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Four steps to becoming more consistent in writing answers - Part II

January 21, 2022

Make it Easy. Make it Satisfying

Four steps to becoming more consistent in writing answers - Part II

In the book Atomic Habits, James Clear breaks down the science of how Habits Work. All habits proceed through the below four stages in the same order: Cue -> Craving -> Response -> Reward

We learnt about the first two in the previous post. Let us look at the next two steps.

Step #3: Make it Easy (Response)

  • Reduce Friction: Major source of friction in writing answers can be not having relevant content. Start with a basic question for which the content is available in NCERT.

  • Prepare the Environment: Writing needs focused time. It is difficult to write when your friend keeps texting you in middle. Keep your phone in a different room.

  • Two-minute rule: For beginners, you can just write the structure of the answer on a rough paper. This should take less than 2 minutes. Once it feels easy, you might want to expand the structure into an answer.

Step #4: Make it Satisfying (Reward)

  • Give yourself a reward: After I complete a full-length mock test, I generally have some good food. It is my reward. The point of caution here is to select a healthy reward. Having too many icecreams might also be a challenge.

  • Habit tracker: Every day you write an answer as per your schedule, and cross the date in your calendar. Get the satisfaction by building a streak. If you planned a break on Sunday, that is also a valid cross.

In being consistent over time, you become the outlier. (My fav Quote)

  • Never miss twice: Don't beat yourself up if you missed a day due to some unplanned event. You might be sick or help your parents with some urgent work. Get back to your schedule and if possible try to cover up the missed answer.

That, in brief, is the four-step process. Read it slowly and tweak it to suit your needs. You know yourself the best. Be kind to yourself at the initial stages. Once you get into the groove, there is no looking back.

I wish you all the very best in your journey!

Best Regards,

Satya

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