About this quote

We learn and change, often without noticing. You can't step into who you were before, so clinging to past versions just keeps you stuck. Do one concrete thing: choose a habit to drop, pick a new small action, and set a time to do it. Who will those tiny choices make you into? Pick one and start today.

When to use it

• Work — After I missed the promotion, at the team meeting I said, 'It's no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then,' and then I asked for a stretch assignment to prove I could handle more.
• Study — After failing the midterm, I told my tutor, 'It's no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then,' and we rebuilt my study plan around weekly practice problems.
• Health — In rehab I kept comparing myself to pre-injury runs, so I told my trainer, 'It's no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then,' and we agreed on realistic progress markers.
• Family — During a conversation about old fights, I said, 'It's no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then,' and asked everyone to name one action to show we've changed.