The full catalog
Habits for focus
531 entries pulled from 54 stacks. Default order is consensus: the number of tracked people who have publicly backed each one.
40 entries
Reset- HabitFREE, no cost01
Daily reading
A fixed daily reading block, usually books rather than feeds
Backed by 24 of 54 stacks: 22 do it, 2 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost02
Daily meditation
10-20 minutes of formal practice, most days
Backed by 20 of 54 stacks: 16 do it, 1 recommend it, 3 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost03
Deliberate solitude
Regular time with your own thoughts and no other inputs
Backed by 12 of 54 stacks: 9 do it, 3 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost04
Early rising
A fixed, early wake time, often before anyone else is awake
Backed by 11 of 54 stacks: 10 do it, 0 recommend it, 1 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost05
Daily writing
Write something every day, published or not
Backed by 8 of 54 stacks: 6 do it, 2 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost06
Napping
Short early-afternoon naps: useful, but easy to get wrong
Backed by 6 of 54 stacks: 4 do it, 1 recommend it, 1 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost07
Phone out of the bedroom
Charge it in another room and buy an actual alarm clock
Backed by 6 of 54 stacks: 4 do it, 2 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost08
Phone-free first hour
No email, news or social media until you have done something of your own
Backed by 6 of 54 stacks: 4 do it, 2 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost09
Pre-workout music
Headphones on, a set playlist, and a fixed cue to switch into training mode
Backed by 5 of 54 stacks: 5 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost10
Daily prayer
A fixed time for prayer each morning, before the phone and before the day starts
Backed by 4 of 54 stacks: 4 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost11
Personal mantra
A quote kept where you will see it before you perform, taped up or written on your gear
Backed by 4 of 54 stacks: 4 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost12
Thinking retreats
Blocks of time cleared of the schedule to sit with one hard problem
Backed by 4 of 54 stacks: 3 do it, 0 recommend it, 1 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost13
Margin notes
Writing in the margins while reading, especially where you disagree with the author
Backed by 3 of 54 stacks: 2 do it, 1 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost14
Written goal sheet
Goals written down, in numbers, and kept where you see them every morning
Backed by 3 of 54 stacks: 3 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - Habit$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.15
Bridge
Contract bridge, played at a table or online, several sessions a week
Backed by 2 of 54 stacks: 2 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost16
Open calendar
An appointment book kept almost empty so most days are free for reading and thinking
Backed by 2 of 54 stacks: 2 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost17
Quitting social media
Deleting the accounts rather than trying to use them less
Backed by 2 of 54 stacks: 2 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - Habit$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.18
Antilibrary
Shelves holding more unread books than read ones, kept that way deliberately
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost19
Asking for criticism
Book regular time with your manager and ask what you should be doing better
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 0 do it, 1 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost20
Batch processing email
Sit down once and clear thirty or a hundred messages in a run
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost21
Chess
Short games used as a mental reset between blocks of demanding work
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost22
Daily design
Writing the day ahead in the past tense, then scoring it out of ten at night
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - Habit$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.23
Jigsaw puzzles
Thousand-piece puzzles as a screen-free way to switch the mind off
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost24
Jotting ideas the night before
Rough notes at bedtime, organized writing the next morning
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost25
Learning something new daily
A short block each day on a skill you have never had before
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 0 do it, 1 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost26
Mastery hobbies
Recovering through a demanding hobby rather than through rest
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - Habit$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.27
Morning newspapers
A stack of print papers read start to finish before the working day begins
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost28
Naming your inner critic
Give the voice in your head a name so you can hear it as separate from you
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 0 do it, 1 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost29
No meetings
Declining meetings and answering in writing instead
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost30
No television
Cutting TV out of solo hours, keeping it as something done with other people
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost31
No-phone zones
Named rooms, hours and events where the phone is not allowed at all
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost32
Notifications turned off
No alerts, no badges and no social apps, so the phone only interrupts when you let it
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost33
Phone away in conversation
Put the phone out of sight when someone starts talking to you
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 0 do it, 1 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost34
Quitting the news
Dropping the daily news cycle rather than trying to follow it more carefully
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost35
Reading books out of order
Many books open at once, opened at whatever section fits your mood that day
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost36
Reading history
Put the reading hours into what already happened rather than into forecasts
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost37
Rereading a small set of books
Going back through the best hundred books repeatedly rather than chasing new ones
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost38
Rewriting notes by hand
Copying the same material out longhand, daily, until it sticks
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost39
Training as practice
Treating a session as skill rehearsal rather than a workout to be survived
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 0 do it, 1 recommend it, 0 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost40
Water before coffee
A full glass of water on waking, before the first cup of coffee
Backed by 1 of 54 stacks: 1 do it, 0 recommend it, 0 have discussed it
Not medical advice. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or reviewed by anyone listed.