Log in

How Small Habits Can

Lead to Big Changes
The power of taking microsteps.

Sarah Mazzetti

By Arianna Huffington

Nov. 13, 2019

This is your one article preview.

Log in or create a free account to read more articles each
month.

On April 6, 2007, I woke up in a pool of my own

blood. I was two years into building The
Huffington Post. A divorced mother of two
teenage daughters, I had just returned from a
week of taking my eldest daughter on a tour of
prospective colleges, and, since she had
insisted that I stayed off my Blackberry
during the day, I would stay up each night
working. And so, the morning after we
returned home, I woke up burned out and
exhausted — and collapsed. The result was a
broken cheekbone, several stitches over my
eye and the beginning of a long journey.

In the days that followed, I found myself in a

lot of doctors’ waiting rooms, which, it turns
out, are great places to think about life. And
that’s what I did. I asked myself a lot of
questions, like: Is this what success really
looks like? Is this the life I want to lead?

The answer was no. And the diagnosis I got

from all the doctors was that I had a severe
case of burnout. So I got deep into the growing
body of science on the connection between
well-being and performance, and how we can
actually be more productive when we
prioritize our well-being and take time to
unplug and recharge.

So I decided to make a lot of changes to my

life. I wanted to start sleeping enough. I
wanted to start meditating again, which I had
learned to do as a child. I wanted to change
the way I worked so I could be more
productive, more focused, more energetic and
less tired and stressed.

ADVERTISEMENT

Want a student rate

to The New York Times?
Raise your hand.
Just $2
every 4 weeks.

SEE MY OPTIONS

But making changes in our lives and creating

new habits isn’t easy, especially as we
approach resolution season: A study from the
University of Scranton found that 92 percent
of people fail to keep their New Year’s
resolutions, and another found that 80 percent
will have already failed by the second week of
February.

That’s why at Thrive Global, the company I

founded to help people improve both their
well-being and performance, our behavior
change system is built on the idea of
microsteps. These are small, actionable and
science-backed steps you can take to make
immediate changes in your daily life. It’s the
idea that if you make the steps small enough,
they’ll become too-small-to-fail. And as
research has shown, starting small makes
new habits more likely to stick.

People are tired of being sick and tired. They

want to work and live in a way that doesn’t
overwhelm them. And making even very
small changes in our trajectory can, over time,
lead us to a very different destination. By
making our microsteps too small to fail, we
can make those first, small changes on which
we can begin to build a new and healthier way
of living and working. There’s nothing wrong
with aiming big — but we can help ourselves
by starting small.

TODAY'S TOP STORIES | SEE MORE

The Iran Cables: Secret Leaked Iran C

Documents Show How Tehran From Secret D
Wields Power in Iraq Nov. 18, 2019
Nov. 18, 2019

Here are 10 of my favorite microsteps in a

handful of areas of life. Each can serve as the
foundation for continuing to make more
changes in your life.

ADVERTISEMENT

Just hearing about

The New York Times’s
student rate?
Just $2 every
4 weeks.

SEE MY OPTIONS

Pick a time at night when you turn off your

devices — and gently escort them out of your
bedroom.

Our phones are repositories of everything we

need to put away to allow us to sleep — our to-
do lists, our inboxes, multiple projects and
problems. Disconnecting from the digital
world will help you sleep better, recharge
more deeply and reconnect to your wisdom
and creativity.

Set an alarm for 30 minutes before your

bedtime.

When you think of sleep as an actual

appointment, you’re much more likely to grant
it the time it deserves. Setting an alarm
reminds you that if you’re going to get to bed
on time, you need to start wrapping things up.

[Like what you’re reading? Sign up here for the

Smarter Living newsletter to get stories like
this (and much more!) delivered straight to
your inbox every Monday morning.]

Sit down when you eat, even for a few

minutes.

Eating on the run can make us feel like we’re

being productive or saving time. But mindless
eating while we are multitasking can lead us
to consume more calories and is more likely to
lead to bloating and indigestion. Make it a
meal, instead, and you’ll be less tempted to
snack afterward.

ADVERTISEMENT

From long-running scandals

to extremely short workouts.
Our journalists deliver
the facts.
International readers
subscribe for $1 a week.
SEE MY OPTIONS

Turn a sit-down meeting into a walking

meeting.

Instead of sitting in a conference room, try

walking with a colleague during a meeting.
You’ll be less likely to peek at your devices,
and the movement can help get the creative,
problem-solving juices flowing.

Turn off all your notifications, except from

those who need to reach you.

The more our phone buzzes at us, the more it

conditions us to release cortisol, or “the stress
hormone.”

Do an audit of your phone’s home screen to

reduce time-sapping distractions.

Take just a few minutes to determine which

apps you really need to access. Keep only
“tools” that add value — not apps designed to
consume more of your attention.

Let yourself be bored.

Next time you’re waiting in line, waiting in

traffic or waiting for someone who is late for a
meeting, embrace it instead of immediately
looking at your phone or iPad. Unstructured
moments can lead to inspiration, creativity,
reflection and connection.

ADVERTISEMENT

From the U.S. trade war

to Afghan peace talks.
We report the facts.
Without fear or favor.
Readers in Asia subscribe
for $1 a week.

SEE MY OPTIONS

Block time on your calendar to manage your

email.

Studies show that it takes an average of 25

minutes to refocus after being interrupted, so
setting aside time for email can help you avoid
constant inbox distractions.

Set aside a specific time (even 5 minutes)

each day or week dedicated to worry time.

Write down or reflect on your worries and

concerns. Don’t set any expectations about
solving your worries or generating solutions,
though you might find that solutions come
naturally once you start reflecting.

Declare an end to the day, even if you haven’t

completed your to-do list.

Effectively prioritizing means being

comfortable with incompletions. Once you’ve
handled the day’s essential priorities,
recognize that in any interesting job it’s
almost impossible to do all you could have
done in any one day. By taking the time to
recharge, you’ll return to work the next day
ready to seize opportunities.
A version of this article appears in print on Nov. 18, 2019, Section B,
Page 6 of the New York edition with the headline: Microstep Your Way to
a Healthier Lifestyle. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

More in Smarter Living

Till Lauer

Not Yet Ready for Retirement? Give Us One

Week …
Nov. 6

How to Move Abroad

Nov. 15

PAID POST: Nord Anglia

Why Learning to Dance, Act and Make
Music Leads to Success in Future
Careers

Editors’ Picks

via Jim Sullivan Estate

Jim Sullivan, a Rock ’n’ Roll Mystery That

Remains Stubbornly Unsolved
Nov. 14

He’s Never Going to Put Away That

Shirt
Nov. 15

‘S.N.L.’ Turns Impeachment Inquiry

Into a Soap Opera Starring Jon Hamm
Nov. 17

ADVERTISEMENT

Go to Home Page »

NEWS

OPINION

ARTS

LIVING

LISTINGS & MORE

© 2019 The New York Times Company

Contact Us Work with us Advertise T Brand Studio Your Ad Choices

Privacy Terms of Service Terms of Sale Site Map Help
Subscriptions