[travisjungroth]

I wouldn't call my views on chains "pessimistic". I have ideas about their nature (good when things are good, bad when they're bad) and think they're usually (not always) misapplied.

I'm really not persuaded by your story because you don't actually seem to be engaging in "never break the chain" behavior. Like, can you tell me exactly how many days in a row you've journaled? Like, if you had a counter going in Duolingo or put a red X on a calendar every day in a row that you wrote a joke like Jerry Seinfeld? You seem to be engaged in the system of "do the thing almost every single day, however small, forgive yourself when you miss it" which is a wildly more applicable and effective system, in my opinion.

[ambrozk]

You're right that if you refuse to accept any excuse for not performing [habit], the chain rule could be demotivating. But this is just a misapplication of the rule. The sensible reason to use the chain rule is to prevent a failure of volition. It's meant to address the problem where you say "I won't perform [habit] just this one day, because [reason]," and then before you know it, you've lost the will to ever [habit] again. If I ever decided not to journal, I do not think I would forgive myself. I forgive myself for the couple of incidents where I made no decision at all.

I think the last time I forgot to journal was... maybe a year and a quarter ago? I fell asleep before I intended to, and when I woke up, realized I had missed a night. I have never ever decided not to journal on a particular night, and this fact is enormously motivating. That is why the chain system is useful.

One interesting question is, how do I journal when it is extremely impractical? The answer is, I've done whatever was necessary to maintain the chain. Lacking a journal, I've used a pen and scrap paper. Lacking any writing utensils, I've used my phone. Lacking my phone, I've borrowed someone else's phone. The important part is that I made the sincere choice the perform the action, in however nonstandard a way, and this reminds me of my commitment. I've essentially inducted myself into my own religion.