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Book Review: Atomic Habits by James Clear

I’ve long found routine and reward to be the quickest doorway to productivity and joy. As a writer and a runner and a human being, I’ve relied heavily on the power of a consistent routine. As a result, I was already primed to accept Clear’s message, but I also didn’t think I had much more to learn about the power of habit. Well, I’m happy to say I was wrong. I originally listened to Atomic Habits as an audiobook but got so much out of it that I went out and bought the physical copy as well.

What I found in Atomic Habits was a book that is endlessly practical, full of instructions for small changes you can make to your daily life to create big results over time. Just as valuable, and perhaps more impactful for me personally, were the mindset shifts Atomic Habits inspires. Before I’d even finished the book I’d already started making changes, and I’ve never had so much confidence in my ability the shape the trajectory of my life.

Key Points:

Habits shape the people we become
Like compound interest, small habits repeated over time produce amazing gains – far more than surges and gullies of productivity ever could. Every action you take, Clear says, is a vote for the person you want to become.

It reminds me of that gorgeous Annie Dillard quote: “How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives. What we do with this hour, and that one, is what we are doing.” What do you do every day? That is who you really are. Build a life one habit at a time and you’ll be surprised how quickly you can become the person you most want to be.

The reward comes for showing up, not for how much you get done
Perhaps the biggest barrier I’ve found to maintaining a long term practice of any kind – from half-marathon training to novel writing – is that life gets in the way. Life is full of events you can’t plan for. Sickness, pandemics, losing your job. No matter how perfect your plan, something will always go wrong.

Clear’s method is so valuable because he emphasizes the power of showing up, even on your bad days. “Reduce the scope,” he says on his blog, but “stick to the schedule.” Write for ten minutes, even if your original intention was to write for four. Lace up your sneakers and go for a walk on the days you can’t run due to injury or illness. The important thing is to maintain the habit so when life calms down you can pick it right back up again, rather than starting over.

Your bad days are even more valuable than your good ones.

When I first started running a friend told me: “There’s no such thing as a bad run.” I scoffed, having just piked out of a 10k run at the 15 minute mark due to insane heat and 100% humidity. I was so disappointed in myself and I carried that discouragement with me until I was able to manage the full 10k a week later.

Turns out, my friend was right. If I had skipped that run due to the awful conditions, it would have set me back far more than my terrible 15 minute effort. The lesson this “bad” run taught me was that I create my life, not my conditions. A bad day has an important role in solidifying your good habits. If I had understood that then I would have limped back to my car with a smile on my face: I am a runner, even on my bad days.

Top Quotes

“Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become. No single instance will transform your beliefs, but as the votes build up, so does the evidence of your new identity.”

“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.”

“When you fall in love with the process rather than the product, you don’t have to wait to give yourself permission to be happy. You can be satisfied anytime your system is running.”

Takeaways for Creatives
1. Pay attention to what you do before your creative practice. The habits you maintain that support your work are just as important as the work itself.
2. Reward yourself for showing up, not just for what you produce at the end of the day.
3. Small actions repeated daily have huge impact over time.

Almanac Recommends

I can’t recommend this book highly enough. It’s for anyone who wants to become a better writer, artist, athlete or human being. If you’ve found yourself in some negative cycles you’re struggling to get out of, or if you’re ready to take your daily practice to the next level, this is the book for you.

Being a creative person is about living a creative life. A person who writes a page a day will have more pages at the end of their life than a person who writes a hundred pages a couple of times a year. The more you focus on the kind of person you want to be, the happier and more productive you will ultimately be.

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Q&A with Michael on Almanac Scribe Pens

Introducing the Almanac Scribe Pen. We’ve spent months developing this gorgeous new addition to the Almanac range, and we’re so happy with the final product. To celebrate, we’re giving you a glimpse into the process of designing a pen completely from scratch with this Q&A with Michael, who took point on the pen development process. Enjoy!

– Why pens?

Beth and I have been kicking around the idea of incorporating pens into the Almanac Press product line since we got our first batch of Almanac notebooks. It’s a natural progression – people need to write in their Almanacs with something, why not with a pen from Almanac Press?

– How did you find a pen maker? Why them?

Veridian Pen Studio actually reached out to us! We’d been looking at eco pen suppliers, but there was nothing that really jumped out at us in terms of craftsmanship or sustainable practise. After talking with Rochelle and Brad, we discovered their hearts were in the same place as ours – we both want our products to have a positive impact on the people who use them, and the planet we all inhabit. Rochelle and Brad had been searching for 18 months to find notebooks that matched their values and quality standards, and have become amazing wholesale partners as a result of this relationship

– How did you choose the timber the pen would be made from?

