Identity-based habits: decide who you are, then prove it
Outcome goals ask “what do I want?”. Identity-based habits ask “who do I want to be?”, and treat every repetition as a small piece of evidence.
Cast your votes
“I am a runner.”
Each time you do one of these today, tap it. Every tap is a vote.
0 votes for a runner.
Three layers of change
What you believe about yourself: “I’m a runner.” Clear argues change sticks best when it starts here.
In Atomic Habits, James Clear describes three layers: outcomes on the outside, processes in the middle, identity at the core. Most people start from outcomes. The trouble is that once the outcome is reached, or seems out of reach, the behaviour has nothing holding it up.
The two-step process
- Decide the type of person you want to be.
- Prove it to yourself with small wins.
The wins have to be small enough to happen on bad days too, which is where the 2-Minute Rule comes in. Add an identity line to each habit in the tracker and every stitched square becomes a visible vote.
Sources: Clear, J. (2018). Atomic Habits, ch. 2. Bryan, C. J., Walton, G. M., Rogers, T., & Dweck, C. S. (2011). Motivating voter turnout by invoking the self. PNAS, 108(31).
Keep designing
- Habit trackerDesign habits with a cue, identity and 2-minute start, then stitch off each day.
- Habit stackingAnchor a new habit to one you already do.
- 2-Minute RuleShrink any habit until starting is easy.
- Tiny Habits recipeBJ Fogg’s anchor, behaviour, celebration.
- If-then plannerDecide when and where in advance.
- Temptation bundlingPair a “should” with a “want”.
- Habit scorecardAudit what you already do each day.
- Break a bad habitInvert the four laws into a plan.
- Morning routine builderA timed stack for the first hour.
Questions
What are identity-based habits?
It is James Clear’s idea that lasting change starts with who you want to become, not what you want to achieve. Instead of “I want to run a marathon” (outcome), you focus on “I am a runner” (identity), and choose habits that such a person would do.
What does “every action is a vote” mean?
Clear’s phrase: each time you do a habit, you cast a vote for the type of person you want to be. No single vote decides it, but as the votes add up, the new identity becomes believable to you.
Is there research behind identity and behaviour?
Related findings exist. In a 2011 study by Bryan, Walton, Rogers and Dweck, asking people “How important is it to you to be a voter?” (a noun, identity framing) rather than “to vote” (a verb) increased registered voter turnout in follow-up experiments. The effect size and replicability have been debated, so treat identity framing as a helpful nudge rather than a guarantee.