Good Day or Bad Day? You Decide.
Sunday Scoop #46 - This week, I share with you one of the lessons I learnt from James Clear's Atomic Habit.
Hey friends,
Last week, in a moment of weakness, I slacked off and consciously decided not to send out a Sunday Scoop issue, effectively ending my 45 week streak.
This week, I’m going to share with you what I learnt (and more).
You know those rare few days which you go to bed with a sense of achievement?
It’s extremely fulfilling because you know you seized the day and completed all the tasks you had in mind when you started it, if not more.
These are the rare good days.
Most days, you may turn in knowing that you could’ve done better to achieve your targets and make progress towards your long-term goals.
At least for me, that has always been a struggle.
An unshakeable guilt because I knew I didn’t fulfil my potential for the day.
Bad day.
Here is what James Clear has to say about what separates the good days from the bad.
"The difference between a good day and a bad day is often a few productive and healthy choices made at decisive moments."
- James Clear in Atomic Habits
When you first wake up, in that split second during which you have to choose between hit ‘snooze’ or to get up and start your day, you are facing your first fork in the day’s road.
Regardless of what time you actually wake up (6am or 10am), you then face a choice between getting to work right away or scrolling on Twitter for ‘15 minutes’.
Again, regardless of whether you choose to get to work or scroll Twitter, you will face that tiny moment during lunch when you have to choose between getting a sinfully delicious pizza or sticking to your diet plan.
Then, you will inevitably have to choose between letting the afternoon slump get the best of you or to fight through the laziness and get some work done.
Then, you choose between to work out or to take a ‘rest day’.
My point is, every day is made up of a handful of decisive moments.
Even if you made a bad choice in the morning to hit ‘snooze’, you can still consciously make it a good day by getting to work right away, sticking to your diet plan, working in the afternoon and working out in the evening.
Conversely, even if you made a splendid choice to fight the temptation of the ‘snooze button’ and get up early, you are still at risk of making bad choices throughout the day which then leads you to a bad day.
Whenever you feel the temptation to ‘cut yourself some slack’, give a second’s thought about how this would play out in your day’s road.
If you genuinely want to take a rest and reward yourself for making good choices for the better part of the day, go ahead!
But if it’s temptation and moments of weakness, get vigilant and consciously make today a good day for yourself.
My decision to not publish an issue last week was a bad, bad choice. It wasn’t something I could ‘try again tomorrow’. These are the decisive moments that you have to take extra care of and ensure that you are minimizing regrets in the long-run.
The next time you feel like its another lazy day or one of ‘those days’, remember, whether today is a good day or a bad day, that’s completely in your control.
That’s all for this week’s Sunday Scoop. It feels nice to start writing these issues on my own again. Thanks for reading and I hope this issue brought you some insights.
Have a productive week ahead.
Jia Shing.