Rating: 3 stars

Cliff Notes: I took my time on this one to try to let the ideas sink in. I think it could have been shortened, seemed repetitive at times, but the ideas are good. There are a few nuggets like compounding habits and habit stacking that I will use.

Full Review: This book came into my awareness from a couple different sources. When Laura Tremaine recommended it on her podcast, I reserved it from the library and had an anticipated check out date for me of about 2097. Then my sister recommended it to me. I am the younger sibling and even though we are in our mid 40’s and live 500 miles apart, I still do pretty much everything she says. So of course, I immediately bought this book.

I probably should have read the blurb (a recurring theme you will see in my reviews) because I expected habits that would blow my world apart like the atomic bomb. But the book is about small teensy habits – the size of atoms, if you will – that gather together to make a big impact on your world. I can see where concepts like compounding habits will be valuable for me. I refer to this as “butts in seats.” On any given day, I am not having big spiritual revelations from the 10 minutes of morning meditation I do. However, when I look back at a month and check in with my gut, there is a correlation between the number of minutes my butt was in the meditation seat and how restless, irritable, and discontent I have been. More minutes = Less grumpy. Of course, calling this “Compounding Habits” and not “Butts in Seats” is why James Clear has sold millions of books and I am at home wearing socks with my Crocs sandals.