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Hello, Habits: A Minimalist's Guide to a Better Life
The internationally best-selling author of Goodbye, Things shares insights and practices to help you become the best version of yourself.
Fumio Sasaki changed his life when he became a minimalist. But before minimalism could really stick, he had to make it a habit. All of us live our lives based on the habits we’ve formed, from when we get up in the morning, to what we eat and drink, to how likely we are to actually make it to the gym. In Hello, Habits, Sasaki explains how we can acquire the new habits that we want―and get rid of the ones that don’t do us any good.
Drawing on leading theories and tips about the science of habit formation from cognitive psychology, neuroscience, and sociology, along with examples from popular culture and tried-and-tested techniques from his own life, he unravels common misperceptions about "willpower" and "talent," and offers a step-by-step guide to success. Ultimately, Sasaki shows how ordinary people like himself can use his principles of good habit-making to improve themselves and change their lives.
Fumio Sasaki changed his life when he became a minimalist. But before minimalism could really stick, he had to make it a habit. All of us live our lives based on the habits we’ve formed, from when we get up in the morning, to what we eat and drink, to how likely we are to actually make it to the gym. In Hello, Habits, Sasaki explains how we can acquire the new habits that we want―and get rid of the ones that don’t do us any good.
Drawing on leading theories and tips about the science of habit formation from cognitive psychology, neuroscience, and sociology, along with examples from popular culture and tried-and-tested techniques from his own life, he unravels common misperceptions about "willpower" and "talent," and offers a step-by-step guide to success. Ultimately, Sasaki shows how ordinary people like himself can use his principles of good habit-making to improve themselves and change their lives.
292 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 14, 2018
643 people are currently reading
5286 people want to read
About the author
Fumio Sasaki
5 books607 followersFumio Sasaki is the former co-editor-in-chief of Wani Books, and lives in a 215-square-foot apartment in Tokyo, furnished with a small wooden box, a desk, and a roll-up futon pad.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 416 reviews
June 9, 2021
I’m done with books like this written by single men. While there were some useful bits, it was overshadowed by my annoyance at his focus: all of his habits were centered on the self and served the self. Going to the gym, eating well, career success. In addition to that, in the entire book there are four women cited. Every study reference, introductory quote, friend, genius, businessperson, philanthropist - except four - were men.
June 10, 2025
If at all you want to pick up this book, opt for the audiobook. I really like the narration. I doubt if it wasn't for the narrator I would have ever complete reading the book.
As much as I loved the first book by the author, this book didn't work for me. I still take tips from the first book on minimalism as it was more practical, easy and fast to read.
But this book on habits went into too much of explanations and examples before actually going to the main point that I feel it lost all its purpose, even though they are backed up by numerous experiments and references.
It became tiring after thirty percent of the read. It started out strong and good. As the author points out to go directly to chapter 3 if you want to jump right in regarding habits, it still didn't work for me.
I wanted the book to present the important points and actually back them up with less but important example and reference backups. But it went to explain more on things that didn't need explanations.
Hope the next book works.
Thank you, author and the publisher for the audiobook.
As much as I loved the first book by the author, this book didn't work for me. I still take tips from the first book on minimalism as it was more practical, easy and fast to read.
But this book on habits went into too much of explanations and examples before actually going to the main point that I feel it lost all its purpose, even though they are backed up by numerous experiments and references.
It became tiring after thirty percent of the read. It started out strong and good. As the author points out to go directly to chapter 3 if you want to jump right in regarding habits, it still didn't work for me.
I wanted the book to present the important points and actually back them up with less but important example and reference backups. But it went to explain more on things that didn't need explanations.
Hope the next book works.
Thank you, author and the publisher for the audiobook.
December 31, 2020
Thank you to the publisher for an advance copy of this book via netgalley!
Well it seems simple. Applying it is a while other story. But this book is inspiring! it really tells you as it is! First, quick introductions to simple concepts.Then the author elaborates on the 50 tips. And just in case you weren’t keen on reading them all but wanted a glimpse...the book gives you an overview at the end of all the key concepts. So in other words, this book gives you no excuses for not reading it and attempting to change your habits!
Well it seems simple. Applying it is a while other story. But this book is inspiring! it really tells you as it is! First, quick introductions to simple concepts.Then the author elaborates on the 50 tips. And just in case you weren’t keen on reading them all but wanted a glimpse...the book gives you an overview at the end of all the key concepts. So in other words, this book gives you no excuses for not reading it and attempting to change your habits!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 22, 2022
This author reminded me of a bad ex-boyfriend.
He’s single, comes off as anal and particular, and clearly does not respect women; out of the countless examples he mentions in this book of people with great habits, not one woman seems to come to his mind. Instead, he quotes Mr. Haruki Murakami like 10 times (who, I will remind you, once wrote about women having an organ that allows them to be able to lie).
Anyway. Before getting into that too much…
This book is ostensibly about habits, but is really about wielding guilt and shame to motivate action.
It’s not that everything Sasaki writes is unhelpful. I appreciated his introductory chapters on willpower, which reflect on why internal motivation alone cannot be relied on to create consistent habits. Framing habits as inherent parts of our lives relieves us of the decision fatigue that often precludes our ability to act. And there are a handful of interesting tidbits, too (mostly centered around Ernest Hemingway’s writing patterns).
But this self-torture-presenting-as-self-help guide just had too many holes for me to truly respect the author’s opinion and work. The data was selective and seemed shockingly one-sided; I doubted the author’s credibility; I feared the guide was extremely catered towards men; the fatphobia was astounding; the writing was somewhat dry. But most importantly, Sasaki’s work negates the ability to truly participate in loving, meaningful experiences in life.
Sasaki encourages people to motivate themselves with sticks, or punishments, more than rewards. He encourages weight loss seekers to weigh themselves every day, to never break a day of going to the gym for fear of relapse, and to reward themselves with something other than food. In terms of his own habits, Sasaki mentions leaving his unhealthy snacks in his car to create an additional barrier to consumption. He is proud of himself when he looks at desserts and feels nauseated instead of craving them. His lifestyle is purely ascetic, and he believes this is the ideal and optimized way to live. (I guess it makes sense for a single man with no children to believe this is the best way to live. It also makes sense for a single man to write this kind of book and assume it will help others, when, in reality, he has an ideal freelance job with loads of free time and no parental or relationship responsibilities. But whatever!). When I read this, it seems like disordered eating and encouraging an unhealthy relationship with food. Sasaki eats the same thing every day (and no alcohol or sweets), and this is restrictive not just for the body, but for social gatherings and general happiness. How many times do social gatherings center around good food? How much does nourishment relate to the different kinds of food we put into our bodies? How much joy can we get from sharing a meal, cooking for another, or consuming something made specially for us? This is just one of the many countless examples of Sasaki's unnatural self-restriction.
Sasaki doesn’t encourage a better life, as the subtitle of the book suggests, but a more productive and slightly less depressed life through personal habits. He lives an individualistic life, which allows him to form these strict habits. In his time table of the day, which he presumptuously gives the reader at the beginning of the book, every single hour is focused on him engaged in a solitary activity. He doesn’t spend time with others. He doesn’t cater to others. He doesn’t help others. He is focused on him and him alone (unless you count writing this book as a service, which I don’t).
I don’t know why I felt so compelled to write such a detailed review of Sasaki’s book. I’m not a fan of self-help, and perhaps I should be conscious of the pitfalls of the genre. But I think, ultimately, the self-centered perspective seems so, incredibly exclusive and so, incredibly male.
