Summary

The author shares their personal experience with rapidly developing habits, particularly writing online, and provides an update on their "Publish Every Day" project aimed at earning enough to retire within a year.

Abstract

The author of the web content, James Julian Wins, discusses the commonly held belief that forming a new habit takes 21 to 66 days, but suggests from personal experience that significant change can occur in as little as 10 days. He recounts how he quickly developed habits around quitting alcohol and caffeine, as well as establishing a morning gym routine, emphasizing the importance of momentum in maintaining these habits. Wins relates this to his renewed addiction to online publishing, which he has turned into a daily practice as part of his "Publish Every Day" project. The project's goal is to earn $250 CAD per day to retire from commuting, and he provides a financial update on his progress, including earnings from writing, YouTube, and dividends. He also shares recent publications and his most popular stories, aiming to inspire others to start or quit habits, assuring them that noticeable changes can happen rapidly.

Opinions

The author believes that forming a new habit or quitting a bad one can happen much faster than the commonly cited timeframes of 21 to 66 days, suggesting a "magic number" of around 10 days for significant change.
Wins emphasizes the concept of momentum, comparing the process of building a habit to getting a merry-go-round spinning, where initial effort gives way to easier maintenance with continued practice.
He opines that once a habit is solidly established, it becomes uncomfortable not to engage in the activity, as evidenced by his own experiences with gym routines and online publishing.
The author shares a positive outlook on the power of habits, suggesting that anyone can achieve substantial changes in their life by sticking to new behaviors for a short period.
Wins is optimistic about his "Publish Every Day" project, viewing his compulsion to publish content as an addiction that has replaced his previous unhealthy habits.

How I got myself addicted FAST to writing online again (money update)

There’s a popular rule of thumb out there that it takes as little as 21 days to form a new habit.

Other scientific studies have put the number at around 66 days.

But I’ll let you in on a little secret.

I think it’s a lot less than that.

This should be encouraging to anyone who’s interested in starting a good habit or ending a bad one.

Let me tell you what I think the magic number is, and then I’ll tell you why I think it’s so important in terms of building a side business.

How to shift writing onine from chore to addiction. (Licensed by the author under the Unsplash+ License)

My magic number

I’ve quit a number of bad habits over the past year.

I stopped drinking alcohol after 15 years of struggling with it.

And I also quit caffeine as a way of improving my sleep and controlling my anxiety.

And in both cases, I found that it took just 10 days for me to see a massive difference in my quality of life.

This works both ways.

During the pandemic, our local gym had reduced hours and you had to book specific time blocks.

Insanely, I chose the 6 a.m. block, which meant getting my butt out of bed at around 5:30 a.m.

I had extra incentive because almost everything was shut down and what the hell else was I going to do with my time?

This was tough at first, of course — 5:30 a.m. is early — but before long I couldn’t see myself NOT going to the gym at that time.

It had become a habit.

It had shifted from something that was uncomfortable to do to something that was uncomfortable not to do.

It doesn’t take long to build a gym habit. (Licensed by the author under the Unsplash+ License)

Big Mo arrives

I use this example a lot, but it’s because the concept is so simple and the imagery is seared into my brain.

In my favorite self-improvement book of all time (affiliate link), author Darren Hardy asks the reader to picture themself as a child back in the playground trying to get a metal merry-go-round going.

At the start, it takes a lot of effort.

But once you get it flying, it only takes a little kick here and there to keep it going.

This really is true of any endeavor in life, whether it be going to the gym or writing online.

Once you build a habit, you have momentum. Once you have momentum, incredible things can happen.

Write more, make more

Just as I noticed my caffeine and alcohol habits mentally shift to caffeine and alcohol avoidance after about 10 days, I noticed this week that I’ve gotten myself addicted to publishing content online again.

Whether it’s here or on my YouTube channel, I now feel that I MUST do it.

It pops into my head at weird times, just like my alcohol cravings used to.

I was just driving to the store, and ideas for a couple of posts just floated into my brain.

Then the idea for THIS post arrived because I was randomly thinking about things to write about all the time again.

It arrived on Day 10 of my Publish Every Day project, which I’ll update you on below.

10 days.

What habit would you like to start? What habit would you like to quit?

Take it from me — you’ll see big changes sooner than you think.

Publish Every Day goal tracker: Day 12

I’m doing an experiment to see if I can make enough money to retire from commuter life within 1 year by publishing every day on multiple platforms and investing my earnings.

How much I need to retire comfortably: $250 CAD per day

What I earned on Day 12: $35.06 (writing), $3.00 (YouTube), $0.33 (dividends) — $38.39 total

Progress chart:

Publish Every Day Project progress on Day 7

2023 averages ($USD):

What I published the past 2 days:

This post about why you should be so proud of yourself as an early-stage online creator
This one about how football star Tom Brady taught me I didn’t need caffeine to work out
This Tweet promoting my new YouTube video:

Looking for something else to read?

My 10 most popular stories: