Go Small to Go Big

Go small to go big is a mantra of mine. 

Whenever trying to learn a new task or skill I start small. Learning the basics helps you build a scaffolding for building on larger successes. 

For example, I set a big goal. Running a half marathon. I started out with the intention of improving over time little by little. I started out just going for a 10-minute walk every day. From there I would get 10,000 steps. Then I began measuring the number of miles I would try to go further and further. 

That first step on that first 10-minute walk was the Golden Step. 

Author Stephen Guise refers to this concept of "golden steps" in his book Mini Habits. This concept works because of the theory of post-movement motivation. 

Post-Movement Motivation is when you do one small step you find you have the motivation to keep doing more. 

There are two elements of post-movement motivation: ego and physics. 

There is something to be said by not completing a small step and allowing it to get in the way of progress during your day. 

For example, it is very easy to find 10 minutes for a short walk. If you can't complete the short walk you have to walk around for the rest of the day with the knowledge that you were so lazy you couldn't find 10 minutes to take a short walk. This is ego driving you to take action. 

The second component is physics. Object in motion remains in motion. You will soon find yourself going for 15-20 minute walks and before long you are running for 20 minutes and then 10 miles. 

This is why you want to go small to go big. 

Read more about habits on the 1% Blog Better

The Benefit of One Pushup A Day

 One of the things I am constantly saying is to do just one pushup a day. 

The reason I phrase it this way is that anyone can do just one pushup a day. From a capacity time standpoint, no matter what your day looks like, how busy it got, how many fires you had to put out at work, how tired you are right before bed there is always time and energy to do one pushup. 

The benefit of doing one pushup a day is not physical, although that is a potential by-product. The benefit comes in habit formation. This is known as a tiny habit. Made famous by behavioral psychologist and author BJ Fogg. 

Change comes from small incremental habits or tiny changes done over long periods of time. 

Fogg talks about this concept in his book Tiny Habits. 

He reduces the concept to the simplest basic component when trying to form a new habit. 

He builds a simple formula 

B= Behavorial 

M = Motivation 

A = Ability 

P = Prompt 

If the ability to do something is hard then the motivation must be high (blue dot). Counter to this if the ability easy then the motivation can be low (red dot).  

This is why doing 1 push-up has its benefits. Doing just one push-up only takes a few seconds can be done almost anywhere, and can even be done right before you get into bed at night. The ability to do one push-up is easy therefore the motivation is low. 

This is the key to have tiny habits. The trick is to find low-ability tasks that require minimal motivation. 

Since motivation is not a reliable source for getting things done on a consistent basis you need triggers or prompts to help you engage in these tiny habits.