If you want to build a habit and do something on a consistent basis, set the bar low.

When we set daily or weekly goals, we find the ideal number/amount and set it as our goal. For example, when thinking about reading every day, you might set a goal of reading 50 pages a day. And you might achieve the goal for a couple of days in a row. Then life happens - you have a busy day, you are unproductive, etc. And the consistency is out the door. Doing it next day becomes harder.

Building habits is about building streaks. You want to build a streak of a certain number of consecutive days reading every day. After you have built up a streak, the goal becomes to keep the streak going. It's the dopamine hit you get from checking off every day that keeps the habit going for a long time. Since you don't see the benefits of reading for a while, you need a daily reward to keep the habit going.

Your days are unpredictable. Some days you will have the time to reach a high goal, but some days you won't. That's why having a low bar helps you keep your habit going even on busy days. Most of the time, you end up over-achieving you daily goal.

If you want to read consistently, set a goal of 10 pages a day. If you want to meditate consistently, meditate 1 minute a day. And if you want to build a habit of writing, write 100 words a day.

To build a habit, set the bar low.