I think I want Sasaki to know that, no matter how good your habits are, a cupcake is probably better than waking up early, and that someone who genuinely cares for you is revolutionary, and can bring you much more comfort than any habit can.
He’s single, comes off as anal and particular, and clearly does not respect women; out of the countless examples he mentions in this book of people with great habits, not one woman seems to come to his mind. Instead, he quotes Mr. Haruki Murakami like 10 times (who, I will remind you, once wrote about women having an organ that allows them to be able to lie).
Anyway. Before getting into that too much…
This book is ostensibly about habits, but is really about wielding guilt and shame to motivate action.
It’s not that everything Sasaki writes is unhelpful. I appreciated his introductory chapters on willpower, which reflect on why internal motivation alone cannot be relied on to create consistent habits. Framing habits as inherent parts of our lives relieves us of the decision fatigue that often precludes our ability to act. And there are a handful of interesting tidbits, too (mostly centered around Ernest Hemingway’s writing patterns).
But this self-torture-presenting-as-self-help guide just had too many holes for me to truly respect the author’s opinion and work. The data was selective and seemed shockingly one-sided; I doubted the author’s credibility; I feared the guide was extremely catered towards men; the fatphobia was astounding; the writing was somewhat dry. But most importantly, Sasaki’s work negates the ability to truly participate in loving, meaningful experiences in life.
Sasaki encourages people to motivate themselves with sticks, or punishments, more than rewards. He encourages weight loss seekers to weigh themselves every day, to never break a day of going to the gym for fear of relapse, and to reward themselves with something other than food. In terms of his own habits, Sasaki mentions leaving his unhealthy snacks in his car to create an additional barrier to consumption. He is proud of himself when he looks at desserts and feels nauseated instead of craving them. His lifestyle is purely ascetic, and he believes this is the ideal and optimized way to live. (I guess it makes sense for a single man with no children to believe this is the best way to live. It also makes sense for a single man to write this kind of book and assume it will help others, when, in reality, he has an ideal freelance job with loads of free time and no parental or relationship responsibilities. But whatever!). When I read this, it seems like disordered eating and encouraging an unhealthy relationship with food. Sasaki eats the same thing every day (and no alcohol or sweets), and this is restrictive not just for the body, but for social gatherings and general happiness. How many times do social gatherings center around good food? How much does nourishment relate to the different kinds of food we put into our bodies? How much joy can we get from sharing a meal, cooking for another, or consuming something made specially for us? This is just one of the many countless examples of Sasaki's unnatural self-restriction.
Sasaki doesn’t encourage a better life, as the subtitle of the book suggests, but a more productive and slightly less depressed life through personal habits. He lives an individualistic life, which allows him to form these strict habits. In his time table of the day, which he presumptuously gives the reader at the beginning of the book, every single hour is focused on him engaged in a solitary activity. He doesn’t spend time with others. He doesn’t cater to others. He doesn’t help others. He is focused on him and him alone (unless you count writing this book as a service, which I don’t).
I don’t know why I felt so compelled to write such a detailed review of Sasaki’s book. I’m not a fan of self-help, and perhaps I should be conscious of the pitfalls of the genre. But I think, ultimately, the self-centered perspective seems so, incredibly exclusive and so, incredibly male.
I think I want Sasaki to know that, no matter how good your habits are, a cupcake is probably better than waking up early, and that someone who genuinely cares for you is revolutionary, and can bring you much more comfort than any habit can.
January 11, 2021
Habits are the building blocks for how we want to live our lives and Fumio Sasaki shows us how to structure them, successfully and successionally.
I really liked the straight-forward approach to the advice imparted. Sasaki shared many anecdotes from his own life, making this a far more autobiographical read than expected, but the majority of the contents remained free from emotion, including judgement, and therefore easy to absorb and digest. This still remained, however, no nonsense and negated the human need to justify their actions by providing proof, often with scientific backing, about why our base or initial instincts and responses can often be the incorrect or harmful ones.
I also appreciated how each point was illustrated by referencing a number of typical habits that many readers could have foreseeably turned to this book for, but also how each snippet of advice could be adapted to refer to anything and everything.
I have read a number of books on this topic but I still return to this sub-genre to ensure I keep on track with my goals and am continuing to become the best version of myself. I found little here that I had not already heard before but I was anticipating this and it did not impact my enjoyment or immersion in any way.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, Fumio Sasaki, and the publisher, Blackstone Publishing, for this opportunity.
I really liked the straight-forward approach to the advice imparted. Sasaki shared many anecdotes from his own life, making this a far more autobiographical read than expected, but the majority of the contents remained free from emotion, including judgement, and therefore easy to absorb and digest. This still remained, however, no nonsense and negated the human need to justify their actions by providing proof, often with scientific backing, about why our base or initial instincts and responses can often be the incorrect or harmful ones.
I also appreciated how each point was illustrated by referencing a number of typical habits that many readers could have foreseeably turned to this book for, but also how each snippet of advice could be adapted to refer to anything and everything.
I have read a number of books on this topic but I still return to this sub-genre to ensure I keep on track with my goals and am continuing to become the best version of myself. I found little here that I had not already heard before but I was anticipating this and it did not impact my enjoyment or immersion in any way.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, Fumio Sasaki, and the publisher, Blackstone Publishing, for this opportunity.
May 28, 2021
Maybe something was lost in translation, but I just found this a very awkward, stilted read.
October 5, 2018
I chose to read this book not because of the topic itself, but the well-known minimalism author-Fumio Sasaki. This book is written based on the author's experiences and literature reviews on related books on Habits and Behavior Economics. I found many ideas that I had read before, so to be honest, it came as no surprise to me. However, reading this book in a different writing style seems like a good reminder for me. Some valuable notes I got from this book are:
(1) If you want to have a successful life, be conscious of what you spend time and energy on. Successful scientists or even some famous artists seem to have boring and strict daily routines. However, following the same routine helps them to stay focused on things that matter to their career.
(2) Make a timetable for what to do in daily life. A clear timetable helps to avoid a dead-time, such as scrolling through smart phones or spending much time considering what to do next.
(3) Plan to relax
Relax doesn't mean to have a long sleep on the weekend. Try to be proactive such as planning for a camping trip or a long walk in Nature.
(4) Ask your self a question: "If you are a parent, whether you want your child to do this or not".
(5) Fake it until you make it
New year resolutions might not work but announcing on Social networks with many followers what you are going to achieve next might work.
(1) If you want to have a successful life, be conscious of what you spend time and energy on. Successful scientists or even some famous artists seem to have boring and strict daily routines. However, following the same routine helps them to stay focused on things that matter to their career.
(2) Make a timetable for what to do in daily life. A clear timetable helps to avoid a dead-time, such as scrolling through smart phones or spending much time considering what to do next.
(3) Plan to relax
Relax doesn't mean to have a long sleep on the weekend. Try to be proactive such as planning for a camping trip or a long walk in Nature.
(4) Ask your self a question: "If you are a parent, whether you want your child to do this or not".
(5) Fake it until you make it
New year resolutions might not work but announcing on Social networks with many followers what you are going to achieve next might work.
May 12, 2024
I can`t help but adore his books. His writing displays a fluidity that is void of clichés. The book is informative, but at the same, humane. He shares his experiences in the perfect amount. Very motivational.
June 17, 2021
I loved this! It can be read as cover-to-cover motivation or it can be dipped into as lists. Fumio Sasaki has a unique way of structuring books that make them very versatile and rereadable. My mind felt instantly at home in its pages.
