Breaking Down 2025 into Actionable Steps
Issue No. 1 : Shifting focus from intentions to daily actions and clear outcomes
In his excellent multimillion bestseller Atomic Habits, James Clear popularized the idea that if you work towards becoming one percent better every day during one year you’ll end up 37.8 times better (1.01^365 = 37.8).
Of course, it doesn’t really mean that you’ll become 38 times faster in swimming or making 38 times the salary every year; it just means that small choices that might seem insignificant in the short-term can have a big impact long-term.
Continuous Improvement
The one percent idea is derived from the concept of marginal gains, originating in the Japanese business philosophy Kaizen, meaning “continuous improvement”, including everything from business growth to personal development.
Everything we repeatable do every day, from having breakfast in the morning to falling asleep at night, is a learned habit which can be unlearned and replaced by better and healthier habits, which is one of the ideas behind fewer better things.
I read Atomic Habits a few years back and it has been a great tool in living better with less. Since we’re starting a new year with all the opportunities that brings, I thought we could look at three simple continuous improvement tools.
Do more of what already works. Instead of inventing new strategies or coming up with new activities, stick to what works and focus on being consistent. I drag my ass to the pool every day not to break new personal records but knowing over time that I’ll automatically become better.
Avoid tiny losses. This is about doing fewer things wrong, called improvement by subtraction. It could be quit drinking alcohol if that’s what is preventing you to become better or avoiding unhealthy foods or procrastination.
Measure backwards. In most of the things we do we make plans and measure forwards to track progress. But an opposite strategy is to dig where you stand and just try to become a little better than yesterday or last week.
The above is very much aligned with the philosophy behind fewer better things, to focus on quality over quantity in life, making choices based on needs over wants, and focus on what matters to you, not everyone else.
Three simple categories
My personal intentions are very clear for 2025 and are divided into three categories:
Improve wellbeing and fitness by working out every day, eating healthy food, reading books, sleeping well, writing, and learning new things.
Creating positive impact by sharing what I learn about living better with less so that more people can shift from a materialistic to an experience and growth-oriented worldview, benefiting both people and planet.
Building deeper relationships to develop collective wellbeing, emotional intelligence, and collaborative communities across the world. This is also about radical honesty, transparency, and authenticity with oneself and others.
But these intentions, carried over from last year, are moot without daily action and clear outcomes. It’s the action that matters and that’s where the book Atomic Habits and the app Atoms can really be a helpful tool in the toolbox.
Same schedule as last year
For 2025 I’ll keep my daily schedule with just a few tweaks:
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Fewer Better Things to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.