The Power of Habit | 5 Most Important Lessons | Charles Duhigg

The Power of Habit | 5 Most Important Lessons | Charles Duhigg

The Power of Habit By Charles Duhigg Summarized by Bukola. Learning to drive a car was no joke for me, I was actually trained with the old Volkswagen 1500 Beatle. It came with these three awkward looking pedals: the clutch, brake and the accelerator. Learning to know which to press was an uphill task. Coupled with the fact that I had to be looking at what seems like a millions screens and mirrors at the same time: The side view mirrors, the rear view mirror, and yes, the windscreen Lest I forget, I had to remember to press on those clutch in order to change the gear from one to the other. I had to actually do a million things at the same time.

I can never know how to drive. Ahhhhh! Fast forward, two years later. Here I am, driving at 120 km per hour, I handle the steering with one hand while holding the burger with the other. I can drive now even without thinking and almost without effort. This goes to establish the first major lesson of The Power of Habit : Roughly 40% of what you do happens on autopilot. Understanding this fact can help you to be more conscious; Pause and ask if you’re about to do the right thing.

Let’s move to the second major lesson in The Power of Habits. Imagine this scenario: every afternoon for the past one year, you have bought and eaten a delicious, sugar-laden chocolate-chip cookie from the fast food restaurant around your workplace. Call it a just reward for a hard day’s work. Unfortunately, as a few friends have already pointed out, you’ve started putting on weight, so you decide to kick the habit. That’s the bad news pretty ladies don’t want to hear. Awww! But how do you imagine you’ll feel that first afternoon, walking past the cafeteria? Odds are, you will either eat “just one more cookie” or you’ll go home in a distinctly grumpy mood. Kicking a bad habit is hard because you develop a craving for the reward at the end of the habit loop. And that’s what companies and advertisers work hard to do, to create such cravings in consumers. That’s how habits are built and the stronger this link gets, the harder it becomes to change them. But you can still do it.

That’s the second major lesson in The Power of Habit: Habits stick because they create craving. Hence, craving, not habits, is the problem. So, how do you change a bad habit? Have you ever seen any smoker looking to quit: when the craving for nicotine hits, it’s hard to ignore. They shiver. They are restless. They start panting around. They are like a dog on heat. Ohhhh! Research indicates that one of the best-known habit-changing organizations in the world (Alcoholic Anonymous) uses this method to great effectiveness. AA asks participants to list what exactly they crave from drinking. Relaxation … Companionship, etc Usually, factors like relaxation and companionship are far more important than the actual intoxication. AA then provides new routines that address those cravings, such as going to meetings and talking to sponsors for companionship, effectively substituting drinking with something less harmful. Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) may have helped as many as ten million alcoholics achieve sobriety. That is the third major lesson in the book,

The Power of Habit: To change a bad habit, you have to substitute the routine for a good habit. I think it might be the right time to let out a secret about myself: I am a book freak! The most valuable piece of asset I possess in life is my library, boasting of over five thousand choice books. And any good book on marketing, psychology, or leadership wins the battle over my purse any day. There was this bookshop I used to buy books from. Over time they had discovered from the information they had amassed about me, the three areas I love so much. So every month end, I receive emails and SMS from them telling me of the “”New Arrivals”. And guess what? They are usually in those three categories. These days, I even see them going a little bit more subtle: they add offers in some other unrelated and non-interesting areas, so when I eventually “dig out” those in the genres that I am passionate about, it is like hitting oil in the Niger Delta! When trying to sell anything new, companies will dress it up in something familiar; For example, radio DJs can guarantee a new song becomes popular by playing it sandwiched between two existing hit songs.

This way, new habits or products are far more likely to be accepted. And that’s the fourth major lesson in The Power of Habits: Companies take advantage of habits in their marketing. If you’re aware of this, you can say NO more often. Once we become aware of a harmful habit, it becomes our responsibility to address. It is our responsibility to change it. 

The other day I visited the hospital, and after series of tests, the doctor said I am becoming diabetic. Dia – what? A lot of things began to rush through my mind at the same time.

My wife. My kids. My businesses. My books – oh my god! As the doctor kept talking, explaining the habits that could have triggered that medical condition, I was getting impatient. Bring out the medications and let me start pumping them into my body, I almost screamed! When he was through with his 3 minutes lecture that actually seems like 3 hours, this was what he said: 

You will have to change your choice of food and drinks. What!!! You mean I won’t be able to have my cola drink again! My doughnut with jam? I began to react rather aggressively and defensively. His final word succinctly captures the fifth major lesson in The Power of Habits: it is in your hands. Though it may be tough, you bear the responsibility for changing your bad habits. Now, Let’s Discuss What lessons do you think I missed in this book? What points would you like to add? Which other good books would you like our team to summarize next? We love to receive your comments. We Love You!