Fumio Sasaki's 'Goodbye Things' is a crucial first step into removing distractions and is a life-changing read. 'Hello Habits' is the 'what next?' read for minimalists. It is full of great research that Sasaki has used himself and is particularly helpful for those self-employed. I find many minimalist podcasts and books on 'what next?' vague and repetitive. This book is full of actionable ideas that you can personalize and use straight away.
It is also a beautiful book. Someone has already borrowed my copy and although I rarely keep a book, I hope this one comes back to me.
Fumio Sasaki's 'Goodbye Things' is a crucial first step into removing distractions and is a life-changing read. 'Hello Habits' is the 'what next?' read for minimalists. It is full of great research that Sasaki has used himself and is particularly helpful for those self-employed. I find many minimalist podcasts and books on 'what next?' vague and repetitive. This book is full of actionable ideas that you can personalize and use straight away.
It is also a beautiful book. Someone has already borrowed my copy and although I rarely keep a book, I hope this one comes back to me.
February 5, 2024
HIGHLIGHTS:
1. TOO MUCH TIME:
- You can be unproductive if you have too much time in the day.
2. HYPERBOLIC DISCOUNTING:
- People overestimate the rewards in front of them. They underestimate the consequences for the future.
- We surrender to the rewards in front of us and accept the consequences later.
- Tackle your tasks AFTER you clean up because you emotionally feel good about yourself.
3. TRIGGERS:
- Triggers lead to unconscious habits.
- Exercise before doing schoolwork.
- Go on walks in order to clear your head and have creative thoughts.
- Dissect where your bad habit trigger begins.
- Investigate what the true need is that you’re trying to get.
4. REWARDS:
- Rewards are necessary for habit formation.
- Rules with exceptions are not good rules.
- Keystone habits put a domino effect into other positive habits that are not desirable.
- Keep records in a journal to monitor progress. Write the facts.
- Lower hurdles to get started. Use inertia to keep it moving. Remove hassles.
- Stop habits by raising the hurdle to make it inconvenient.
5. MOTIVATION:
- Your brain gets motivated AFTER you take the first step. Example: one push-up a day.
- Start goal planning in early December.
- Do it everyday: it is already decided. You have to want to do it.
- Have a set timetable. Compare what you’re trying to do against that timetable to see if it’s even realistic. You are making visible the amount of time you have an energy to accomplish it in one day. There is great meaning and knowing your limitations.
- Set up a temporary reward when you’re trying to acquire a habit.
- Belong to a team with high standards.
6. BEING A LIAR:
- Declarations and deadlines will make you a liar if you don’t finish.
- Quickly attain as many failures as you can. It allows you to see a method that does not work. You can move on to something else.
7. HABITS COLLAPSE:
- Habits will eventually collapse.
- Make changes so you don’t get bored.
- When it gets EASY, you need to make it HARDER in order to challenge your brain.
8. WORK ETHIC:
- Talent isn’t rare, it’s about work ethic.
- Accumulating small skills over a long period.
- Habits create talent.
- “Knack” is a rapid rate of skill development.
1. TOO MUCH TIME:
- You can be unproductive if you have too much time in the day.
2. HYPERBOLIC DISCOUNTING:
- People overestimate the rewards in front of them. They underestimate the consequences for the future.
- We surrender to the rewards in front of us and accept the consequences later.
- Tackle your tasks AFTER you clean up because you emotionally feel good about yourself.
3. TRIGGERS:
- Triggers lead to unconscious habits.
- Exercise before doing schoolwork.
- Go on walks in order to clear your head and have creative thoughts.
- Dissect where your bad habit trigger begins.
- Investigate what the true need is that you’re trying to get.
4. REWARDS:
- Rewards are necessary for habit formation.
- Rules with exceptions are not good rules.
- Keystone habits put a domino effect into other positive habits that are not desirable.
- Keep records in a journal to monitor progress. Write the facts.
- Lower hurdles to get started. Use inertia to keep it moving. Remove hassles.
- Stop habits by raising the hurdle to make it inconvenient.
5. MOTIVATION:
- Your brain gets motivated AFTER you take the first step. Example: one push-up a day.
- Start goal planning in early December.
- Do it everyday: it is already decided. You have to want to do it.
- Have a set timetable. Compare what you’re trying to do against that timetable to see if it’s even realistic. You are making visible the amount of time you have an energy to accomplish it in one day. There is great meaning and knowing your limitations.
- Set up a temporary reward when you’re trying to acquire a habit.
- Belong to a team with high standards.
6. BEING A LIAR:
- Declarations and deadlines will make you a liar if you don’t finish.
- Quickly attain as many failures as you can. It allows you to see a method that does not work. You can move on to something else.
7. HABITS COLLAPSE:
- Habits will eventually collapse.
- Make changes so you don’t get bored.
- When it gets EASY, you need to make it HARDER in order to challenge your brain.
8. WORK ETHIC:
- Talent isn’t rare, it’s about work ethic.
- Accumulating small skills over a long period.
- Habits create talent.
- “Knack” is a rapid rate of skill development.
July 23, 2021
Lots of thoughts on this one. It's scope is massive and I'm not convinced the author is credible in this field. He makes a lot of personal statements and opinions, some quite frankly were alarming that he came to these conclusions and printed them. He probably knows he is out of his league a bit, therefore he credits a ton of other work that honestly, you should probably just read instead (like Charles Duhigg). In fact, there isn't 1 footnote in this book and no sources at the back.
It's not all bad. He does have some good stories and its mildly interesting. But lets face it: He's single, lives alone, and a freelancer. You obviously can pick up a lot of his ideas for your own life, but it would be extremely difficult to do so otherwise.
I liked his last book. I thought it was well done. But I felt like the author reached for this one and he bit off more than he could chew.
It's not all bad. He does have some good stories and its mildly interesting. But lets face it: He's single, lives alone, and a freelancer. You obviously can pick up a lot of his ideas for your own life, but it would be extremely difficult to do so otherwise.
I liked his last book. I thought it was well done. But I felt like the author reached for this one and he bit off more than he could chew.
January 11, 2023
This book makes habit forming overly complicated and unattainable to the full time worker.
The majority of this book is devoted to the 50 steps for acquiring new habits. How are you supposed to remember even half of them after you've finished the book? (Atomic Habits breaks it down into four easy to remember components that are presented in depth and that I still remember one year after reading.)
The author also presents a well organized schedule for his typical day. It contains everything I wish I could do in a day; meditation, yoga, journaling, language studies, exercise, chores, home cooking, and TWO power naps... with a maximum of 4 hours of work. Of course I could make daily gym sessions a habit if I only worked half days and didn't care for a family or pets.
I need to build healthy and fulfilling habits into a schedule that includes a full time job, so this book did not help me.
The majority of this book is devoted to the 50 steps for acquiring new habits. How are you supposed to remember even half of them after you've finished the book? (Atomic Habits breaks it down into four easy to remember components that are presented in depth and that I still remember one year after reading.)
The author also presents a well organized schedule for his typical day. It contains everything I wish I could do in a day; meditation, yoga, journaling, language studies, exercise, chores, home cooking, and TWO power naps... with a maximum of 4 hours of work. Of course I could make daily gym sessions a habit if I only worked half days and didn't care for a family or pets.
I need to build healthy and fulfilling habits into a schedule that includes a full time job, so this book did not help me.
May 2, 2021
Inspiring!
I enjoyed reading Fumio Sasaki's first book, Goodbye, Things. Anyway, it didn't make me a really minimalist person, but I unhauled a lot of books I didn't even wanted to read. A couple months ago, when I found out he has a newly published book, I wanted to read it right away.
