I wrote up a post this morning on micro-behaviours, triggers and rewards. Later on I was checking out Hacker News when I stumbled on this post by Alex Coleman, on how to get stuff done. Both posts refer to the same original work by Dr Fogg on micro-behaviours. In my post I emphasize using “triggers” to trigger the new habit, which may be an existing habit or environmental cue. In Alex's post, he puts a lot of emphasis on setting up a routine or schedule. The time itself becomes the trigger.

Whether you use time, an existing habit, or an environmental cue as the trigger to the micro-behaviour, I think the key is to create that connection between the trigger and the micro-behaviour. This may mean scheduling a reminder at the required time, putting a post-it note above the bathroom mirror, or something similar to remind yourself to do the desired thing at the appropriate moment, until the connection between the trigger and the behaviour is created.