This one habit changed my life

I’m often asked what secret habits I have that allow me to be so productive. Funny, because I’m always the one asking other people the same question. For most of my adult life, I’ve woken up 10 minutes before my first call, rolled out of bed, lightly grazed my teeth with a toothbrush, washed my face with water and wiped the grease off with a wet cloth, washed my meds down with coffee (I even made a funny Reel about it) and sit down at my computer without my prescription glasses because I’m too lazy to find wherever my housekeeper put them.

I know it may not look like it, but my nature is to be lazy, to crawl into a fetal position, eat ice cream, text friends and watch reality TV. If I was more single and had nothing on my calendar, it might actually happen. And it has at times.?

One sleepless night about a month ago, I woke up at 4:00am and decided it would be a good idea to fuck up my circadian rhythm and open my blaringly blue-lit iPhone. For some god awful reason I get on Yelp of all things and look for a yoga studio near me. Mind you, I live way up in the Hollywood Hills –– it takes a while just to get to the bottom of my hill and into town. So when I saw “near me” what I mean is somewhere close enough to not be a miserable drive and ideally has parking.

So, still sleepscrolling at 4:00am, I find a yoga spot. It’s not too granola, not too neon, and doesn’t promote some newfangled take on Yoga. It’s not close. I hope it has parking.?

And at that moment, like the consummate and unpredictable freak that I am, I chose to book a 7:30am hot yoga class for that same morning.?

I read James Clear’s book, Atomic Habits, a while back and didn't finish it (admittedly, I never finish books).? And then I bought the Atomic Habits course and didn't finish it (finishing things is hard, give me a break). In at least what I read of the book, he talks about setting yourself up for success, and actually uses an example of someone who was able to institute the simple habit of waking up and exercising, with one simple change: putting workout clothes out the night before.

So I did that. And then, at 7:30am, I made it to the yoga place. Turns out, it’s a lazy and undisciplined person’s dream: they provide mats, the little mat-sized towels that soak up your sweat, and hand towels to keep the sweat out of your lash extensions. And it doesn’t stop there: they have 6 showers, provide endless bath towels (I need one just for my giant butt), body wash, and even have the fastest water bottle filling station ever. And get this – they have parking.

Since then, I’ve been going 3-4 days a week. Before bed, I put my yoga gear out and toss a clean change of clothes, shampoo, sunscreen, and a hairbrush in a bag. I wake up, literally roll over, walk 3 feet to get dressed, scrape my tongue at the bathroom sink, and run out the door. I haven’t missed class once and I haven’t been late.?

The takeaway here? Find a way to make high achievement lazy. Find a way to make it so dumb for yourself that it’s hard to fail. Put “drink water” on your calendar, keep a pitcher at your desk, and put another pitcher within arm’s reach of your desk. Whatever you have to do, just make it easy enough for a primitive homo-erectus type to do it.?