Hello, Habits was a real habit changer. At the moment, I was trying hard to be more productive in any kind of other activities except sleeping and binge-watching shows on Netflix. *add being stuck in a stressful house, full of 5 people and 12 cats, in the pandemic*
I feel like every page of this book were attacking me personally. This book was all I needed. It's written in a very simple way with inspiring stories. I highlighted a lot of passages and hoping that I could implement all of them in real life.
If you want to improve your habit, you must read this!
I enjoyed reading Fumio Sasaki's first book, Goodbye, Things. Anyway, it didn't make me a really minimalist person, but I unhauled a lot of books I didn't even wanted to read. A couple months ago, when I found out he has a newly published book, I wanted to read it right away.
Hello, Habits was a real habit changer. At the moment, I was trying hard to be more productive in any kind of other activities except sleeping and binge-watching shows on Netflix. *add being stuck in a stressful house, full of 5 people and 12 cats, in the pandemic*
I feel like every page of this book were attacking me personally. This book was all I needed. It's written in a very simple way with inspiring stories. I highlighted a lot of passages and hoping that I could implement all of them in real life.
If you want to improve your habit, you must read this!
February 22, 2021
Incredible book. 4.5 stars.
I really enjoyed *Goodbye Things, The New Japanese Minimalism* so I jumped at the chance to listen to this audiobook. I’m so glad that I did, as it has the:
Same great writing. Same great attention to detail and incredible research done. Same very down-to-earth and relatable perspective.
What I LOVED about this book:
* All of the above notes.
* wonderful narration of the audiobook. This is not read by the author, but the flow is so smooth it almost sounds as if it is! The narrator brings this subject matter to life in a way that I wanted to keep on listening without stopping.
* there is a wealth of background material that includes short anecdotes from the author’s and others’ lives, as well as references to scientific studies. All this is presented in a wonderful non-nonsense way.
* the list of 50 pointers on maintaining great habits.
Some are based on research, while others are anecdotal and a few are just the author’s own ideas. But as we are all different, there must be at least a few or more that resonate with every reader. Also, this compilation of the book (introduction, beginning, 50 pointers, conclusion) makes this heavy mass of information flow so much better than most any other book on the subject that I have read.
* the recap done at the end of each section, for review. There are so many great points that it is hard to remember all of the ones that I wanted to put into practice. The recap brought those back.
What I disliked:
* outdated, potentially harmful ideas on dieting. If you have (or have had) an eating disorder or struggle to lose weight no matter how hard you try, please be kind to yourself and breeze over the author’s views of diet without taking them personally. The author even quotes a book on how no diet has ever worked long-term, but continues to state outdated beliefs related to eating habits. I found this very frustrating, and know that others will find this harmful.
* the author only alludes once, and very briefly, as to how all people are different and successfully set up “good” habits in much different ways - and this is near the end. The vast majority of the book up until then sounds incredibly like if anyone just does what the author did, they will succeed. While so much of the book is full of incredible tips and tricks that MAY work for any reader, it is likely that every reader will walk away with different ideas of how they can best start and maintain the means to their own goals. Or, this is how it came across to me, anyway.
Regardless of these two faults, this book is absolutely 100% worth your time if you have any desire to change what things you are doing every day. How you live every day, of course, is how you build your future.
Thank you to the author, Fumio Sasaki, NetGalley and the publisher, Blackstone Publishing, for an audiobook copy of this title in return for an honest review.
I really enjoyed *Goodbye Things, The New Japanese Minimalism* so I jumped at the chance to listen to this audiobook. I’m so glad that I did, as it has the:
Same great writing. Same great attention to detail and incredible research done. Same very down-to-earth and relatable perspective.
What I LOVED about this book:
* All of the above notes.
* wonderful narration of the audiobook. This is not read by the author, but the flow is so smooth it almost sounds as if it is! The narrator brings this subject matter to life in a way that I wanted to keep on listening without stopping.
* there is a wealth of background material that includes short anecdotes from the author’s and others’ lives, as well as references to scientific studies. All this is presented in a wonderful non-nonsense way.
* the list of 50 pointers on maintaining great habits.
Some are based on research, while others are anecdotal and a few are just the author’s own ideas. But as we are all different, there must be at least a few or more that resonate with every reader. Also, this compilation of the book (introduction, beginning, 50 pointers, conclusion) makes this heavy mass of information flow so much better than most any other book on the subject that I have read.
* the recap done at the end of each section, for review. There are so many great points that it is hard to remember all of the ones that I wanted to put into practice. The recap brought those back.
What I disliked:
* outdated, potentially harmful ideas on dieting. If you have (or have had) an eating disorder or struggle to lose weight no matter how hard you try, please be kind to yourself and breeze over the author’s views of diet without taking them personally. The author even quotes a book on how no diet has ever worked long-term, but continues to state outdated beliefs related to eating habits. I found this very frustrating, and know that others will find this harmful.
* the author only alludes once, and very briefly, as to how all people are different and successfully set up “good” habits in much different ways - and this is near the end. The vast majority of the book up until then sounds incredibly like if anyone just does what the author did, they will succeed. While so much of the book is full of incredible tips and tricks that MAY work for any reader, it is likely that every reader will walk away with different ideas of how they can best start and maintain the means to their own goals. Or, this is how it came across to me, anyway.
Regardless of these two faults, this book is absolutely 100% worth your time if you have any desire to change what things you are doing every day. How you live every day, of course, is how you build your future.
Thank you to the author, Fumio Sasaki, NetGalley and the publisher, Blackstone Publishing, for an audiobook copy of this title in return for an honest review.
December 28, 2020
Summary: This book combined the soothing, humble approach of Sasaki's previous book with better citations and even more useful advice.
This is the second in a pair of books by minimalist Fumio Sasaki that I stumbled across at the perfect time in my life. I was able to read his Goodbye, Things just as I was moving, which always makes me excited to reduce the number of things I own. Now, as I'm settling into a new place and getting ready for the new year, felt like just the right time to pick up my review copy of his next book on developing new habits.
Sasaki's previous book had a mix of strengths and weaknesses, so I was interested to see how his next book developed. I'm happy to say that for me, many of the weaknesses were reduced or eliminated, while everything I loved about the previous book carried through. Both are written in a soothing, contemplative tone that made them a delight to read during a turbulent year. The author's approach to sharing what he learned was admirably humble. He clearly acknowledges that not all of his advice will work for everyone. He specifically recommends customization of his ideas in several places. Despite this humble approach, the author does make some strikingly broad statements about psychology and motivation in both books. This book improves on the previous one though, backing more of these statements with citations of relevant research.
The best part of the previous book was the section containing specific tips on minimizing what you own. The author's philosophical musings and biographical details were weaker - more repetitive and not always persuasive. That was true in this book as well, but a much larger section of the book was devoted to specific advice. Although your mileage may vary, I also found a larger percentage (95% or more) of the habbit starting tips in this book helpful. I started to write down all those that were useful to me and ended up essentially reproducing the complete list from the book! There were two small places where the author said things that were weirdly gendered, like noting that women sometimes just get angry in relationships. This was such a small portion of the book though that it didn't detract from my enjoyment. Overall, this was a pleasant, helpful read that I think will help me kick off a new year in a new place with the habits I want to build.This review was originally posted on Doing Dewey
This is the second in a pair of books by minimalist Fumio Sasaki that I stumbled across at the perfect time in my life. I was able to read his Goodbye, Things just as I was moving, which always makes me excited to reduce the number of things I own. Now, as I'm settling into a new place and getting ready for the new year, felt like just the right time to pick up my review copy of his next book on developing new habits.
