Guest Post: The Power of Habit

habit jacketI love to read. It is remarkable to me how little I have written on books on this blog. As you may guess, I also like to recommend books I like to people. I loved The Power of Habit, by Charles Duhigg. I also thought a review/discussion would make a great blog post. I mentioned it to Don who is an avid reader of all things non-fiction especially on business topics like motivation and organizational behavior. He read it and we talked about some about it. We now have a bunch of books we have discussed and a mini-book club that we hold over G-chat! I have been addicted to Swedish murder mysteries all summer so Don took the ball and wrote a quick post of this one! For some background, Don is also an avid runner (he paced me in the Allstate 13.1 earlier this year), an engineer by training, a recent MBA grad, a good friend to many and a real creature of habit!

As a quick set up, The Power of Habit looks at the research (and personal examples) behind our habits. It seeks to explain why humans have habits and how they are reinforced and can be altered. This book is a quick read and the examples and illustrations are really engaging and interesting. Duhigg explains not only the research on individuals’ habits but also organizational behavior in companies. Some examples are in labs, some are in homes and some are in companies. A core argument in the book is that, “The key to exercising regularly, losing weight, raising exceptional children, becoming more productive, building revolutionary companies and social movements, and achieving success is understanding how habits work.”

The examples that have gotten the most play are the ones of the stories from Target Stores. My favorite parts are the ALCOA stories, the stories of the brain injured man and the practical habit dissecting and tips for understanding our own habits.

This video of the author is really helpful to understanding the premise and tone of the book:

There is also a great interview of Charles Duhigg with Jonathan Field’s Good Life Project HERE.

Here’s Don’s take:

“I’ve long considered myself a creature of habit. I take comfort in routine and live a rather structured life. Even before reading The Power of Habit, by Charles Duhigg, I made a very conscious effort to force myself into forming good habits, like running and flossing before going to bed. Both of those have become so ingrained into my day that it feels weird when I force myself to not do them. So when Erica recommended The Power of Habit I read it as quickly as I could. The book is light and easy to read, but at the same time insightful, as Duhigg uses a variety of examples of how habits form and lead our lives, both as an individual and in organizations.

This is not a self-help book that gives readers a canned formula to cure themselves of their bad habits, but Duhigg does break down the mechanics of the habit into 3 parts: the cue, the routine, and the rewards.

Image from The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg
Image from The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg

These mechanics are illustrated in simple but awesomely appropriate examples throughout the book. With this understanding, we can find ways to create to create habits for behaviors we want to do, but have trouble starting. We can also use the framework to dissect bad habits and finds ways to alter them. It’s easier for me personally to establish good habits than it is to break bad ones [EF: OMG, me too, Don!], so I’ll share with you one my good habit practices and ask for your help in dissecting and breaking the bad habit.

Good habit: I imagine many readers of this blog live active lifestyle and are already in the habit of exercising regularly and I’m no different. I’ve been running year round for the past decade and very rarely have problems making time for my daily run, but doing some of the other stuff to make myself a stronger, injury-free runner can be problematic. Duhigg indicates a habit can be formed from routines if you tie it a reward immediately afterwards. So I promise myself I’ll an indulgent meal if I finish my core work after my run. I sing the chorus from Food, Glorious Food from Oliver Twist as my cue:

Bad habit: Changing bad habits is much more difficult than establishing new good habits (at least for me). One of my guilty pleasures is the sitcom How I Met Your Mother. I hate that I secretly like it and I find myself constantly watching it while I’m getting ready for bed. Perhaps doing something completely mindless is my reward to a long day, but I wish it was something more dignified than this dumb show. I haven’t figure out what my cue and maybe that’s the key to modifying the routine. Erica, please help!!!”

Thanks for the post, Don! As for the HIMYM habit… hmmm. That one doesn’t seem too destructive to me. I guess Duhigg would say that you need to change the cues. Move the TV??? Don and I agree that this is an interesting, thought-provoking and quick read. Check it out and let us know what you think!

What are your biggest habits? Have you ever tried to change your habits? What works for you?

PS. Don’t forget to check out our Honey’s Runners raffle to support the American Cancer Society. Only $5 to enter, 100% match to $2500 and GREAT prizes still available (2 winners per week). Also, don’t forget to enter my Wild Ophelia chocolate giveaway!