Habits are the foundation of mastery. Knowing the simple movements so well that you can perform them without thinking frees you to think about more advanced details. However, falling into mindless repetition can make doing it better not possible. You get used to doing things a certain way and miss that you are making errors. You can be reinforcing your current habits rather than improving them. In fact, mastery can cause a slight decline in performance. For certain habits, good enough is good enough (brushing your teeth). To achieve elite levels, you cannot be blind. You need a combination of automatic habits and deliberate practice. Automatic habits + deliberate practice is what results in mastery. It is precisely when things start to feel automatic, you must avoid slipping into complacency. Establish a system of review.

The way to be successful: learn to do things right, and then do them right every time. Reflection and review enables the long-term improvement of all habits. It helps you to find paths to improvement. Top performers engage in various types of reflection and review. Improvement is not only forming habits but also focusing on the right things and improving habits. Do not continue practicing a habit if it is ineffective. Reflect on progress: what went well? what didn't go well? what did I learn? An integrity report can help you see how well you lived in alignment with your core values and as the type of person you want to be. What are the core values that drive me? How am I living with integrity now? How can I set a higher standard in the future? Consider how your habits are helping you become the type of person you wish to be. You might need to draw back on certain things and focus more on fundamentals. Do not lose sight of the bigger picture. Periodic reflection and review let you see the changes you can make without missing the bigger picture. Periodic reflection and review of your habits to see if they are being effective is also an ideal time to revisit your identity.

Break the beliefs that hold you back. Repeating a habit builds of evidence of your identity. The same beliefs might hold you back from the next level of growth. This can be a downside. The more sacred, and deep an idea is, the more it is attached to the identity, the more we defend it against criticism. Clinging to an identity makes it hard to grow beyond it. Keep your identity small. The more you let something define you, the less you will be able to adapt. The loss of that facet of your life would wreck you. Clinging too tightly to one identity means you become brittle. If you lose that, you will lose yourself. Someone who defines themselves in a way and then that disappears will wonder who they are. The key is to define yourself such that you get to keep important aspects of your identity even if your role changes. Instead of I am an athlete, I am mentally tough and enjoy a challenge. Instead of I am a CEO, I am the type of person who builds and creates things. Identities chosen effectively can be flexible and work with changing circumstances.

quote
Men are born soft and supple. Dead, they are stiff and hard.
Plants are born tender and pliant. Dead, they are brittle and dry.
Thus, whoever is stiff and inflexible is a disciple of death.
Whoever is soft and yielding is a disciple of life.
The hard and the stiff will be broken.
The soft and the supple will prevail.

Habits can lock us in to previous patterns and thinking. Life is constantly changing so you must check that your previous habits and beliefs are not holding you back.