The Role of the Executive Function

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Sally Kohn: I think one of the other pieces and you bring this up a little bit in the book is this that when we are thinking about habits, at least for the vast majority of us, those types of activities don't go on. She says our executive functions have evolved to help humans pivot when they need to, problem solve and manage long-term projects. "I am definitely a, a, an habiter, um, as we do, but I do, I do have certain habits," she said.

Context heavily influences our behavior (regular listeners of the show know our “context matters” mantra well!). Sometimes, because of what life throws at us, we have to re-evaluate our options. The best choice isn’t always the perfect choice.

For instance, in an ideal world, we might be planning a 5 mile run after work. But instead we need to collect our sick child from school early and have to settle for a 2 mile run on the treadmill in the basement, or some dancing in the kitchen while we unload the dishwasher. It’s the perfect, imperfect choice, or what our guest, Michelle Segar calls The Joy Choice.

Michelle Segar PhD is an award-winning lifestyle coach and sustainable behavior change researcher at the University of Michigan. For nearly three decades, she has pioneered methods to create sustainable healthy behavior change that are being used to boost patient health, employee well-being, and gym membership retention.

“My approach to creating sustainable change is fundamentally grounded in changing people's mindsets.” ~ Michelle Segar PhD

In this episode, we are lucky enough to talk to Michelle about her new book, “The Joy Choice: How to Finally Achieve Lasting Changes in Eating and Exercise”. We discuss why Michelle steers away from habits as a way of framing behavior change, the role of the executive function, and of course, how music influences her life.

Topics

(3:20) Welcome and speed round questions.

(7:31) Why we all need to find The Joy Choice.

(14:26) Why do we beat ourselves up about missing exercise and diet goals?

(17:35) How our identity can motivate our behavior change.

(20:22) The shortcomings of the habit loop.

(25:10) The role of the executive function in our decision making.

(30:45) To what degree do mindsets, belief systems and branding play?

(35:58) How the TRAP and POP models help us with selecting The Joy Choice.

(43:36) How Michelle finds joy in music.

(48:02) Grooving Session with Kurt and Tim on The Joy Choice.

Links

Michelle Segar: https://michellesegar.com/

Michelle on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michellelsegar/

Michelle on Twitter: @MichelleSegar

“The Joy Choice: How to Finally Achieve Lasting Changes in Eating and Exercise”: https://amzn.to/3GTve6m

It’s Time to Unhabit and Think Critically About Whether Habit Formation Has Been Over Valued as a Behavior Change Strategy Within Health Promotion: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/08901171221125326f

Episode 277, No Regrets? Really? Why Regrets Actually Bring Us Hope | Daniel H. Pink: https://behavioralgrooves.com/episode/why-regrets-bring-us-hope/

Episode 327, A Proven Way Expectations Can Unlock A More Positive Life | David Robson: https://behavioralgrooves.com/episode/why-regrets-bring-us-hope/

Episode 307, Groove Track | Mind Over Milkshakes: Why Expectations Matter A Lot: https://behavioralgrooves.com/episode/mind-over-milkshakes-groove-track/

Zingermans in Ann Arbor, MI: https://www.zingermansdeli.com/

Musical Links

Earth, wind and fire “September”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gs069dndIYk