James Clear Quotes

There are two ways to grow: by adding or by shedding.

Do you need to add something or do you need to shed something?

The first mistake is never the one that ruins you. It’s the spiral of repeated mistakes that follows.

The problem is not slipping up; the problem is thinking that if you can not do something perfectly, then you shouldn’t do it at all...

Many of the best things in life are endless.

Being in a great relationship. Staying fit and healthy. Doing work that fulfills you. Being a good parent, coach, or teacher.

Stop worrying about accomplishing these things and instead focus on building a life where you continually practice them.

The important stuff has no finish line.

Live with a bias toward action.

Ironically, this will teach you patience. When you take action each day, you learn the value of accumulating small improvements over time. You understand how daily habits compound.

Be impatient with your actions. Be patient with your results.

If you find yourself struggling to build a good habit or break a bad one, it is not because you have lost your ability to improve. It is often because you have not yet crossed what James calls, “Plateau of Latent Potential.” When you finally break through the Plateau of Latent Potential, people will call it an overnight success.

The most invisible form of wasted time is doing a good job on an unimportant task.

Think about self-control less as the quality of a person and more as the quality of a place. There are some places and situations that lean toward lower self-control and others that lean toward higher self-control. Self-control is about your context as much as your character. Put yourself in good positions.

Most people don't want accurate information, they want validating information.

Growth requires you to be open to unlearning ideas that previously served you.

One easy way to show you care about others is to ask them questions about their life.

• What are they excited about?
• What are they working on?
• What are they hoping for?

Simply asking the question and listening thoughtfully is an act of generosity. You're giving them the gift of attention.

Simple ways to have a peaceful moment:

• Close your eyes and just breathe for two minutes.
• Leave your phone in another room for an hour.
• Watch a cloud form and then dissolve.
• Stand in the sunshine and notice how it warms your skin.
• Light a candle and watch the flame dance.

Compete externally and you compare.

Compete internally and you improve.

Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become. No single instance will transform your beliefs, but as the votes build up, so does the evidence of your new identity.

Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement. The same way that money multiplies through compound interest, the effects of your habits multiply as you repeat them. They seem to make little difference on any given day and yet the impact they deliver over the months and years can be enormous. It is only when looking back two, five, or perhaps ten years later that the value of good habits and the cost of bad ones becomes strikingly apparent.

Maximum motivation occurs when facing a challenge of just manageable difficulty. In psychology research this is known as the Yerkes–Dodson law, which describes the optimal level of arousal as the midpoint between boredom and anxiety.

In one study, scientists instructed insomniacs to get into bed only when they were tired. If they couldn’t fall asleep, they were told to sit in a different room until they became sleepy. Over time, subjects began to associate the context of their bed with the action of sleeping, and it became easier to quickly fall asleep when they climbed in bed. Their brains learned that sleeping — not browsing on their phones, not watching television, not staring at the clock — was the only action that happened in that room.