If you read the book, you will learn...
... how habits work and how they can help combat Alzheimer's.
... how to create new habits, like starting to exercise on a regular basis.
... why some people are able to stop overeating and others aren't.
... which habits matter most and how Starbucks uses good habits.
... how movements like the Saddleback Church and the Montgomery Bus Boycott happen.
And lastly, Duhigg will discuss the question of whether we are responsible for our habits or not. This was one of my favorite chapters in the book, which I highly recommend reading.
Here are a few quotes from the book...
The power of habits:
"Habits are powerful, but delicate. They can emerge outside our consciousness, or can be deliberately designed. They often occur without our permission, but can be reshaped by fiddling with their parts. They shape our lives far more than we realize - they are so strong, in fact, that they cause our brains to cling to them at the exclusion of all else, including common sense." (p. 25)
The power of believing:
"Belief was the ingredient that made a reworked habit loop into a permanent behavior." (p. 85)
"But we do know that for habits to permanently change, people must believe that change is feasible. [...] Belief is easier when it occurs within a community." (p. 89)
No one-size-fits-all solution:
"Individuals and habits are all different, and so the specifics of diagnosing and changing the patterns in our lives differ from person to person and behavior to behavior." (p. 275)
Change is possible:
"Change might not be fast and it isn't always easy. But with time and effort, almost any habit can be reshaped." (p. 276)
So now that you want to get the book (I know you do ;-)), let me help you out: if you get it here, you will also be supporting this blog. Thanks!
