{"id":28,"date":"2024-04-04T16:00:47","date_gmt":"2024-04-04T16:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/miles2go.ca\/?p=28"},"modified":"2024-04-11T15:47:15","modified_gmt":"2024-04-11T15:47:15","slug":"my-book-of-the-week","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/miles2go.ca\/index.php\/2024\/04\/04\/my-book-of-the-week\/","title":{"rendered":"The Power of Habit"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

*Why We Do What We Do in Life and. . .*<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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I typed \u2018motivation\u2019 into Amazon.ca\u2019s little white box and it offered me over 100,000 titles. \u2018Psychology of motivation\u2019 reduced the number to over 50,000 titles. But you don\u2019t need me to tell you how pervasive the concept of \u2018motivation\u2019 is in all fields of study and explanation of human behavior.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Somewhere along the path of life, I encountered the phrase, \u201cThere is a reason for everything.\u201d It stuck with me. When I saw an expression of anger by a customer at a sales checkout stand, I could temper my internal response with that phrase. How could I know what was going on in that person\u2019s life at that moment? There was a reason for a loss of emotional control. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can think of your own examples, probably even from today. And, if you haven\u2019t \u2018left the house\u2019 yet to encounter another human being, you likely have been an example yourself in some way. Think about it. There is a reason for everything. Keeping that phrase close at hand just might allow me (and perhaps you as well) to walk through a day with more compassion and mercy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But there is good news! You don\u2019t have to cycle through 50,000 or more items. People like Charles Duhigg have created models of understanding and behavioral change to help us. In The Power of Habit<\/em>, Duhigg addresses three circles of habits starting with individuals, then organizations, and finally, societies. My interest here is the primary context of individuals. That means me and you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After describing new learning from two medical case studies of men named \u2018E.P.\u2019 and \u2018H.M.,\u2019 Duhigg outlines what he calls \u2018the habit loop.\u2019 It\u2019s a pretty straightforward process in our brain that unfolds in three steps:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  • Cue<\/em> \u2013 is a trigger \u201cthat tells your brain to go into automatic mode and which habit to use.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Routine<\/em> \u2013 is the physical, mental or emotional sequence we go through in response to the cue.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Reward<\/em> \u2013 is the end result; the strength of our interest in the reward will influence the brain\u2019s level of assessment as to whether this particular loop is worth remembering for next time. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    The marketing of consumer products is totally invested in cultivating these habit loops. Duhigg describes how Pepsodent toothpaste \u2018rocked its world\u2019 in the early 1900\u2019s. Dental care was so non-existent that \u201cwhen the government started drafting men for World War I, so many recruits had rotting teeth that officials said poor dental hygiene was a national security risk.\u201d However, by 1930, the crafting of a crafty habit loop created the daily brushing ritual for most of the American people. How did they do that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The cue<\/em> was marketed as \u201cRun your tongue across your teeth. . . you\u2019ll feel a film. . . that\u2019s what makes your teeth look \u2018off color\u2019 and invites decay.\u201d The reward<\/em>, after the simple routine<\/em> of a quick brush with Pepsodent, was a prettier smile. And so, the use of toothpaste in America went from 7% to 65% of the population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Claude Hopkins, the instigator of the Pepsodent tsunami, became rich and pontificated two basic rules of human psychology: First, find a simple and obvious cue (e.g., tooth film); and second, clearly define the rewards (e.g., beautiful teeth). Hopkins\u2019 rules, even today, \u201care a staple of marketing textbooks and the foundation of millions of ad campaigns.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    If you find this drama interesting, check out the equally fascinating story of how Procter and Gamble moved Febreze from the dustbin of obscurity to the front shelf in the laundry room of every home in America.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    So what good is all of this to you and to me? Well, our interest \u2013 at least my interest \u2013 is \u201cHow can I create new habits?\u201d How can I change patterns of my behavior to move in new directions? How can I get rid of behavior patterns that are no longer (or never were) desirable? Duhigg has more good news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    With the assistance of rats and monkeys, researchers have established that the sight (or sound, or any of the senses) of the cue stimulates a craving<\/em> which then jumpstarts the routine towards the reward. Seeing an enticing food ad on television sends us to the fridge or Uber Eats, Skip the Dishes. . . you know what I mean. The Marlboro Man had the power to raise many a man (and woman too) from their couch to grab a smoke. The chime of a new text coming in causes many cell phones to be balanced on knees under the table during meetings. The list goes on and on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    So, what\u2019s the good news? In its utter simplicity, it is \u2013 Revise the craving! Bring the reward to the front of the bus. Frame it as a cue that inspires our motivation. Allow it to gently nourish a new craving. So, I go to the gym (or jog, or eat more healthy food, or. . .) more regularly not for some vague future promise of goodness but for the fantastic reward of feeling so good at the end of today. To know that I spent a whole day doing better than I did yesterday gives me a euphoric sense of wellbeing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I crave that feeling of accomplishment. To anticipate a drop of .5 pound (I don\u2019t know how many grams that is) when I step on the scale tomorrow morning makes all the discipline and supposed sacrifice worthwhile. And what is most beautiful is that very soon it won\u2019t feel like sacrifice at all. We will experience the joyful creation of a new normal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This \u2018Book of the Week\u2019 narrative is getting rather long. I don\u2019t know how long it should be. It\u2019s my first one. There is so much more in The Power of Habit<\/em>. How new routines can be inserted into old habits. Alcoholics Anonymous is a powerful model where new and more life-giving cravings use even the former cues and rewards to move a person towards success by changing the routine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    That\u2019s a wrap. A pretty cursory overview of key elements of Duhigg\u2019s first circle of attention \u2013 the habits of individuals. In his second and third sections, the habits of organizations and the habits of societies, he continues to provide thought-provoking examples (Aluminum Company of America, Starbucks, Target stores, the Montgomery bus boycott). But that is on you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    *Why We Do What We Do in Life and. . .* I typed \u2018motivation\u2019 into Amazon.ca\u2019s little white box and it offered me over 100,000 titles. \u2018Psychology of motivation\u2019 reduced the number to over 50,000 titles. But you don\u2019t need me to tell you how pervasive the concept of \u2018motivation\u2019 is in all fields of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-my-bookshelf"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/miles2go.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/miles2go.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/miles2go.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/miles2go.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/miles2go.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/miles2go.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":185,"href":"https:\/\/miles2go.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28\/revisions\/185"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/miles2go.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/miles2go.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/miles2go.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}