Here’s an interesting concept I took away from reading “Atomic Habits” by James Clear: the power of compounding interest in self-improvement.

This is a simple thought that resonated with me immensely. I often think of compounding as related to finance, of course this happens in all aspects of life, but to consider making changes so small was something that I never gave myself permission to do previously.

Below is a graph drawn by James Clear depicting the incremental differences between 1% improvements and 1% losses.

In this graph drawn by Clear, it shows that getting 1% better every day equals a 37x improvement in one year. While repeating 1% losses puts you close to 0.

It’s a big difference.

In the past I thought that making changes needed to be identifiable. I needed to see the progress for the intended improvements to be present. If I wanted to change something, I would decide to follow a (new and improved) regimen–that usually consisted of committing to a drastically different routine. Often, inevitably, leading to failure and recalculation.

The idea that getting 1% better is even a possibility, was something, maybe foolishly, that I never stopped to consider. My goals can be more productive when they’re smaller and… pretty easy to accomplish? Aha moment.

Here is a quote from James that I have written on an index card by my desk:

“Rome wasn’t built in a day, but they were laying bricks every hour. You don’t have to build everything you want today. Just lay a brick.”

– James Clear

I have seen this leak into many things I have created recently. I mention it a lot in my work because I am continuously reminding myself, too, that my persistence will compound into something great.

Make a 1% difference today… and then follow it up 364x.

Thank you,

Olivia