7.3 Alan Stein: Habits

 

“Are you a high performer because of your habits, or are you a high performer in spite of them?” - Alan Stein

Alan Stein was once a high level basketball trainer who worked with Kevin Durant, and he is now an author and speaker.

He once asked: Are you a high performer because of your habits, or are you a high performer in spite of them? If you wrote down everything that you do every day, how much is helping you, and how much is hurting you?

He said he read a study that said almost half of what we do is based on our habits, so one of the most impactful things we can do is develop better habits.

But how?

Alan said there was a study that found when you focus on changing just one behavior at a time you have an 85% chance of being successful.

Instead of trying to change a bunch of things about you, just change one thing.

How long does it take?

Alan says he shoots for 66 days in a row. He knows that he will miss a day, so his goal is to never miss 2 days in a row.

Make a short list of things that you need to start doing and stop doing. Then, pick 1 and get started.

Start small, get committed, and stay disciplined. 

And don’t get stuck focused on perfection — don’t let perfection get in the way of growth and greatness.

Be better next month than you were this month.

Question of the Day: What is one thing you need to start doing and one thing you need to stop doing?