Microresolutions for Habit Change

I've been reading the book Small Move, Big Change by Caroline L. Arnold, which talks about making microresolutions to slowly change your life for the better. She argues that if you start with really small and seemingly easy resolutions, you can slowly change your automatic habits, one at a time. Some of what she talks about I remember reading in other books (such as James Clear's Atomic Habits), such as cueing a habit up with an existing one. She argues that trying to make big sweeping changes (such as at New Year's when we resolve to be better at something or do better at something) often fails because it comes up against our automatic habits that we've been using for years without notice. So changing one small thing at a time until it becomes a habit will slowly help to change your life for the better.

The more I read books like this, the more I feel like I am learning about where exactly I'm going wrong with my habits and goals. While setting rewards has helped me a lot with keeping something up for a month or two, I haven't been successful in getting anything to permanently stick. (Also, truth be told, setting rewards hasn't been super appealing. Other than getting a nail polish colour or getting a few songs, nothing has really motivated me very well). So maybe it's time to give setting microresolutions a try?

Arnold's 7 rules of microresolutions are:

1. They're easy
2. They're explicit and measurable actions
3. They pay off up front (no later rewards necessary!)
4. They are personal
5. They resonate with you
6. They fire on cue (cue them up with another routine or a day)
7. Only do two at a time (max! You can stick to only one at a time if you want)

She recommended needing 4-8 weeks on average to turn a microresolution into a habit (this of course depends on the individual microresolution - some may become habit sooner, and others will take a lot longer). She also spoke about not being afraid to modify them as necessary (which is something I am really bad at - I set my goals and feel wed to them, even if I realize they aren't working for me). 

I'm going to take a few days to sit down and really think about what I want to try approaching (and, more importantly, how to cue them into my day or week). My goals on this blog have always been to live a healthier life through exercise and healthy eating, so I want to try to find one or two small habits I can start building towards that larger goal.