Habits

The breakdown of a habit: Cue, Craving, Response, Reward

Chris Labs

Cue The cue triggers your brain to initiate a behavior. It is a bit of information that predicts a reward. Our prehistoric ancestors were paying attention to cues that signaled the location of primary rewards like food, water, and sex. Today, we spend most of our time learning cues that predict secondary rewards like money and fame, power and status, praise and approval, love and friendship, or a sense of personal satisfaction. Craving They are the motivational force behind every habit/ What you crave is not the habit itself but the change in state it delivers. Ex: You are not … Continue reading The breakdown of a habit: Cue, Craving, Response, Reward

Habits

True behavior change is identity change

Chris Labs

You might start a habit because of motivation, but the only reason you’ll stick with one is that it becomes part of your identity. The goal is not to read a book, the goal is to become a reader. The goal is not to run a marathon, the goal is to become a runner. The goal is not to learn an instrument, the goal is to become a musician. -Atomic Habits, p.34 Continue reading True behavior change is identity change

Habits

The more pride you have in a particular aspect of your identity, the more motivated you will be to maintain the habits associated with it.

Chris Labs

Ex: If you’re proud of how your hair looks, you’ll develop all sorts of habits to care for and maintain it. If you’re proud of the size of your biceps, you’ll make sure you never skip an upper-body workout. -Atomic Habits, p.33 Continue reading The more pride you have in a particular aspect of your identity, the more motivated you will be to maintain the habits associated with it.

Habits

Forget about setting goals, focus on your systems instead

Chris Labs

In the words of three-time Super Bowl winner Bill Wash, “The score takes care of itself”. On a day-to-day basis, stop monitoring the score constantly (sales, followers, etc.)… Focus on building a better system and the score will follow. A handful of problems arise when you spend too much time thinking about your goals and not enough time designing your systems. Problem #1: Winners and losers have the same goals. Problem #2: Achieving a goal is only a momentary change. Achieving a goal only changes your life for the moment. That’s the counterintuitive thing about improvement. We think we need … Continue reading Forget about setting goals, focus on your systems instead

Favorite, Learnings

Parkinson’s Law: Money Management

Chris Labs

How much toothpaste do you use when you have a brand-new tube of toothpaste? A big ol’ glop of it, right? But when you open that cabinet drawer and find a nearly empty tube… my oh my, how the game changes. It starts off with an insane amount of squeezing, twisting, and turning. […] With a precarious balance of biting, one hand squeezing and tube twisting, while your other hand somehow tries to get the brush bristles to scoop out toothpaste, you have a victory. Isn’t it funny how much we change based upon what is available? Here is what … Continue reading Parkinson’s Law: Money Management