When I pick up new habits, I tend to focus relentlessly on keeping the streak going. To take a swing every day. And it’s mostly served me well. Even writing here for most of the past 12 months, I’ve published something new every day. This didn’t just happen – I consciously chose to pursue that schedule.
But as I’ve learned, streaks can become a chore. If you get more invested in the pursuit of the streak than the habit you’re trying to build or the work you’re trying to accomplish, you start focusing on checking boxes instead of doing meaningful work.
The only thing this accomplishes is a false sense of accomplishment. It’s like checking off your workouts in an app without actually doing much of the workout. It might feel good to see that big unbroken chain, but eventually even that small bit of reward won’t be enough to sustain the streak. You’ll end up dropping everything – either because you feel like you’re cheating yourself, or the whole enterprise just doesn’t feel worth it any longer.
So it’s better to recognize the real reason why you’re on the streak in the first place. For me, this blog is a means to becoming a stronger, more consistent writer. And the break I took this past month was precisely because I found myself focusing more on that streak number than actually having something meaningful to say.
The goal is still to write daily. I think there’s tremendous value in making a daily commitment – the speed of progress is not to be ignored. But I don’t want to post just for the sake of posting if I’m truly out of stream. Better to take a short breather, reflect, and start again.