I subscribe to the New York Times, and every morning receive
a newsletter (The Morning) that
highlights articles. Today there was an
article link: Build a streak. It leads to healthy habits and a sense of
well-being.
I clicked on the link and was brought to the article: A Surefire Way to Be More Productive.
They quote a scientist who cites two behavioral reasons that
streaks work: loss aversion and potential gain.
The potential gain motivates someone to pursue the
streak. Loss aversion motivates someone
for fear that failing to complete the streak will cause distress. They cite research that suggests “the fear of
losing it (the streak) can be stronger than the motivating power of simply
gaining another day.”
There is great truth in this.
I am currently involved in two streaks, and there is a third
that I have attempted but not kept up with.
The first streak – The Hot Dog Diet, I am now on Day 101. This has not been a hard streak to keep up as
I really enjoy my daily hot dog. It has
also led to two smaller streaks that I have not been counting the days on but
are significant. No beer or soda for
quite a while. I have not had any desire
for beer, but the urge for a diet Coke remains strong, and only the fear that
if I break the streak, I will soon be back to having a 20 ounce coke a day
keeps me hanging on.
The second streak involves chess. I play chess daily on chess.com. I don’t play against other players, just
against bots. I have played against
other players, but I get too nervous.
When I play against the bots, it is relaxing. I am on Day 240 of the streak, so I make
certain every day to play at least one game.
One nice feature of the chess.com streak is if you happen to miss a day,
if you play the next day, they will restore the streak. A one-day grace day is a fine allowance to
keep you going.