One of the greatest scientists of all time, Issac Newton actually studied for a degree in Law! No wonder one of these greatest contributions are called the “Three Laws Of Motion”.
His 3 laws are:
- Every object in a state of uniform motion will remain in that state of motion unless an external force acts on it.
- Force equals mass times acceleration.
- For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.
These laws formed the foundation of Newtonian Physics. The formulas from these laws propelled physics forward. It gave physics momentum, one could say.
The Laws made it into popular culture as well. With the third law of motion being used by self-help gurus to describe Karma. For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
So let’s continue this trend of using serious physics to help in our everyday habit changes.
I am concerned with Newton’s First Law of Motion, which states that: “An object in motion tends to stay in motion unless an external force acts upon it”. But more importantly, “if the object is at rest, it will remain at rest unless an unbalanced force acts upon it.” Newton’s First Law of Motion is also known as the Law of Inertia.
Stop and think. What is the hardest part of making a change in your life? Isn’t it getting over the initial starting inertia? Those first few steps are the hardest. The first week is the hardest.
But once you get going in your habit, the change gets easier. But till that point, it is very hard to move forward.
The first part of the law talks about how if you are in motion, an external force can slow you down. This external force can be a holiday or an illness.
Or it can be something that influences us 52 times a year. In a word, weekends. Think about it. You have been crushing it all week. Your momentum is through the roof. Then all of a sudden the weekend comes and that is a two day break.
Now if you remember the golden rule of habit change, never miss 2 days in a row. The weekend makes you miss two days in a row.
I see this especially when it comes to going to the gym or exercise. It can affect work, nutrition or any other habit you are trying to form.
As your habit coach, I want you to maintain that momentum. I want you to keep going going going. I want you to own that habit.
For that, you need to form another habit that you do only 52 times a year. Never miss a Monday. If you are exercising, never miss a Monday. If you are eating clean never miss a Monday. If you are trying to sleep early, never miss a Monday.
Chances are you binge-watched a show over the weekend and got no movement in.
Chances are you binge ate or drank over the weekend after all what are weekends for if not gluttony.
Chances are you had a late night on Friday and Saturday because Sunday is a holiday.
And with all that, inertia is created once again. Two days missed remember. So the worst thing is to get end up missing three days…and then four days.
So your simple habit to maintain momentum and beat inertia is to never miss a Monday. This rule applies to any habit change you want to bring about. Never ever ever miss a Monday.
It’s the start of the week. What you do on a Monday, defines how the rest of your week will go!