Habit is dumb, practice is smart

A habit is a practice that never gets better.

A practice is a habit that keeps getting better.

A habit is dumb, whereas a practice keeps getting better and better.

Most jobs are mere habits. Once you learn how to do something, you just keep doing it. You don't really improve, and the proof is that your salary stays more or less the same year after year. (The little raise most people get is so laughable it's almost insulting).

Law practices or consulting practices, on the other hand, are a different matter. You rise up the ladder fairly quickly if you are good, eventually becoming a partner who owns a stake in the company.

That's why they call it a law "practice" or a medical "practice": the more you practice, the better you get. And the more you earn.

The success secret is to identify all the habits in your life, and turn them into opportunities to practice something.

To make the practice interesting, keep a balance between the "level of difficulty" and your "skill level."

If you try something too difficult, you will fail and might feel depressed. If you try something too easy, or for which you are overskilled, you may find it boring.

The key is to remember that a habit usually doesn't generate feedback, which means you cannot improve.

Practice does generate feedback, and to the extent that you understand and learn from the feedback, you will become a better person.