Do you remember when Marie Kondo became a household name and suddenly people everywhere were holding a frying pan asking themselves if it brings joy?
I know I do.
I got about halfway through the book before I realized how dangerous it was to pull everything out of storage with the intention to go through each one. I would inevitably tire myself out early into the process and stop, leaving a pile of things that would haunt me for weeks.
Um, okay Cat, why are you sharing this??
Despite the temporary chaos it caused in my home, Kondo’s book introduced me to a few techniques I still use today. Once I started taking her advice for sorting and folding clothing, I never looked back. There was before The Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up and after.
In other words, I tried something new and it immediately stuck.
When it clicks
Once in a while you try something new and it becomes a habit almost instantly. No friction. No resistance. It simply works.
It may happen when you are introduced to a new concept, like the clothing organization example, or it can happen when you come up with a new approach you think might work. It’s about solving a problem with a new method. And in these cases, it works right away.
When you think about it, these ‘changes that click’ are pretty incredible. It’s like a light switch that was off and now it’s on.
Not only does it work (method), it works well for you (mode), and you don’t experience any resistance (mindset).
That’s what you want for any habit change, and yet these can feel elusive.
Noticing when it happens
Here’s the thing about changes that click. When it works well and there’s no struggle, the change can fly under the radar. It’s much easier to think of all the times you tried to change but couldn’t make it stick.
I’ll bet there are things you do regularly that other people struggle with daily.
I encourage you to think about changes you’ve made over the years that have improved your life (big or small) and take a moment to appreciate them. But while appreciation is helpful (gratitude has science-backed benefits), looking back at what has clicked for you is also valuable information for future changes.
What can you learn from these experiences?
- why was it easy to implement?
- how did it suit you compared to other alternatives?
- what was your mindset at the time?
You can do this with changes you made a long time ago, but also with more recent changes that are working well.
It’s something I’ve been doing lately with my writing habit.
My 90-day experiment
Last month I shared a new personal experiment called Momentum90 aimed at building a consistent writing habit. The plan was 90 minutes of writing, 6 days a week for 90 days.
Sharing the plans publicly was intentional since it acts as a form of accountability, but it also shows others how I’m using my own framework to establish habits that are consistent, sustainable, and aligned.
Honestly? It’s going better than I expected.
I have made a few small adjustments over the course of the first 30 days based on my weekend reflections, which I share about in my First 30 Days review post.
Since it’s been going well, I’m paying close attention to what’s working, why I think it’s working, and how I can use this information for other habits in my life.
→ See how my First 30 Days went
What’s clicked for you?
I’m curious to hear from you. What is at least one thing you’ve changed that simply stuck? Maybe you learned a new technique and never looked back. Or you tried something new and it worked right away.
If I get enough replies, I may share some examples in an upcoming email.