The Power of Habit

Lisa Allen, according to her file, was thirty-four years old, had started smoking and drinking when she was sixteen, and had struggled with obesity for most of her life.

That one small shift in Lisa’s perception that day in Cairo—the conviction that she had to give up smoking to accomplish her goal—had touched off a series of changes that would ultimately radiate out to every part of her life.

By focusing on one pattern—what is known as a 'keystone habit'—Lisa had taught herself how to reprogram the other routines in her life, as well.

When you see food, these areas—which are associated with craving and hunger, are still active... However, there’s new activity in this area... where we believe behavioral inhibition and self-discipline starts.

Understanding habits is the most important thing I’ve learned in the army... You want to fall asleep fast and wake up feeling good? Pay attention to your nighttime patterns and what you automatically do when you get up.

Habits operate as neurological loops consisting of cue, routine, reward.

Cravings serve as the driving force in solidifying these loops.

Studies like those with Eugene Pauly demonstrate habits’ formation in the basal ganglia and their power even in the absence of memory.

If you use the same cue, and provide the same reward, you can shift the routine and change the habit.

Champions don’t do extraordinary things, they do ordinary things but do them without thinking.