The Difference Between Motion & Action: (Atomic Habits)

The brilliant author James Clear discussed the gap between planning and doing by clarifying the difference between motion & action.

He said:

"The two ideas sound similar, but they're not the same"

When you're in motion, you're planning, strategizing and learning.

Those are all good things, but they don't produce a result.

Action, on the other hand, is the type of behavior that will deliver an outcome.

If I outline twenty ideas for articles I want to write, that's motion.

If I sat down and wrote an article, that's action.

Another example is:

If I search for a better diet plan and read a few books on the topic, that's motion.

If I eat a healthy meal, that's action.

Sometimes motion is helpful, but it will never produce an outcome.

It doesn't matter how often you talk to your trainer; that motion will never get you in shape.

Only the action of working out will get the result you're looking to achieve.

If being in motion doesn't lead to results, why do we do it?

James Clear said:

Sometimes, we do it because we need to plan or learn more. But more often than not, we do it because motion allows us to feel like we're making progress without running the risk of failure.

Most of us are experts at avoiding criticism. It doesn't feel good to fail or be judged publicly, so we tend to avoid situations where that might happen.

James Clear said that it's the biggest reason you slip into motion rather than taking action: you want to delay failure.

It's easy to be in motion and convince yourself you're still making progress.

You think:

"I've got conversations going with four potential clients. This is good. We're moving in the right direction."
or "I brainstormed some ideas for that book I want to write. This is coming together"

Motion makes you feel like you're getting things done. But really, you're just preparing to get something done.

James Clear said a sentence written with gold that you need to highlight, he said:

"When preparation becomes a form of procrastination, you need to change something"!

You don't want to be planning merely. You won't be practicing.

If you want to master a habit, the key is to start with repetition, not perfection.

You don't need to map out every feature of a new habit. You need to practice it.

This is the first takeaway of the 3rd law: You need to get your reps in.

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