The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg (2012)

Cover photo of The Power of Habit

Great stuff on the subject of habits, although it is less specific than the book Atomic Habits. A great read in terms of storytelling, but the large portion of the book is reported stories. Particularly interesting threads deal with the habits (procedures) of large organizations, where it is better than Clear's book.

Highlights

  1. Habits are choices that we all make intentionally at some point in our lives, but if we do them over a period of time, we stop thinking about them even though we still do them.
  2. Habit loop: (1) Cue → (2) Routine → (3) Reward
    • brain activity only increases during (1) and (3), so the brain can rest during (2). Biological effect: the brain can have a smaller size
  3. Golden rule of habit change: keep the same cue and the same reward, but change the behavior by recognizing what real desire (need) actually drives us. Often the real desires are invisible at first glance.
  4. Strengthening the willpower in one area of our life will radiate into other areas of our life (e.g., by introducing the habit of physical exercise, many other areas of our life will be changed at the same time).
  5. Sending children to piano or soccer lessons is not to become a virtuoso or Lewandowski, but to build willpower.
  6. Willpower is not a skill, but a muscle that can get tired. Therefore, the most important tasks should be done first.
  7. Strong social ties (friendships) and weak social ties ("friends of friends") are responsible for creating social habits (e.g. protests, thriving parish communities, etc.).

Thoughts

  1. Habits are choices that we all make intentionally at some point in our lives, but if we do them over a period of time, we stop thinking about them, even though we still do them.
  2. Habits are not identical to memory, because it is possible to have no working part of the brain responsible for memory, but to have a working part of the brain responsible for habits (see Eugene's story of walking and returning home despite damage to the memory center in the brain).
  3. Habit loop: (1) Cue → (2) Routine → (3) Reward
    • brain activity only increases during (1) and (3), so the brain can rest during (2). Biological effect: the brain can have a smaller size
  4. Habits cannot be forgotten. They are encoded in brain structures waiting for the right cues and rewards.
  5. Habits can be formed consciously or unconsciously.
  6. Habits are delicate (the sequence of accompanying activities must always be the same)
  7. Cue and reward are not enough to form habits. You only have to create the desire for the reward to make the habit automatic. Therefore, a cue-reward pair must be performed many times. The cue, in addition to triggering the routine, must also trigger the desire for the reward to appear. After many repetitions, we feel the desire just by seeing the cue.
  8. Golden rule of habit change: keep the same cue and the same reward, but change the behavior by recognizing what real desire (need) actually drives us. Often the real desires are invisible at first glance.
    • for example: cue: desire to take a break→ routine: snack in the cafeteria→ reward: chat with coworkers in the cafeteria. Can be changed to: cue: desire to take a break→ routine: talking to a coworker at the desk→ reward: social contact (i.e., real motivation).
  9. For a habit to take hold, one must believe that change is possible. This is most often achieved with the help of a group.
  10. Organizations also have habits (procedures). Again, these can be good or bad.
  11. Key habits create or support many other habits.
  12. In many cases, a key habit is regular exercise. For some reason, developing this habit touches many other areas of life, such as productivity at work and relationships. Similarly, the habits of eating dinner with your children and making your bed every day lead to many other good changes.
  13. Small victories add up to success in the most important task at hand.
  14. Strengthening the willpower in one area of our life will radiate into other areas of our life (e.g., by introducing the habit of physical exercise, many other areas of our life will be changed at the same time).
  15. Sending children to piano or soccer lessons is not to become a virtuoso or Lewandowski, but to build willpower.
  16. Willpower is not a skill, but a muscle that can get tired. Therefore, the most important tasks should be done first.
  17. If you give people (e.g., your employees) a degree of agency and control over selected aspects of their work (e.g. the location of the coffee machine in the case of Starbucks employees), and also treat them in the mode of requests rather than orders, you will see an increase in their productivity and willpower.
  18. If you believe in people's abilities and show it them, they will prove you right.
  19. To develop good habits, it is useful to develop models for dealing with difficult situations (e.g., training at Starbucks).
  20. There is also a category of bad habits, which includes "habits" that form spontaneously to somehow regulate a pathological situation (for example, in the workplace between several conflicting groups of co-workers). Such a status quo, however, is a very fragile structure that will be destroyed by the tragedy that must sooner or later occur in this situation.
  21. A crisis in the workplace can be used to introduce new habits which would not otherwise be possible (e.g., regarding safety at work).
  22. Habits in organizations (procedures) lead to some degree of regulation of work in companies, despite conflicts between individual employees.
  23. Some methods stores use to increase sales based on the regularity of consumer behavior
    • filling the shelves on the right side at the entrance with the most profitable products (people usually go to the right after entering)
    • not placing products in alphabetical order, so that people have to search a larger area to see them
    • placing fruit and vegetables at the entrance so that it is easier for customers to buy unhealthy foods later, being convinced of their healthy habits at the entrance
  24. It is very valuable for stores to know about customers who are expecting a baby and have small children, because they buy a lot of products.
  25. To teach someone a new habit, it is good to incorporate it into an old well-known habit. For example, you can put a song you want to promote in between familiar songs. What is well known is somehow attractive to us, e.g. hits on the radio are hits precisely because they are well known (even if they are objectively not very good songs musically).
  26. Strong social ties (friendships) and weak social ties ("friends of friends") are responsible for creating social habits (e.g. protests, thriving parish communities, etc.).
  27. How to change a habit?
    • Identify the habit.
    • Experiment with rewards: What is it really about - is it really about e.g., cookies? Maybe its about e.g., the opportunity to talk. After each reward alternative tested, note the impressions that come to mind, in 15 minutes check if you still want it (that reward) which was your original motivation. If not, you have discovered the real (alternative) motivation.
    • Isolate the cue (= find, name) that leads to the routine. Five categories of cues:
      1. Place
      2. Time
      3. Emotional state
      4. Other people
      5. Immediately preceding event
    • Have a plan. At [hint] I will do [this and this as an alternative].
  28. We are responsible for our habits, for creating them. When we understand that habits can be changed, we gain freedom.