Years ago, Lifehacker shared a productivity method called “Don’t Break the Chain,” attributed to comedian Jerry Seinfeld, who allegedly shared the secret during a surprise interview at an open mic night in the 1990s. While the comedy legend has gone on to claim he never advocated for such a “non-idea” at all, the method took off and has been featured by all manner of productivity-minded experts. There’s a reason for that: It’s a damn good technique. Here’s what you need to know about it.
What is “Don’t Break the Chain”?
The idea is so simple: When you’re trying to form a new habit or accomplish a long-term project, grab a calendar. Ideally, the calendar will be the real deal, physical kind, so you can really see it. Every day, employ the new habit or otherwise work on a step of the project you need to do, then mark an X on the calendar for that day.
Right away, you’ll get a visual reward from seeing the first X, then the second. Soon enough, you’ll have a chain you don’t want to break and you’ve gameified your productivity. People are simple creatures, wired to carry on patterns for silly rewards. It’s why Snap streaks are so valuable to teenagers on Snapchat. Breaking a streak, no matter how silly it is, seems wrong. Fulfilling the streak feels right. It takes a long time to truly build a habit, so you need some kind of marker system to feel a little boost from it every day in the interim. That’s why you don’t break the chain.
Seeing the small wins laid out on the calendar also reminds you how they play into your bigger goals, which can be helpful for motivation. As a bonus, write your goal in big letters on the top of the calendar page, so you always have it top of mind and can see how every day’s efforts are leading toward its completion.
“Don’t Break the Chain”’s origins
The original tip is attributed to Seinfeld and derived from a conversation he had with software developer Brad Isaac, who secured the hack “when Seinfeld was a new television show” and its titular character was doing real-life open mic nights and promo. Isaac, to his credit, took the intel straight to fledgling blog Lifehacker in 2007.
“One night I was in the club where Seinfeld was working, and before he went on stage, I saw my chance. I had to ask Seinfeld if he had any tips for a young comic,” explains Isaac. “He said the way to be a better comic was to create better jokes and the way to create better jokes was to write every day. But his advice was better than that. He had a gem of a leverage technique he used on himself and you can use it to motivate yourself—even when you don’t feel like it.”
Per Isaac, Seinfeld’s advice was “to get a big wall calendar that has a whole year on one page and hang it on a prominent wall,” then get “a big red magic marker.” According to the 2007 legend, it was Seinfeld himself who repeatedly emphasized the phrase “don’t break the chain.”