Better Than Before by Gretchen Rubin

"Better than Before" by Gretchen Rubin was the first self development book I chose for the 75 hard challenge that I started at the beginning of the year. It took me three weeks to read because the goal was to read ten pages a day (maybe it was at least ten). My favorite, most real quote from this book is: "Keeping up is easier than catching up." (p 68) This rings true especially when it comes to house cleaning. If you do a little a day, there is no build up and you have a nice house if people stop by. If you know me at all, you know that I hate cleaning. I like being organized, but hate the act of cleaning.

Gretchen Rubin

In the past, I was always a tomorrow girl. I'll do the laundry tomorrow. I'll wash those dishes tomorrow. Guess what? If everything is tomorrow, then you don't have to clean! YAY! Oh wait, that can't be what this book taught me. We can talk about that tomorrow. :)

"The desire to start something at the 'right' time is usually just a justification for delay. In almost every case, the best time to start is now." (p 77) This one has always been surrounded by food. In the past, I would always plan my new eating habits after a holiday, with the new year, on a Monday... no, not this Monday, next Monday. The only  best time to start is now. This day, whatever meal you're on. This can be with more than just food too. It could be with looking for a new job, getting a hair cut, moving out, writing, school... the sky is the limit here.

"Don't get it perfect, get it going." (p 103) I wouldn't call myself a perfectionist; however, there are some things that I like getting just right. I like my groceries bagged a certain way. I like organizing my refrigerator a certain way. I like to do tons of research and planning before a writing project and then end up not writing because it's not perfect yet. This year, 2020, is different. I'm allowing myself for my first draft of my new novel to be a shitty first draft (SFD). Because you know what?A SFD is 75,000 times better than nothing at all. Embrace what you want to accomplish and do it bad. Learn and grow from your mistakes, but just go do it.

"It's natural to think, "Oh, I did this before, it will be easy to do it again," but often it's much harder to start again." (p 113) Starting again is probably one of the single most difficult things one can do. There was a point where we were basically just eating chicken and vegetables (no carbs, no sugar) and we lost a ton of weight. I've tried in recent years and starting over is the single hardest thing I've ever done. And guess what... it lasted for about three days (maybe less) before I gave up. I just couldn't get back into that groove again.

Overall, I've given this book four out of five stars. I thought it had a great deal of information and advice on habits (several I want to incorporate into my life). I learned that of the four tendencies, Rubin discusses: Obliger, Questioner, Upholder, Rebel, I am an upholder. I like creating rules and goals and I enjoy ticking off when I complete something. One of my favorite parts of the book is the realization that everyone practices their habits differently and there is no wrong way to do them. You do you. Always. Be you. Are you interested in what your tendency is? Try Gretchen Rubin's official Four Tendencies Quiz!

Now that I have completed Gretchen Rubin's "Better than Before" I will be starting on James Scott Bell's "The Art of War for Writers" to continue my self development journey with 75 hard. This is a smaller book about fiction writing strategies, tactics, and exercises. I am very much looking forward to diving into this.