Can you pretend to behave in a way that…
Can you pretend to behave in a way that you would like to behave in order to create a habit? Is this self-help? Be the change that you want to see. Change. Self-help. Habit.
— from Expanding Your Range (Growth/Change/Education/Learning/Habit) · Sick Souls, Healthy Minds- How William James Can Save Your Life by John Kaag
In the book
A few deeper truths about habit have served me more than any single technique. Become the person, and the behavior follows. You can change your own traits by consistently behaving like the kind of person you want to be — acting your way into a new self rather than waiting to feel like it; pretend, if you must, until the pretense becomes who you are. Do not rely on willpower — design your world. The self is conflicted and willpower is weak, so rather than fighting yourself, arrange your surroundings to nudge you toward the behavior you wish you wanted; make the good thing the default and the bad thing inconvenient. — Expanding Your Range (Growth/Change/Education/Learning/Habit)