#510 Just one more step.

If you made a plan to write every day, write today.

Don’t think. Write.

Because the decision has already been made.

And now is not the time to negotiate.

If I don’t meditate today, will I ever become a consistent practitioner?

If I don’t go for that run today, will I ever become a runner?

If I don’t stick to my diet today, will I ever get in shape?

There’s a time and place for being a hardliner about your habits – the first 30-45 days when the naysayer voice in your head still says, “let’s see how long it takes before I give up again.”

After all, you’re building a new identity and will still be pulled back towards your old ways.

But at some point, hardliners need to make the switch to “elastic discipline“:

Being disciplined about your daily practice while trusting yourself enough that when life inevitably puts you in a situation where you HAVE to violate your principles, you can navigate it, adjust your behavior, and afterward, like an elastic band, bounce back to your disciplined practice.

This is an overlooked part of habit-building. Because if you don’t consciously build the self-trust that you can, in fact, persevere despite setbacks, you’ll live in fear of giving up forever.

So initially, when you start a new habit, be a hardliner.

Use Tiny Trust Builders to start building confidence in your ability to persevere.

After 30 days, start asking yourself: do I trust myself enough to skip a day and then bounce back to my disciplined practice tomorrow?

Skip a day, then start again.

Build self-trust.

Feel your confidence and self-worth grow.

Cultivate “elastic discipline” and become free.

When it comes to habits, the missing piece of the puzzle is often the very first one.

Even more often, it’s not even opening the box to see what’s inside.

Because looking at the picture on the box is safer, easier, and sometimes just the best option.

But it’s not fulfilling.

And if it’s not fulfilling, what’s it all about?

What’s one tiny thing you can do every day that proves to yourself that your goals are important to you?

One tiny action you can take even on the worst days when you’re sick, your car breaks down, or you have a crazy busy day?

One tiny action that, if done every day, will transform your identity?

One Tiny Trust Builder that shows: “This is what I stand for, who I am, and who I want to be.”

Decide on it. Stick to it. And as your self-trust grows… be happier for it.