Goals can point the way, but rules will get you there. Motivation is fickle. Rules help remove it from the equation. Set rules to help you make choices in advance. You can’t argue with yourself if the decision is already made.
To transform a goal into a rule, make it highly specific. Tie it to an ultimatum or a cue like a time of day, place, or preceding event. The fewer decisions involved in following your rule and the more routinized, the more likely it will stick.
| Goal | Rule |
|---|---|
| I want to lose 20 pounds. | No refined carbs in the house. |
| I want to get fit. | Work out for 30 minutes a day. |
| Read 20 books this year. | Read 30 minutes a day. |
| Sleep 8 hours a night. | No screens after 8 p.m. |
Don’t abuse rules to force a puritanical or tyrannical lifestyle. Do what you can sustain every day.
Living with rules can help you determine the price of a goal and see if you can realistically pay it. Once you commit to a rule, take it deadly serious. If one of your ethical rules is to never steal, why not hold to one of your habitual rules with the same conviction?
“You get what you repeat. Your outcomes are a lagging measure of your habits.”
~James Clear, Atomic Habits (Book)