Sasaki's previous book had a mix of strengths and weaknesses, so I was interested to see how his next book developed. I'm happy to say that for me, many of the weaknesses were reduced or eliminated, while everything I loved about the previous book carried through. Both are written in a soothing, contemplative tone that made them a delight to read during a turbulent year. The author's approach to sharing what he learned was admirably humble. He clearly acknowledges that not all of his advice will work for everyone. He specifically recommends customization of his ideas in several places. Despite this humble approach, the author does make some strikingly broad statements about psychology and motivation in both books. This book improves on the previous one though, backing more of these statements with citations of relevant research.
The best part of the previous book was the section containing specific tips on minimizing what you own. The author's philosophical musings and biographical details were weaker - more repetitive and not always persuasive. That was true in this book as well, but a much larger section of the book was devoted to specific advice. Although your mileage may vary, I also found a larger percentage (95% or more) of the habbit starting tips in this book helpful. I started to write down all those that were useful to me and ended up essentially reproducing the complete list from the book! There were two small places where the author said things that were weirdly gendered, like noting that women sometimes just get angry in relationships. This was such a small portion of the book though that it didn't detract from my enjoyment. Overall, this was a pleasant, helpful read that I think will help me kick off a new year in a new place with the habits I want to build.This review was originally posted on Doing Dewey
December 24, 2020
I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
3.5 stars. This book was a very nice overview of tips for developing and keeping good habits, and avoiding or breaking bad ones. His tips are very practical and are very easy to implement into anyone's daily lives. The writing style is very straight forward and easy to understand; he explains the concepts very clearly. It doesn't just focus on how to build habits; he also focused on our motivations, and how we fall into bad habits, and why they seem like they're so difficult to break. This book was also very motivating. It made me feel like I could do anything and improve my habits! I also liked the audiobook narrator a lot.
There were unfortunately some parts that irked me. The way the author talks about women is a little weird. He also uses some language that is fat shaming. Although it's in the context of trying to develop healthy eating and exercise habits, it got a little uncomfortable after a while.
February 25, 2021
This was a refreshing straight forward read. This book introduces a few concepts before jumping into tips to help develop and maintain good habits. Most of the strategies to help break or make habits were realistic for me and something I could use and remember in my day to day life. I love listening to audio books that motivate me or help me improve myself while doing tasks that aren't as exciting. I did find the book motivating and I can't wait to use the strategies I learned to help improve.
February 24, 2022
I’ve read quite a few books on habits over the past few years. It seems this is a cottage industry for non-fiction writers that want to write more. This was another. In total, it seemed much like the others that I’ve read. There are many personal stories from the writer and there are some suggestions as to how to build or break habits. This had a different, more personal voice than I’ve seen in other books though. It seems the author kept a diary and used this book as a way to reflect on his life and the habits that have impacted him. He even shares his bad habit of drinking too much and his efforts to successfully eliminate this habit. He also talks about food and exercise, especially running, quite a bit – no surprise. But he also talks at the end of the book about habits of kindness, which was a nice way to end his musings. You get a lot of the personal in the beginning and the ending, which I found the most interesting parts of the book. The bulk of the book is going through a couple of long lists relating to making habits and the values of habits. Here he mixed personal observations with research and quotes. I was surprised that many of the quotes were from William James, famed psychology writer before Freud, and Haruki Murakami, famous writer. The James quotes implied to me that Sasaki started his research on the topic with the basics, and maybe focused on them for the scientific aspects of his book. Or maybe James quotes come up often when Googling habits… The Murakami quotes and mentions show the personal research the author is relating, as Murakami is also a runner who book “What I Talk About When I Talk About Running” is in a similar vein.
Overall, nothing really mind-bending, but it is a mostly comfortable read. I listened to the audio version of this book, which was slowly read, with long breaks between thoughts that worked well for allowing something to sink in, even at 2x speed. I am rarely happy with long lists in an audiobook, and this one has two long lists. They were too long to really keep track of, but in this case the items, 50 in the longest list, were more like short chapters where the topics merged into other chapters. The organization wasn’t something that you needed to rely on to understand the point of the book. So that worked OK here, which was good because the points all ran together when listening.
I forgot to carp on this in the first version of the review:
I should also mention a pet peeve that occurred with this audiobook. I greatly enjoy when the places I live in or grew up in show up in books. I'm from a small town and live in a small suburb. I think this background makes me more interested in familiar locations showing up in books. It helps me feel a comradery with the author. So this book mentions the neighboring suburb, Naperville, as a place where some research took place. Naperville is pronounced with a long a, but the narrator pronounced it with a short a, like taking a nap. I've made this point before, but I know producing an audiobook is an expensive proposition for a publisher, and there often aren't more than a handful of proper names in a non-fiction book (that goes for this one). Why can't they get the pronunciations correct? This was the second audiobook in a row that mentioned one of my cities, and flubbed the name.
Overall, nothing really mind-bending, but it is a mostly comfortable read. I listened to the audio version of this book, which was slowly read, with long breaks between thoughts that worked well for allowing something to sink in, even at 2x speed. I am rarely happy with long lists in an audiobook, and this one has two long lists. They were too long to really keep track of, but in this case the items, 50 in the longest list, were more like short chapters where the topics merged into other chapters. The organization wasn’t something that you needed to rely on to understand the point of the book. So that worked OK here, which was good because the points all ran together when listening.
I forgot to carp on this in the first version of the review:
I should also mention a pet peeve that occurred with this audiobook. I greatly enjoy when the places I live in or grew up in show up in books. I'm from a small town and live in a small suburb. I think this background makes me more interested in familiar locations showing up in books. It helps me feel a comradery with the author. So this book mentions the neighboring suburb, Naperville, as a place where some research took place. Naperville is pronounced with a long a, but the narrator pronounced it with a short a, like taking a nap. I've made this point before, but I know producing an audiobook is an expensive proposition for a publisher, and there often aren't more than a handful of proper names in a non-fiction book (that goes for this one). Why can't they get the pronunciations correct? This was the second audiobook in a row that mentioned one of my cities, and flubbed the name.
January 17, 2022
This is another book on minimalism and habits and even refers to other popular books on this topic, such as Gretchen Rubin's "Better Than Before" (building good habits) and Angela Duckworth's "Grit" (passion and perseverance). If you liked Sasaki's first book "Goodbye, Things" (his journey on giving up material), you'll enjoy this book (his journey on building good habits for a better life - like quitting drinking).
August 18, 2021
Every day is a battle between willpower and temptation. Willpower constantly defends us against the lures of temptation. And yet willpower often fails us; temptations surround us, chipping away at our willpower. Willpower, overwhelmed, slowly weakens; eventually, it breaks down. Some of us may feel as if we are perpetually stuck on the losing side of this greater war between temptation and willpower.
We need a strategy, a way to fight back. The philosopher Sun Tzu's advice for those engaged in war was this: "The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting." How can we defeat the enemy — temptation — without fighting? Fortunately, Fumio Sasaki offers a solution in his latest book, Hello Habits: A Minimalist's Guide to a Better Life.
Mr. Sasaki starts of by showing us how capricious willpower can be. Studies found that different factors could cause a lapse in a person's willpower — eating raw radishes while cookies lay tantalizingly on a table, decreasing serotonin levels (which simulates uncertainty), or thinking of something sad. But all this begs the question, "How is it that some people develop strong willpower?" Before we answer that, let us see why willpower is required at all in the first place.
There is this interesting phenomenon called hyperbolic discounting. In this phenomenon, people hyperbolize the worth of immediate rewards while overlooking the worth of future rewards. For example, in a study conducted by economist Richard Thaler, subjects were given the option of getting one apple a year in the future or two apples a year and one day into the future. Logically, most chose the option of getting two apples. However, when the experiment was modified to allow subjects to choose between getting one apple that day or two apples the next day, more subjects chose to receive one apple the same day. Hyperbolic discounting is an illustration of how irrational we can be.
