I committed to reading for fifteen minutes every night before sleep. Not for self-improvement or productivity. Not to finish more books. Just to create a consistent ritual that marked the transition from day to rest.
That was three years ago. I haven't missed a night.
This isn't a brag about discipline. It's an observation about what happens when you repeat something small, daily, without drama or exception.
The first week was surprisingly hard. Fifteen minutes felt like an eternity when I was tired. My mind resisted. "Just skip tonight. You're exhausted. It doesn't matter."
But I'd learned something about habits: the decision to do it can't happen in the moment. In the moment, you're tired. The path of least resistance always wins. The decision has to be made once, earlier, as a commitment that overrides momentary resistance.
So I'd already decided. Not every night. Just decided, period. Fifteen minutes. No negotiations.
After two weeks, it stopped feeling like effort. The ritual began to create its own gravity. Get ready for bed. Brush teeth. Lights dim. Book.
My nervous system learned the pattern. Reading became the signal that sleep was approaching. My body started to relax as soon as I picked up the book.
I wasn't trying to finish books. Some nights I read three pages. Some nights ten. Didn't matter. What mattered was the consistency of the act.
Over three years, without trying, I've read sixty-seven books. Not because I set a goal or pushed myself. Just because fifteen minutes every night accumulates.
Small things, done daily, compound in ways you can't predict.
But the books aren't the point. The point is the ritual itself. The way it anchors my evening. The gentleness of transition it provides. The clear signal to my body and mind: the day is ending. We're moving toward rest.
I sleep better now. Not every night, but most. I think it's because I've created a predictable wind-down routine. My system knows what's coming.
People ask how I maintain the habit. They want a trick or technique. But there isn't one. It's just: do it every night. No exceptions for travel, exhaustion, or inconvenience.
The consistency is what makes it effortless. When something happens every single time, you stop questioning it. Brushing teeth. Taking vitamins. Reading before sleep.
Breaking the streak would be harder than maintaining it at this point. The habit has momentum.
What I've learned about daily practice: it doesn't have to be grand or optimized. It just has to happen. The ritual became more important than any single book. Consistency created meaning.
Fifteen minutes isn't long. Anyone can find fifteen minutes. But those minutes, stacked over years, become something substantial. Not just books read. A life structure. An anchor point. A daily return to something quiet and nourishing.
Tonight, like every night, I'll read for fifteen minutes before sleep. Same ritual. Different book. The comfort of a pattern that holds, day after day after day.