How to Change a Habit

The Power of Habit - by Charles Duhigg

"Why we do what we do in life and business"

William James wrote in 1892: "All of our life so far as it has definite form, is but a mass of habits". Most of the choices we make each day may feel like the products of well-considered decision making, but they're not - they're habits. Though each habit means very little on its own, over time, the meals we order, what we say to the kids each night, what we spend and the way we organise our thoughts have enormous impacts on our health, productivity, financial security and happiness.

Habit Change follows a 3 step loop

• First there is a CUE, a trigger that tells your brain to go into automatic mode and which habit to use
• Second there is the ROUTINE, which can be physical or mental or emotional
• Finally there is the REWARD, which helps your brain figure out of this particular loop is worth remembering for the future

In almost every experiment, researches have found habits are powerful but delicate. They can emerge outside of our consciousness, or can be deliberately designed. They often occur without permission, but can be reshaped by fiddling with their parts. They shape our lives far more than we realise.

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