SDS 550: Daily Habit #6: Write Morning Pages — with Jon Krohn

Binary Tracking

Jon Krohn shares his approach to habit tracking using a binary system, which simplifies the process of monitoring daily habits. He explains that for his morning pages practice, he logs whether he wrote at least one sentence each day, marking it as either completed or not. This straightforward method helps him maintain consistency without the pressure of quantity, allowing creativity to flourish.

Like the habits I've already covered in this recent series of five minute Fridays. On my daily habits, I choose to log writing morning pages as a binary habit. Either I wrote a sentence or I didn't.

--- Jon Krohn

By setting the minimum threshold to zero and the maximum to one, Jon keeps the focus on the act of writing rather than the volume, fostering a sustainable habit 1.

   

Goal Setting

Setting achievable and measurable goals is crucial for sustaining habits, as Jon highlights through his morning pages routine. Inspired by Julia Cameron's "The Artist's Way," he emphasizes the importance of daily writing to stimulate creativity, regardless of the content's quality. This practice has been instrumental in his creative growth, leading to opportunities like public lectures and video tutorials.

On some days you'll feel uninspired and nevertheless generate an inspiring idea through your morning pages, such as, in my case, to create a public lecture on deep learning.

--- Jon Krohn

Jon's experience underscores the power of consistent effort and the potential for small, daily actions to lead to significant creative breakthroughs 1.