Imagine you are faced with a difficult task. And with the completion of this task, you get a reward. Motivated by reward, your brain somehow manages to solve this task. But what if the task is repetitive, and occurs each time with little change in it? Wouldn’t it make sense to simply remember the solution, instead of obtaining it every time? This tendency is what forces us to make habits.
Habits are thus shortcuts, which save our brains from working themselves off. They are automated decisions, or rather routines, which are followed whenever we face a situation we have seen before. This habit-making tendency is also the root cause of all addictions.
Does this mean we should avoid making habits? On the contrary, the author argues that we should strive to build good habits and change our bad habits. Habits are thus all powerful , and for a book dedicated to preaching their power, The Power Of Habit does a very good job.
All our life, so far as it has a definite form, is but a mass of habits.
The book is divided into three parts. The first part introduces us to habits–how they are formed, what drives habits, and how to change existing habits. All habits are essentially loops comprising of four parts–cue, routine, reward, and craving.
To change an existing habit, instead of removing it completely, we should change the routine keeping the cues and rewards unaltered. This is what is called the Golden Rule of Habit Change, is often the best bet to alter a habit.
The second part of this book is dedicated to habits of organisations. All organisations have habits, which are formed mostly due to past experiences of the organisation. Citing numerous examples, Duhig explains that the organisational habits are unsaid rules, followed by all members of the organisation. And this is what keeps organisations, which are mostly battle-turfs, from falling apart. Inefficient habits may lead to critical situations, and so organisations should always strive to keep their existing habits in check.
The author also mentions how some organisations exploit our tendency to form habits, to boost their sales. It helps to know that most companies engineer their services in such a manner, that these services become our habits. And once something is made into a habit, we will keep returning to it.
In the last section of the book, Duhig explains how habits arise out of interpersonal communication. These are called societal habits, and they play a very important role in how ideas propagate through society. Peer pressure as Duhig explains is a societal habit, which causes individuals of society to accept the norms prevalent in it. Citing the example of the civil rights movement in Montgomery, the author states that habits like friendships are crucial to the success of a movement.
But when the strong ties of friendship and the weak ties of peer pressure merge, they create incredible momentum. That’s when widespread social change can begin.
I found this book incredibly helpful. It always helps to have an understanding of oneself, and now I can see that majority of our actions, are not conscious. Rather they are habits. Habits may be all powerful, but the book strongly argues that each and every habit can be changed. What is required is the will to change, and a bit of strategy.
If you liked this article, I am sure you would love the book.