Before & After: Do a Little Work, Every Single Day | Gretchen Rubin [Skip to content](#content) [ ![](https://gretchenrubin.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/gretchenrubin-logo-768x344.png) ](https://gretchenrubin.com) - January 3, 2014 - [Habit-change strategies](https://gretchenrubin.com/tag/habit-change-strategies/) # Before & After: Do a Little Work, Every Single Day ![desk with laptop notes and plant](https://gretchenrubin.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/desk-e1532538707268.jpg) I*’m writing my next book, [**Better Than Before**](/books/better-than-before/about-the-book/), about how we make and break habits–an issue very relevant to happiness. Each week, I’ll post a before-and-after story submitted by a reader, about how he or she successfully changed a habit. We can all learn from each other.* This week’s story comes from **[Caroline McGraw](http://awishcomeclear.com/blog/about/welcome/)—**you can also check out her blog, [**A Wish Come Clear.**](http://awishcomeclear.com/) > *I changed my habit of working on “scary” writing projects sporadically. Now, when I’m working on a big creative writing project—a book, a proposal, a guest post, etc.—I work on it every day. **With the exception of 1 weekly day of rest, I make sure to do at least a little bit each morning**.* > > *I love (and often repeat) the Anthony Trollope line you quote in your books, **“A small daily task, if it be really daily, will beat the efforts of a spasmodic Hercules.**” Committing to a daily task helps me maintain momentum, and it also helps render the task less terrifying. (If I work on it every day, it simply CAN’T be that scary—it’s just part of my routine, after all!)* > > *I’ve also noticed that, if I skip a day, it’s that much harder to get back to the habit. And if I skip yet another day, it’s as though Mt. Everest springs up between me and getting back on track. If I write every day, though, the barrier between me and good habits is more like a pastoral English countryside hill. Like something out of a Jane Austen novel, a rise that Elizabeth Bennett could scale without breaking a sweat.* > > *Working on big writing projects is challenging because so much uncertainty is involved; often, I have no assurances of acceptance or publication. **No assurances but one, that is: that the very process of doing the work is its own reward. And that’s why I write every day: to enjoy the process itself, and to give myself something to count on in an uncertain world.*** A couple insights jumped out at me from this terrific Before and After story. First, I too have noticed that weirdly,**[ it’s often easier to do something practically every day](http://gretchenrubin.com/happiness_project/2012/10/why-i-try-to-do-some-things-every-day-without-exception/) than to do it once in a while or four times a week**. The more you do something, the more it becomes a part of your ordinary day. It doesn’t make you nervous, it doesn’t feel intimidating, it doesn’t feel like a special burden or extra credit. Also, one of my habit strategies is the [**Strategy of Starting**](http://gretchenrubin.com/happiness_project/2013/12/before-and-after-wake-up-15-minutes-earlier-and-put-the-alarm-clock-out-of-reach/), and I’ve noticed that while starting is *hard*, starting over is often *much harder*. Once we’ve started down a positive path, it’s very, very valuable not to let ourselves stop. Because starting over is hard. Another strategy used here is the [**Strategy of Scheduling**](http://gretchenrubin.com/happiness_project/2013/11/before-and-after-work-on-a-ph-d-thesis-from-600-900-a-m/). Whether daily, weekly, or whatever, just putting a task into your schedule–finding an exact place for it in your calendar–makes it easier to get it done. There’s an odd power to the schedule. Have you found that making a daily habit of a certain task makes it easier? #### YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE ![a couple of women riding bikes down a road](https://gretchenrubin.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/gyafawjmrw8-768x511.jpg) [How to Find the Right Exercise Routine for You](https://gretchenrubin.com/articles/want-an-exercise-routine-youll-stick-to-ask-yourself-these-11-questions/) ![Photo through the lens of glasses looking at an eye chart.](https://gretchenrubin.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/eyeglassesclarity.jpg?resize=768,514) [The Strategy of Clarity: How to Make Sure Your Habits Match Your Goals](https://gretchenrubin.com/articles/video-why-having-clarity-of-values-and-clarity-of-action-helps-us-keep-our-habits/) ![Arrow pointing in direction of a path](https://gretchenrubin.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/nick-page-MDeevV3gSAI-unsplash.jpg) [How to Use Determination Day to Get Failed Resolutions Back on Track](https://gretchenrubin.com/articles/slowing-down-on-your-resolutions-use-determination-day-to-re-evaluate/) #### DISCOVER MORE # Like what you see? 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