The Principles of Psychology

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1. 01

   Habits are like paths worn through grass: the more often you walk the same route, the easier and more automatic it becomes to follow again.

   The Principles of Psychology · 1890

   Habits become well‑trod paths in the mind, and repetition makes them easier to follow without conscious effort.

   James said every repeated action leaves a deeper trace in the brain, just as repeated footsteps leave a visible path through a meadow. At first you must concentrate to tie a shoelace or learn a new letter. After enough repetition, the body does it almost by itself, with no conscious effort.

   “Habit is thus the enormous fly-wheel of society, its most precious conservative agent.”

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