We wanted the pens to be made out of a light coloured reclaimed timber, rather than virgin wood. Rochelle began a quest to find the perfect timber for the pen blanks to be made from – which was temporarily interrupted by a COVID lockdown in Brisbane. Rochelle ended up finding the perfect timber – hoop pine which was originally part of a 100+ year old house in Gympie, QLD.

– How did you choose the fittings?

We knew we wanted a lighter timber for the body, so we really wanted a darker colour to provide a dramatic contrast and lean into an industrial style. The click mechanism eliminates the risk of losing a pen lid, and features timber as its primary resource.  This means fewer metal and plastic parts required than ballpoint fixings featuring a cap.

– Why a ballpoint pen rather than a fountain pen?

That consideration was mostly about testing the waters. Almanac Press has a huge fountain pen audience we love and appreciate, but we wanted to start with something every day Almanac users could use as their daily driver. Fountain pens can be a little intimidating for new users, and people who use fountain pens have preferred nibs, body shapes, and ink types. We need to spend more time researching something our fountain pen lovers will enjoy using.

– Do you have more pens coming?

I think I kind of just gave that away! We’re keen to explore a fountain pen expansion, but we want to take our time to find the perfect style of fountain pen with the quality and style that Almanac Press customers have come to expect, which I’m sure Veridian Pen Studio will be an important part of.

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1000 Trees Planted

“The way to look after Australian wilderness and wildlife is to work with the communities. They’re the heroes of this piece. They’re the ones who do the work.”
– Ian Darbyshire, CEO Foundation for National Parks and Wildlife.

Almanac started on a sunny day in November. We woke early to deliver a box of notebooks to our friends at Secret Book Stuff, our first wholesalers, and then headed to the park to celebrate Finley’s first birthday. It wasn’t an accident that we started our company on our daughter’s birthday. Almanac was born from a desire to make the world better for our daughter. To sell quality recycled paper goods, and to plant trees.

A few months later, our country was devastated by a series of bushfires, and we became determined to be part of the recovery efforts. Whenever you purchased a notebook, a sleeve, or a greeting card, we planted a tree in a reforestation area, largely on the south coast of NSW.

Today, I’m so happy to tell you that together we have planted 1000 trees since Almanac began!

We’re often asked how the tree planting works, and this seems like a perfect opportunity to answer all your questions and get into the nitty-gritty of planting trees.

Here’s how it works:

You buy an Almanac, we send funds to One Tree Planted

We chose One Tree Planted as a partner organisation because they are committed to working with local community groups to plant native trees in rehabilitation areas. They understand that the best way to ensure the long-term protection of reforestation areas is invest in the people who live there.

In Australia, One Tree Planted partners with the Foundation for National Parks and Wildlife, and Greening Australia.

“The Foundation for National Parks and Wildlife are working with One Tree Planted on launching Bushfire Recovery Nurseries around Australia to replace the loss of the 2019-2020 bushfires. We’re looking to plant over a million trees over the next five years to replant and replace vegetation that was lost.”
– Ian Darbyshire, CEO Foundation for National Parks and Wildlife

Image copyright Matt Hill & One Tree Planted

Bushfire Recovery Nurseries

One Tree Planted and their local partners have started three Bushfire Recovery Nurseries in the Blue Mountains, Canberra, and Yankalilla, South Australia, where your trees will be grown from seeds. Each nursery is run by local community groups and has the capacity of growing 40,000-160,000 native trees.

“It’s also a project that focuses on engaging communities that have been impacted by bushfires. We have a really amazing network of environmental and community organisations that are doing really great work in this space. So, to be able to put all of that amazing research and those skills to work is a really exciting opportunity.”
– Beth Dagleish, Ecosystem Director, One Tree Planted

Image copyright Matt Hill & One Tree Planted

Your trees are planted

When the seedlings are ready, they are then planted and cared for by local volunteers in bushfire affected regions. Because these groups are local to the area, they know the importance of long-term investment. Native plants and local communities are the keys to long-term rehabilitation success.

“Our volunteers come from many different age groups and backgrounds. Lots of them have actually been coming for more than 20 years.”
– Maryanne Bailey, Senior Program Officer, Greening Australia

Image copyright Matt Hill & One Tree Planted

1000 trees to 1 million trees

Together, you and Almanac have planted 1000 trees. That’s an amazing achievement, but it’s small compared to the need. That’s why we, and hundreds of other businesses like ours, are planting trees with One Tree Planted and the Foundation for National Parks and Wildlife, who aim to plant over a million trees over the next few years.

On our own, we can make a difference. Together, we can change the world.

“We’re building parks and protecting species for the future generations of Australia.”
– Ian Darbyshire, CEO Foundation for National Parks and Wildlife

That Almanac sitting on your desk right now represents one sapling growing in a nursery, or freshly planted and cared for by a team of devoted tree planters. It represents land regenerated, habitats restored.

With your Almanac, you’re supporting communities, growing a forest, and preserving Australia’s wilderness areas for future generations.