How to Trick Your Brain Into Loving Hard Habits (Without Relying on Motivation)

How Small Actions Create Big Change

The Clockmaker and the Broken Gears

In a small town, an old clockmaker inherited a magnificent but broken clock tower. The hands had stopped moving years ago, and no one could fix it. People had tried cranking the largest gear—the one that moved the clock hands—but it wouldn’t budge. It was simply too heavy.

The clockmaker didn’t try to force it. Instead, he examined the intricate system of gears inside. At the base of the mechanism, he found a small gear, rusted in place. He cleaned it, gave it a gentle push, and it started to turn.

Slowly, the small gear caught another, slightly larger gear, which then turned the next, transferring energy up through the system. As each gear engaged, the force built up until finally, the largest gear—the one everyone had tried to move directly—began to turn. The clock hands came to life, marking time once again.

This is exactly how habits work.