Have you heard story of the frog in boiling water?
Let Wikipedia explain it for me:

The boiling frog is an anecdote describing a frog slowly being boiled alive. The premise is that if a frog is put suddenly into boiling water, it will jump out, but if it is put in cold water which is then brought to a boil slowly, it will not perceive the danger and will be cooked to death . The story is often used as a metaphor for the inability or unwillingness of people to react to or be aware of threats that rise gradually

A great example of the this, the poem “First the came …” describing the step-by-step actions of the Nazis:

First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
> Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
> Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
> Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me. “Boiling the frog” is usually seen in a negative light - as being used by the media, the state or other “evil” actors to condition/manipulate people little by little till they finally reach a horrible place. 
But I feel “Boiling the frog” is great mechanism for positive change. Imagine you’re trying to make a change your life habits - it’d be foolish to execute a big change at once . Why? Bigger changes need more willpower and are more likely to fail. You’re best to succeed would be to boil the frog of whatever you’re finding difficult till it becomes second nature to you.

Lets take an example. 
Say you’re not happy with how much weigh and how much exercise you do - You feel there’s ample room to improve your fitness.
What do you do? Most people would buy some sexy spandex, join a gym and take it from there. Seems natural right? But we know anecdotally and otherwise, people just stop attending the gym in some time. Why? Because you didn’t boil the frog! You just threw it into boiling water.
If you want this habit to stick you must go slow. 
Your final condition is you going to the gym everyday, busting out on a bunch of machines till you’ve sweated your life away - but you can’t get there directly.
Instead start simple - at the same time everyday, maybe just take a walk or do a few exercises; gradually increase the complexity of your routine till it becomes habit - a mindless habit like checking your phone when you’re bored! The same thing applies to lots of areas of life - Maybe you want to be an entrepreneur? And you’re excited to start your company.
How about you work in a startup first? Or the be executive assistant to a CEO? Get one step closer to being a CEO so that making the transition one day gives you fewer surprises. This whole theory looks very similar to the Toyoto Kata - a management process which suggests continual improvement over heavy planning.