Power of Keystone Habits!

“The truth is, small things often lead to big changes. Keystone habits start a process that, over time, transforms everything.” — Charles Duhigg

Have you ever changed one thing in your life and suddenly, everything else started falling into place?

Like when you started waking up 30 minutes earlier and, before you knew it, you were journaling, eating better, and actually looking forward to your work?

That’s not luck.

That’s the invisible power of what’s called a keystone habit.

And it may just be the single most important shift you make if you’re serious about growing your side hustle into a thriving content-based business.

What Are Keystone Habits?

A keystone habit is a behavior that sets off a chain reaction changing and reshaping other behaviors in its wake.

Think of it like the first domino in a long row.

You push that one piece and… boom. Momentum builds.

One habit, many changes.

And here’s the best part—it doesn’t have to be big or dramatic.

It just has to be consistent and anchored in purpose.

My Wake-Up Call With Keystone Habits

Let me take you back to a time when I was neck-deep in corporate strategy decks and late-night calls with clients across three time zones.

I was trying to build my affiliate marketing side hustle on the side.

Which really meant cramming blog writing into late nights, repurposing emails during lunch breaks, and burning out slowly but surely.

I hit a wall.

Productivity hacks weren’t working.

Planners turned into to-do list cemeteries.

Then one day, I tried something different.

I decided to wake up 60 minutes earlier.. not to work, but to not work.

I started journaling.

Reading 10 pages of a business book.

Doing a short workout.

That single change – my morning routine became my keystone habit.

Within weeks, I had more energy.

I had more clarity.

My content got better.

I had ideas before sitting down to create.

The momentum from that one morning habit carried over into everything: productivity, content quality, time management, and most importantly, my belief in myself.

Why Keystone Habits Work

Keystone habits work not because they’re magical, but because they reshape your identity.

They say, “This is the kind of person I am.”

If you meditate every morning, you become someone who values presence.

If you write every day, you become a creator… no longer someone “trying to start a blog.”

And here’s what’s fascinating – these habits also spark something called “small wins.”

According to Charles Duhigg in The Power of Habit (a must-read), small wins fuel motivation and build confidence.

They also rewire your brain to expect progress.

It’s the same reason why James Clear, in Atomic Habits, emphasizes identity over outcomes.

Change who you are by changing what you do even if it’s just one thing.

Three Keystone Habits That Changed Everything For Me

Journaling for 10 Minutes Every Morning

I began writing down one thing I was grateful for, one thing I learned yesterday, and one goal for the day. This helped me track progress and feel momentum, even on tough days.

Reading 10 Pages a Day

From Deep Work by Cal Newport to Show Your Work by Austin Kleon – those 10 pages often sparked a week’s worth of content ideas.

Weekly Content Planning

Every Sunday evening, I’d open Notion and outline the week’s content. Blog posts, emails, podcast scripts – planned, not panicked.

How To Find Your Keystone Habit

If you’re wondering where to start, ask yourself this:

What’s one habit that, if done consistently, would make everything else easier or unnecessary?

That’s your keystone.

It might be a morning routine.

Or committing to publishing once a week.

Or something as simple as walking every afternoon to clear your mind and get your best ideas.

It doesn’t matter what the habit is. What matters is that it becomes the anchor for your day.

The Ripple Effect on Your Side Hustle

You might think: “How is journaling going to help me build a business?”

Here’s how.

It builds clarity.

That clarity helps you choose the right niche, refine your messaging, or know what content your audience really needs.

Then that momentum leads to more consistent creation.

And that consistent creation? It leads to trust, audience growth, and ultimately income.

All from one tiny, intentional change.

If You’re Feeling Stuck – Don’t Add More. Start With One.

Most of us try to fix burnout or overwhelm by adding new tools, buying planners, or taking another course.

But what if your transformation doesn’t need more tools. Just one consistent keystone habit?

Imagine what could happen if you gave yourself 20 minutes each day just to write.

Or 30 minutes each morning to move, read, or plan.

Or a Sunday evening ritual to plan content instead of just reacting to the week.

You don’t need to overhaul your entire life.

You just need one keystone.

Let that be the domino.

Book Recommendations To Dive Deeper

1. The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg Essential reading to understand how keystone habits shape everything else.
2. Atomic Habits by James Clear Simple, powerful strategies to start small and build lifelong change.
3. Deep Work by Cal Newport A deep dive into how focus can amplify the impact of your habits, especially for creators.

Your Turn

If you could only choose one habit to start this week – what would it be?

Seriously, take 30 seconds.

Write it down.

Commit to just 7 days.

Not to change everything, but to begin a chain reaction.

Because sometimes, everything changes when you change just one thing.

Recommended Newsletters

Here are few newsletters that I would recommend that you sign up to if you are interested in learning the art of running a side-hustle:

• Write, Build, Scale
• Why we buy
• The Book Bub
• The Stacked Marketer
• The Growth Bulletin
• Unconventional Productivity for Online Business Owners
• Side Hustle Weekly
• The Affiliate Guy
• I will teach you to be rich
• How Brands win
• For the Interested
• Send and Grow

Sign up to these and follow them. You will get a lot of information and content for your blog posts, podcasts and even social media posts.

I will share more such ideas in my future newsletters.

I put in about 18 hours every month to create this newsletter, starting from researching to writing and editing it.

So, If you enjoyed reading this Newsletter, I would sincerely appreciate it if you could recommend it to others. You can send them to https://thegrowthcreator.com to subscribe to it for FREE!

What am I reading?

I absolutely love books and I read a lot.

In fact, I don’t just read a lot, but I also take notes on every book that I read.

I have pages and pages of information in my Notion Second Brain, so that I can find them and use them when ever I need.

I have added some of the newest books that I have been reading, to the Amazon store, so you might want to check it out.

Want to know more about the books I read. You can check it out here!

That’s it for this week!

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