Mr. Sasaki compares our decision-making process to the act of flipping a coin. The results of our decisions are unpredictable due to our flawed logic. The more we flip the coin, we increase the probability that we will make the wrong decision.
The solution then is to not flip the coin at all: to subdue temptation without fighting. We can do this by suppressing our awareness. When we can do something without using our awareness, it no longer requires us to go through our flawed decision-making process. So by programming into our minds certain actions we can automatically do without our awareness, we can subdue temptation. These actions are what we call habits.
This book is overflowing with practical advice for creating new and better habits. Make it as easy as possible to practice good habits while making it as hard as possible to practice the bad ones, Mr. Sasaki suggests. When breaking a bad habit, quit completely or else you'll always find a way to make an exception. Making your goals as easy as possible — doing one push up, running for one kilometer, or reading for just five minutes — will make it easier for you to maintain them; you can then build from there.
The book — like our willpower — loses its vigor towards the end. Similar to Mr. Sasaki's last book (about minimalism), the ending is more of a philosophical discussion of the general life lessons we can draw from the book. In his first book, Mr. Sasaki more or less stuck to the concept of minimalism by teaching us how it could become a philosophy for living life. However, in this book, Mr. Sasaki begins to talk about what we can learn about the concepts of effort and talent, and starts to wander away from the subject of habits. While the discussion was interesting, it would have been more suitable as its own book.
However, the practical advice and words of wisdom sprinkled throughout its pages make Hello Habits worth the read. And now that I've finished this review, I'm going to start writing another one to develop my habit of writing every day.
June 14, 2019
The last self-help book. A book about habit forming. The approach is humble. The tone is gentle. This is a clean read. He gathers the facts about habit forming and gives us a summary of what has been said about the subject. It makes one kinder and calmer when you are swimming in the mind of a minimalist. I don’t think I can ever be one but having an aspect of it can be beneficial.
June 26, 2021
The author presents few new or original ideas on habit-making or breaking. More than half of the book is the author presenting ideas from other authors. I learned nothing that I hadn't already read in books like Atomic Habits by James Clear or The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg (both of which are far more informative and better reads than this book).
May 28, 2021
Reading this was a chore. If you're having trouble developing or quitting habits, there has to be a more engaging resource out there.
November 15, 2021
Quick review for a progressive read. "Hello Habits: A Minimalist's Guide to a Better Life" was a timely read for me. I not only own the physical hardcover but I also listened to the audiobook version included in my Audible subscription. I say that my reading of this was timely since I told myself that I wanted to get a jump start on creating some new habits and routines for next year (2022) a couple of months before. (Call me ambitious, but the last few years have been ones where I've fallen off my usual levels of productivity, so it made sense to pick up some resources to help feed the well, so to speak.) This particular book was an ambitious project since Sasaki mentions that he wanted to compile everything he learned about creating and sticking to habits in one book.
It's a practical successor to his previous book "Goodbye Things", but you don't need to read that book on minimalism to find utility out of this one - it stands on its own and quite well. Using a combination of scientific research, practical examples from his own life as well as a multitude of well known Japanese and Western figures, and illustrations, Sasaki crafts a 50-step guide to successfully acquiring and implementing habits into your life. A list of 50 may seem like a lot, but when you're reading this book split off into sections, it makes sense that Sasaki takes the time to break each step down, give examples, and show what steps to consider in the deconstruction of harmful habits and the construction of desired ones. It's very well organized, and I found it very easy to follow. The first few chapters talk about willpower and habits as concepts, before diving into the 50 steps. Then it takes the time towards the end to do a recap of the steps as well as 14 Good Habit inhibitors. The list of inhibitors was very helpful, and are included as follows:
1. Believing that a bad habit is necessary to relieve stress.
2. Trying to focus on just the good points.
3. Relying on your motivation.
4. Not having the right tools.
5. An awareness of the difficulties.
6. The sense of self-doubt produced by one failure.
7. Starting at a "good" time.
8. Thinking that tomorrow, you'll be Superman.
9. Creating an exception for the day in question.
10. Thinking that it's too late to start.
11. Not having a trigger.
12. Giving yourself a conflicting reward.
13. Pretending something never happened.
14. The "single-coin" issue.
All of these inhibitors are broken down as to why they hinder the formation of good habits through the text. Sasaki does a fantastic job of not only explaining them but also showing what to think about for countering them when they arise. I know this is a book that I'll keep in my personal library and refer to it as I need to. The hardcover copy is beautiful and simply elegant, just like the all-in-one presentation of the book in general. Definitely a new favorite resource.
Overall score: 4.5/5 stars.
It's a practical successor to his previous book "Goodbye Things", but you don't need to read that book on minimalism to find utility out of this one - it stands on its own and quite well. Using a combination of scientific research, practical examples from his own life as well as a multitude of well known Japanese and Western figures, and illustrations, Sasaki crafts a 50-step guide to successfully acquiring and implementing habits into your life. A list of 50 may seem like a lot, but when you're reading this book split off into sections, it makes sense that Sasaki takes the time to break each step down, give examples, and show what steps to consider in the deconstruction of harmful habits and the construction of desired ones. It's very well organized, and I found it very easy to follow. The first few chapters talk about willpower and habits as concepts, before diving into the 50 steps. Then it takes the time towards the end to do a recap of the steps as well as 14 Good Habit inhibitors. The list of inhibitors was very helpful, and are included as follows:
1. Believing that a bad habit is necessary to relieve stress.
2. Trying to focus on just the good points.
3. Relying on your motivation.
4. Not having the right tools.
5. An awareness of the difficulties.
6. The sense of self-doubt produced by one failure.
7. Starting at a "good" time.
8. Thinking that tomorrow, you'll be Superman.
9. Creating an exception for the day in question.
10. Thinking that it's too late to start.
11. Not having a trigger.
12. Giving yourself a conflicting reward.
13. Pretending something never happened.
14. The "single-coin" issue.
All of these inhibitors are broken down as to why they hinder the formation of good habits through the text. Sasaki does a fantastic job of not only explaining them but also showing what to think about for countering them when they arise. I know this is a book that I'll keep in my personal library and refer to it as I need to. The hardcover copy is beautiful and simply elegant, just like the all-in-one presentation of the book in general. Definitely a new favorite resource.
Overall score: 4.5/5 stars.
December 27, 2023
Update: Read this a second time in Dec 2023. Still enjoyed it and find Fumio Sasaki's experience resonates, and his lessons applicable.
****
Why would I read another book on forming habits when I have already read and adopted a very useful framework from reading "Atomic Habits"?
Actually, I wanted to read Fumio Sasaki's first book "Goodbye, Things: The New Japanese Minimalism" again. But it was loaned out at the library and I decided to read this second book "Hello, Habits: A Minimalist's Guide to a Better Life", as it was available.
So it was a choice only by default. And I ended up loving it!
I thought that I would not learn anything very new from reading this book. In a way, that is true because most of the key principles of forming new habits are not new. These include well-documented lessons like: creating triggers for your new habit, making it attractive, making it easy/starting small, and working in an immediate reward. And reversing it for bad habits you want to discard.
However, while "Atomic Habits" excels in packaging tried and tested strategies into a succinct concept and actionable framework, Fumio Sasaki takes a very personal approach in documenting his disgust at his own old habits, his struggles to adopt more wholesome ones, his process of trying to figure out why he kept failing and making the same new year's resolutions every year, and sharing his own process how he managed to adopting better habits.
