3-2-1: On the costs of habits, major life changes, and what money can't buy

The novelist Jonathan Safran Foer on changing your habits:

“Instead of imagining all the meals ahead of you, focus on the meal in front of you. Don't give up burgers for the rest of your life. Just order something different one time. It's hard to change lifelong habits, but it's not that hard to change a meal. Over time, those meals become your new ... See more

“Major life changes—moving to a new city, starting a new job, ending a relationship, getting married, having kids, etc.—will often make life harder for the first 100 days before improving.

This is not always true, but it’s a nice reminder that experiencing early struggle doesn’t mean it was a bad choice.

“Why focus on the process when the world is outcome driven? Don’t results matter?

Yes, results do matter. But if you optimize for the outcome, you win one time.

If you optimize for a process that leads to great outcomes, you can win again and again.”

“The costs of your good habits are in the present.

The costs of your bad habits are in the future.”