Atomic Habits

Atomic Habits by James Clear gives clear and actionable advice for making small changes that lead to big differences in your life. By examining the way our brain works, we're able to better understand the triggers and cravings that lead to habits both good and bad.

In my opinion, the best advice that Clear gives is the advice to start small. I personally have struggled with different ways to increase my productivity for years with little success. I would read a book, start a process, and inevitably fail after trying too hard or attempting to do too many things at once. Clear's advice of starting small makes this process manageable. It's far easier to sustain a habit of going to the gym every week when you're only allowed to go for an allotted period of time.

Clear breaks the processes involved in habits into several categories: cue, craving, response, reward. This provides a framework to the user that can relatively easily be applied to any habit. It helps the reader understand which underlying cues need to be fixed, rather than trying to tackle the problem head on.

Clear also gives particularly good advice on stacking of habits. This is when you essentially chain habits together to make unbreakable habits that include many different good habits. An example could be waking up, turning off the alarm clock, making the bed, showering, etc.

As a result, Clear provides an actionable framework that can be used to improve any arbitrary aspect of one's life. As these incremental improvements stack up, massive change is possible.