And in the process of sharing his personal journey, all the lessons on forming new habits and discarding old ones are unveiled, learned and relearned- both by Fumio, and ourselves.
I love the way he writes and observes his own learning process. It is so Japanese! And what does it mean being so Japanese? It is very detailed, observing minute details of his own thought processes, his own habits. And very nuanced in the way he sees things.
And it is this essence of detailed and nuanced observation of everyday, ordinary activities and life that I so adore. There is something in the tone and voice of the author that is so human, and so fraught with frailty that I could not help but immediately recognise in myself. You would not guess how many times I have smiled or even laughed outright at seeing myself in this book, having gone through the same silly arguments in my head eg: "Should I go to the gym now? But I have to take out my gym bag, look for clean socks and then drive to the gym. Maybe the traffic will be heavy, maybe the gym will be crowded and I will need to wait for a machine. Maybe I will get hungry in the process. Er....maybe I will go tomorrow." And when tomorrow comes, we waste precious and limited cognitive resources going through the same arguments in our heads. And then when we found that the gym is closed, we even give a sigh of relief!
This kind of nuanced, self-deprecating, and humble self-observation of mundane activities is not common in many American self-help or productivity books which tend to highlight examples that are of "big leap" category. Eg the author of "Atomic Habits" James Clear had a big story to tell
- how he was badly injured as a teenager (bashed in the face by a run-away baseball bat that was accidentally flung out of the batter's hand), and how his habits helped him overcome his devastating injuries to becoming one of the top college baseball players. But Fumio Sasaki struggled even to just go to the gym (just like the rest of us).
I enjoyed reading Fumio's take on what talent and willpower is, and the common misunderstanding about them. We often think we have no talent or no willpower, when we see others achieving more than we have. "It isn't talent. It's continuing," according to Japanese architect and artist Kyohei Sakaguchi who had often been told as a child that he had no talent. The best of artists and creators all had mundane and habitual work routines.
And that our willpower cannot be trusted because not only is it limited, it is always affected by emotions. (this is the same as what "Tiny Habits" author BJ Fogg calls "motivation", which he too say is unreliable). When we feel joy, our ability to do more challenging things become easier (our will power or cognitive resources increase). Conversely, when we feel down or depressed, our ability to do even simple things can be compromised.
But when we we have developed certain habits (whether good or bad ones), doing them seem easy
because our "hot" brain (I think this is what Daniel Kahnneman would call the "Fast Brain" in his book "Thinking Fast and Slow") would take over and do thing with ease. There is less will power or cognitive resources needed.
Fumio also emphasized how his personal transformation to minimalism had also helped him develop new and better habits, as he had less to worry about. Less housekeeping, and more importantly, less "silent messages" from his things - the voice of unread books that say "read me", the whispers from an overcrowded and dirty room that says "clean me". (I totally agree to this. I often tell my friends why I prefer an uncluttered home because things have energy and they talk to me. Perhaps they think I am a bit crazy but this is what I mean. Whenever I declutter and tidy up, the house becomes more peaceful, quieter. And I find it easier to take out my yoga or meditation mat to do what I really want to do. It's real.)
I would not say more because most of these strategies for forming habits are available in many books on productivity, personal transformation and neuroscience - and are not new. But what is unique about "Hello, Habits" is how personal and heartwarming it is. And how, like typical Japanese approach, it can make the mundane seem so interesting - just by purely taking note of it and describing it. The book is like a companion. It makes you laugh and cry at yourself. And make you feel hopeful. Strangely, it is a book that I would not mind having by my bed and reading bits and pieces of it now and then.
Notes:
*I need to give a shout out to the translator Eriko Sugita. It is not easy to translate a book to a different language but I think she has done a good job.
**"Atomic Habits" and "Tiny Habits: Small Changes That Change Everything" are both very useful books but their have a very different tone. Both contain the same tried and tested strategies, so both are useful. "Atomic Habits" has a much more succinct message and more applicable framework, so I personally found it more impactful for me personally. "Tiny Habits" was a bit too too long winded and I didn't really like its rah-rah, self-help tone. The long-windedness can be problem for application, because after reading the book, you may not recall the key lessons for application. I think that is just the author's style, and some readers would find it much more approachable.
****
Why would I read another book on forming habits when I have already read and adopted a very useful framework from reading "Atomic Habits"?
Actually, I wanted to read Fumio Sasaki's first book "Goodbye, Things: The New Japanese Minimalism" again. But it was loaned out at the library and I decided to read this second book "Hello, Habits: A Minimalist's Guide to a Better Life", as it was available.
So it was a choice only by default. And I ended up loving it!
I thought that I would not learn anything very new from reading this book. In a way, that is true because most of the key principles of forming new habits are not new. These include well-documented lessons like: creating triggers for your new habit, making it attractive, making it easy/starting small, and working in an immediate reward. And reversing it for bad habits you want to discard.
However, while "Atomic Habits" excels in packaging tried and tested strategies into a succinct concept and actionable framework, Fumio Sasaki takes a very personal approach in documenting his disgust at his own old habits, his struggles to adopt more wholesome ones, his process of trying to figure out why he kept failing and making the same new year's resolutions every year, and sharing his own process how he managed to adopting better habits.
And in the process of sharing his personal journey, all the lessons on forming new habits and discarding old ones are unveiled, learned and relearned- both by Fumio, and ourselves.
I love the way he writes and observes his own learning process. It is so Japanese! And what does it mean being so Japanese? It is very detailed, observing minute details of his own thought processes, his own habits. And very nuanced in the way he sees things.
And it is this essence of detailed and nuanced observation of everyday, ordinary activities and life that I so adore. There is something in the tone and voice of the author that is so human, and so fraught with frailty that I could not help but immediately recognise in myself. You would not guess how many times I have smiled or even laughed outright at seeing myself in this book, having gone through the same silly arguments in my head eg: "Should I go to the gym now? But I have to take out my gym bag, look for clean socks and then drive to the gym. Maybe the traffic will be heavy, maybe the gym will be crowded and I will need to wait for a machine. Maybe I will get hungry in the process. Er....maybe I will go tomorrow." And when tomorrow comes, we waste precious and limited cognitive resources going through the same arguments in our heads. And then when we found that the gym is closed, we even give a sigh of relief!
This kind of nuanced, self-deprecating, and humble self-observation of mundane activities is not common in many American self-help or productivity books which tend to highlight examples that are of "big leap" category. Eg the author of "Atomic Habits" James Clear had a big story to tell
- how he was badly injured as a teenager (bashed in the face by a run-away baseball bat that was accidentally flung out of the batter's hand), and how his habits helped him overcome his devastating injuries to becoming one of the top college baseball players. But Fumio Sasaki struggled even to just go to the gym (just like the rest of us).
I enjoyed reading Fumio's take on what talent and willpower is, and the common misunderstanding about them. We often think we have no talent or no willpower, when we see others achieving more than we have. "It isn't talent. It's continuing," according to Japanese architect and artist Kyohei Sakaguchi who had often been told as a child that he had no talent. The best of artists and creators all had mundane and habitual work routines.
And that our willpower cannot be trusted because not only is it limited, it is always affected by emotions. (this is the same as what "Tiny Habits" author BJ Fogg calls "motivation", which he too say is unreliable). When we feel joy, our ability to do more challenging things become easier (our will power or cognitive resources increase). Conversely, when we feel down or depressed, our ability to do even simple things can be compromised.
But when we we have developed certain habits (whether good or bad ones), doing them seem easy
because our "hot" brain (I think this is what Daniel Kahnneman would call the "Fast Brain" in his book "Thinking Fast and Slow") would take over and do thing with ease. There is less will power or cognitive resources needed.
