right community When you want to adopt a new habit and stop being lazy, the wise thing to do is to join the community of people that view that habit as a normal behavior.

This works very well because our behavior is socially influenced.

For example, when you get in an elevator, you can face any side, but you turn around to face the front because that is how everyone else does it.

We often succumb to the opinions and expectations of other people.

You will need to join a group of people where that desired behavior is normal behavior.

That way the social influence will be on your side.

The behavior of other people and their expectations will motivate you to do what you planned.

It will give you a good reason to stick with your habit.

This will make you feel accepted and that is what we all want.

Being around people that find your desired behavior normal will help you stick to your habit for a long time.

No5: Use the variable rewarding principle Bad habits have immediate rewards, and that is mostly why it is so difficult to break them.

Eating a piece of cake makes us instantly feel good.

But, good habits usually have no immediate reward.

If you stick to your diet and don't eat that piece of cake, you will be hungry and annoyed.

You can use the variable rewards to randomly reward yourself when you stick to your new habit.

Put 90 red and 10 blue marbles in a jar.

When you refuse that piece of cake, close your eyes and take one marble.

If it is a red one, you don't get a reward.

You did what you should do.

But, if you take a blue one, give yourself some small reward.

Take a bath or watch a movie.

This is your immediate reward that is usually missing from practicing a good habit.

We hope that this video will motivate you to adopt some new good habits that will help you stop being lazy.

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Thank you for watching, and see you in our next video!