Habit Dictionary
Clear definitions for habit tracking, behavior change, and personal development terms.
Atomic Habits
Atomic Habits is James Clear's framework for building better habits through small, incremental changes that compound over time, built around four laws of behavior change.
Cue-Routine-Reward
Cue-routine-reward is the three-part structure underlying every habit: a trigger starts the behavior, the behavior runs, and a payoff reinforces it.
Habit Loop
The habit loop is the neurological cycle of cue, routine, and reward that drives automatic behavior, first described by Charles Duhigg in The Power of Habit.
Implementation Intention
An implementation intention is an if-then plan that specifies when, where, and how you will act on a goal. See examples and learn how this technique boosts follow-through by 2-3x.
Never Miss Twice
Never Miss Twice is James Clear's rule for habit resilience: missing one day is inevitable, but missing two consecutive days starts a new (bad) pattern.
Two-Minute Rule
The Two-Minute Rule is a productivity and habit-building heuristic with two versions: do quick tasks immediately (GTD) or scale new habits down to two minutes (Atomic Habits).
Bounce-Back Rate
Bounce-back rate is the share of missed habit days you recover from on the very next scheduled occurrence. Here's the formula, a worked example, and its limits.
Completion Rate
Completion rate is the percentage of scheduled habit occurrences you actually completed. Learn how to calculate it, segment it, and pick a target you can hold.
Habit Formation
Habit formation is the process by which new behaviors become automatic through repetition. Research shows it takes an average of 66 days, not 21.
Habit Stacking
Habit stacking is a behavior change technique where you link a new habit to an existing one, using the old behavior as a trigger for the new.
Habit Tracking
Habit tracking is the practice of monitoring whether you complete your daily habits. It creates awareness, accountability, and data for improvement.
Streak
A streak is the count of consecutive completions of a habit. Why streaks genuinely motivate people, what a reset actually costs, and when to use one.
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