There is a magic to fresh starts. I remember loving to start a new notebook when in school and I still get that rush when starting anything new as an adult. For years, when trying to motivate myself to do something, I'd find that magical moment of newness plus added significance to make it stick.

Turns out I'm not so unique in this. Gretchen Rubin, in her book Better Than Before: Mastering the Habits of Our Everyday Lives spends a chapter on how taking advantage of fresh starts—otherwise known as a "clean slate"—can help make a new habit stick.

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