Fumio also emphasized how his personal transformation to minimalism had also helped him develop new and better habits, as he had less to worry about. Less housekeeping, and more importantly, less "silent messages" from his things - the voice of unread books that say "read me", the whispers from an overcrowded and dirty room that says "clean me". (I totally agree to this. I often tell my friends why I prefer an uncluttered home because things have energy and they talk to me. Perhaps they think I am a bit crazy but this is what I mean. Whenever I declutter and tidy up, the house becomes more peaceful, quieter. And I find it easier to take out my yoga or meditation mat to do what I really want to do. It's real.)
I would not say more because most of these strategies for forming habits are available in many books on productivity, personal transformation and neuroscience - and are not new. But what is unique about "Hello, Habits" is how personal and heartwarming it is. And how, like typical Japanese approach, it can make the mundane seem so interesting - just by purely taking note of it and describing it. The book is like a companion. It makes you laugh and cry at yourself. And make you feel hopeful. Strangely, it is a book that I would not mind having by my bed and reading bits and pieces of it now and then.
Notes:
*I need to give a shout out to the translator Eriko Sugita. It is not easy to translate a book to a different language but I think she has done a good job.
**"Atomic Habits" and "Tiny Habits: Small Changes That Change Everything" are both very useful books but their have a very different tone. Both contain the same tried and tested strategies, so both are useful. "Atomic Habits" has a much more succinct message and more applicable framework, so I personally found it more impactful for me personally. "Tiny Habits" was a bit too too long winded and I didn't really like its rah-rah, self-help tone. The long-windedness can be problem for application, because after reading the book, you may not recall the key lessons for application. I think that is just the author's style, and some readers would find it much more approachable.
September 27, 2021
Fumio has done a lot of reading to produce this book. He summarizes key research and presents his 50 ways of acquiring habits. Not all are practical strategies. Some are helpful beliefs/perspectives.
1. Sever ties with vicious circles.
2. First, decide that you’re going to quit.
3. Leverage turning points.
4. Quit completely—it’s easier.
5. Know that you always have to pay the price.
6. Examine the triggers and rewards for your habits.
7. Become a detective who looks for the real criminal.
8. Don’t make identity an excuse.
9. Start with keystone habits.
10. Keep a diary to record observations about yourself.
11. Meditate to enhance your cognitive ability.
12. Realize that enthusiasm won’t occur before you do something.
13. Whatever you do, lower your hurdles.
14. Realize that hurdles are more powerful than rewards.
15. Raise the hurdle for habits that you want to quit.
16. Spend money on your initial investment.
17. “Chunk down.”
18. Make your targets ridiculously small.
19. Start today.
20. Do it every day (it’s easier).
21. Don’t make up “exceptions” as you go.
22. Enjoy it because you aren’t good at it.
23. Set triggers.
24. Create an adult timetable.
25. Realize that no one has the power to concentrate.
26. Take action according to the date.
27. Set up a temporary reward.
28. Make good use of people’s attention.
29. Make an advance declaration.
30. Think from a third-party perspective.
31. Quit in the middle of something.
32. Don’t quit completely.
33. Keep records of your habits.
34. Take necessary breaks to conserve your strength.
35. Nap (the effects of a power nap are enormous).
36. Rest aggressively.
37. Cherish the things that you aren’t making into habit.
38. Don’t mix up your “objectives” and your “targets.”
39. Look only at the targets in front of you.
40. Experience failures—they’re indispensable for your habits.
41. Stop worrying about how long it will take for something to become a habit.
42. Do it; it’s better than not doing it.
43. Gradually increase the level of difficulty.
44. Overcome each challenge along the way.
45. Keep at it, and increase your self-efficacy.
46. Create a chain reaction.
47. Adapt your habits as needed.
48. Create habits that are unique to you.
49. Make peace with the knowledge that your habits will eventually collapse.
50. Know that there is no end to habits.
1. Sever ties with vicious circles.
2. First, decide that you’re going to quit.
3. Leverage turning points.
4. Quit completely—it’s easier.
5. Know that you always have to pay the price.
6. Examine the triggers and rewards for your habits.
7. Become a detective who looks for the real criminal.
8. Don’t make identity an excuse.
9. Start with keystone habits.
10. Keep a diary to record observations about yourself.
11. Meditate to enhance your cognitive ability.
12. Realize that enthusiasm won’t occur before you do something.
13. Whatever you do, lower your hurdles.
14. Realize that hurdles are more powerful than rewards.
15. Raise the hurdle for habits that you want to quit.
16. Spend money on your initial investment.
17. “Chunk down.”
18. Make your targets ridiculously small.
19. Start today.
20. Do it every day (it’s easier).
21. Don’t make up “exceptions” as you go.
22. Enjoy it because you aren’t good at it.
23. Set triggers.
24. Create an adult timetable.
25. Realize that no one has the power to concentrate.
26. Take action according to the date.
27. Set up a temporary reward.
28. Make good use of people’s attention.
29. Make an advance declaration.
30. Think from a third-party perspective.
31. Quit in the middle of something.
32. Don’t quit completely.
33. Keep records of your habits.
34. Take necessary breaks to conserve your strength.
35. Nap (the effects of a power nap are enormous).
36. Rest aggressively.
37. Cherish the things that you aren’t making into habit.
38. Don’t mix up your “objectives” and your “targets.”
39. Look only at the targets in front of you.
40. Experience failures—they’re indispensable for your habits.
41. Stop worrying about how long it will take for something to become a habit.
42. Do it; it’s better than not doing it.
43. Gradually increase the level of difficulty.
44. Overcome each challenge along the way.
45. Keep at it, and increase your self-efficacy.
46. Create a chain reaction.
47. Adapt your habits as needed.
48. Create habits that are unique to you.
49. Make peace with the knowledge that your habits will eventually collapse.
50. Know that there is no end to habits.
June 12, 2022
Bagian pembahasan otaknya sebenarnya sama sih kayak buku simon sinek yang kubaca sebelum ini, cuma bahasanya beda aja. Agak ruwet ngikutin narasi buku ini, tapi yang kusenangi salah satunya dia bisa menjelaskan dengan sederhana kenapa kira sulit menolak godaan yang ada di depan mata.
December 19, 2022
Well, I did like this better than his last book. If you're looking to build new habits though, I'd definitely recommend something like Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones over this. This was much more flow of thought meandering and introspective, whereas Atomic Habits gave much more orderly and concrete steps for building habits. This was an interesting read though and full of a lot of interesting things to think about when it comes to habits.
October 3, 2021
This is a wonderful book, combining the theory and the specific application! It tells how to form habits in order to improve our lives! Highly recommended!
September 6, 2021
I love Sasaki's way of writing. I made it a habit to read this book with breakfast, outside, as regularly as possible. His calm and succinct approach to writing was a nice change from most other things I've read. I will second another reviewer who said that it starts out really strong, then gets a little cumbersome when he starts harking on certain examples like going to the gym. However, it really climbed its way out of that in my mind, and got back to being great, especially by the end. I think it just got a little tedious reading through 50 steps to habits. So I'll still give it 5 stars. I'll probably read goodbye, things soon. I just like his tone and I think what he has to say tends to have a lot of insight and merit that you can't find from just anyone. The topics also feel very relevant to me. I was actually sad when I finished it. Noice Fumio:) I would wanna talk to him IRL cuz he's like.. so bland and into controlling his life in a way that's actually not bland and very enriching. that's how i see it lol, and I like to be on a similar wavelength.!
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