A keen running friend of mine once noted that when preparing for a marathon, many people neglect focusing on consecutive run hours. In other words, many people put their focus on achieving distances rather than running for time. They assume the aggregate of their running hours will suffice.

In certain cases, like people who have done it before, it might just.

But when you’re trying to build a habit, time on task is about as important a principle as it gets.

Rather than focusing on doing the task well, first focus on doing the bare minimum. Focus on the sensation of doing it, on getting a feel for it, on getting the knack for it, rather than results.

Then, focus on linking these sensations together.

Soon you will start to feel more slack, and you will be able to go further for longer. It is the combination of these sensations that leads to the results you wanted in the first place.