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The don’t break the chain thing is nice. I’ve used it a few times, but it can be very demotivational when you had a super long chain and you broke it. It’s very

The don’t break the chain thing is nice. I’ve used it a few times, but it can be very demotivational when you had a super long chain and you broke it. It’s very hard to get momentum again.

billti 4y ago
Same. Stuck at a “modest” diet & exercise habit daily for 8 months with great results. Then I stopped for a couple days and haven’t been able to “keep the chain” going again since. From the article: > While most people get demotivated and off–track after a bad performance, a bad workout, or simply a bad day at work, top performers settle right back into their pattern the next day. I think that’s the key (which I’ve not mastered). With things like Alcoholics Anonymous, meditation practice, etc. they say “If you break the chain, then don’t beat yourself up, just start again”. But obviously if keeping up the streak is a big part of the motivation, then once it’s broken that’s going to demotivate.
- _gabe_ 4y ago
  I've done the big red X and felt the pain of breaking the chain as well. Instead of that, I've started just listing the number of days of my latest chain on a whiteboard, and if I hit 30 days then I reset it to 0. This helps me not feel bad when I miss a day, but still gives me the feeling of don't break the chain. I've been doing it for about 3 months and I'll see if it continues to works out :)
  - SyneRyder 4y ago
    I've noticed that Duolingo is does something similar. They have a streak wager feature where you bet a few gems on how long you can keep a streak going, but four weeks is the maximum. After that the wager resets to zero and you start over, trying again for a perfect month. There's also the Duolingo "streak freeze" - give yourself a couple of freeze tokens in reserve that you can use if you miss a day. Give yourself a way to earn streak freeze tokens again if you use one (eg maybe if you get 30 days in a row again). I'm currently on a 2000+ day streak on Duolingo, and while I've definitely missed days over those 5+ years, the streak freezes mean I've never missed more than a day in a row over that time. Gives an incentive to regroup and restart immediately if you do break the chain, rather than losing all motivation.
s1artibartfast 4y ago
I like averages for that reason. You can still play numbers go up, but is not nearly as devastating when you slip up. It is all about the trend
orev 4y ago
A solution to this might be to plan the breaks ahead of time, or shoot for chains in defined lengths (like 5 days in a row). This gives you time to rest without feeling guilty, and prevents having long chains that can let you down if broken. If you time it right, you end up with weekdays for work and weekends for rest.
akrakesh 4y ago
I've always thought 'don't break the chain' is a flawed technique. When you do something not because you want or have to do it, but for the sake of not breaking the chain, the first time you break the chain you'd realize that you can break it again by telling an excuse to yourself without much regret. Making excuses would become a habit, and you'd be back to square one.
listenallyall 4y ago
Agreed. I started playing Wordle. My streak was around 70 or 80 days. Then I lost once. I have never played Wordle since.
kamaal 4y ago
Never miss twice is generally a good doctrine to follow. Of course not breaking the chain demands a certain precondition, let not getting sick. Not neglecting minor chores daily, that they might some day take a week of your time. Things like that. That given, its generally hard to break the chain. In fact it might become something like addiction after a while, a.k.a habit.

The don’t break the chain thing is nice. I’ve used it a few times, but it can be very demotivational when you had a super long chain and you broke it. It’s very hard to get momentum again.

billti 4y ago

Same. Stuck at a “modest” diet & exercise habit daily for 8 months with great results. Then I stopped for a couple days and haven’t been able to “keep the chain” going again since. From the article: > While most people get demotivated and off–track after a bad performance, a bad workout, or simply a bad day at work, top performers settle right back into their pattern the next day. I think that’s the key (which I’ve not mastered). With things like Alcoholics Anonymous, meditation practice, etc. they say “If you break the chain, then don’t beat yourself up, just start again”. But obviously if keeping up the streak is a big part of the motivation, then once it’s broken that’s going to demotivate.

_gabe_ 4y ago
I've done the big red X and felt the pain of breaking the chain as well. Instead of that, I've started just listing the number of days of my latest chain on a whiteboard, and if I hit 30 days then I reset it to 0. This helps me not feel bad when I miss a day, but still gives me the feeling of don't break the chain. I've been doing it for about 3 months and I'll see if it continues to works out :)
- SyneRyder 4y ago
  I've noticed that Duolingo is does something similar. They have a streak wager feature where you bet a few gems on how long you can keep a streak going, but four weeks is the maximum. After that the wager resets to zero and you start over, trying again for a perfect month. There's also the Duolingo "streak freeze" - give yourself a couple of freeze tokens in reserve that you can use if you miss a day. Give yourself a way to earn streak freeze tokens again if you use one (eg maybe if you get 30 days in a row again). I'm currently on a 2000+ day streak on Duolingo, and while I've definitely missed days over those 5+ years, the streak freezes mean I've never missed more than a day in a row over that time. Gives an incentive to regroup and restart immediately if you do break the chain, rather than losing all motivation.

s1artibartfast 4y ago

I like averages for that reason. You can still play numbers go up, but is not nearly as devastating when you slip up. It is all about the trend

orev 4y ago

A solution to this might be to plan the breaks ahead of time, or shoot for chains in defined lengths (like 5 days in a row). This gives you time to rest without feeling guilty, and prevents having long chains that can let you down if broken. If you time it right, you end up with weekdays for work and weekends for rest.

akrakesh 4y ago

I've always thought 'don't break the chain' is a flawed technique. When you do something not because you want or have to do it, but for the sake of not breaking the chain, the first time you break the chain you'd realize that you can break it again by telling an excuse to yourself without much regret. Making excuses would become a habit, and you'd be back to square one.

listenallyall 4y ago

Agreed. I started playing Wordle. My streak was around 70 or 80 days. Then I lost once. I have never played Wordle since.

kamaal 4y ago

Never miss twice is generally a good doctrine to follow. Of course not breaking the chain demands a certain precondition, let not getting sick. Not neglecting minor chores daily, that they might some day take a week of your time. Things like that. That given, its generally hard to break the chain. In fact it might become something like addiction after a while, a.k.a habit.