The text below is from my book: Odds Favor the Prepared Mind. The first time each model appears, it is in bold text. It does not differ much from the texts in this blog before, but shows how much better the language and the grammar are in the book. I hope you enjoy it!
You can divide behavior change into two components. You can create behaviors or change the existing ones. Some behaviors happen once, others more often, and some of them are consistent, repetitive sequences of actions, habits. All behaviors are chain reactions with three parts. These combinations are systems. You can apply all the chapter´s lessons to all behaviors. Behaviors are not only something you do, they can be something you discard.
Chain reactions have triggers, behaviors themselves, and motivators. You can call triggers also cues, clues, and prompts. You can call behaviors routine or actions. You can call motivators prizes or rewards. To be consistent, I will talk about trigger → behavior → motivator sequence.
First, you notice a trigger you associate with a behavior and a motivator, then you execute the behavior. Trigger is a stimulus or stimuli you can detect with senses. Behavior is the action sequence from start to finish. You can mix up motivators with the symbol value you give them. For example, motivators are not the food you eat or sweet drinks. They are emotions, hormone bursts, and feelings. Behaviors happen only when you can detect the trigger, you can execute behavior, and the motivator is strong enough to create a want to do the behavior.
Behavior creation
Your brain capacity is limited. Consistent and repetitive behaviors save it. They are the products of evolution. These behaviors are paths of least resistance. It is the most important model to understand behavior creation. Each repetition strengthens a reinforcing feedback loop which saves energy for the next repetition. The completed loop compound energy savings. Automatic behaviors follow when you have achieved a critical mass of repetitions. The key to the automatization of a behavior is several repetitions, not time. The more often you can repeat the chain reaction, the faster the behavior becomes recurring.
All novel behaviors require conscious efforts to repeat them. Rational decision-making system controls consciousness. This requires willpower. Once behavior becomes automated, it creates inertia, and intuitive system takes control, and it creates the path of least resistance. Here is a simple checklist to create behaviors:
Trigger is available
Behavior is possible
Motivator is powerful enough and instant
Behavior does not happen without a trigger. Its availability to senses is crucial. The easier it is to sense the trigger, the higher the odds of executing a behavior. You can increase the availability of the trigger by using the finish of the existing behavior as a sign to execute the new one. For example, putting dental floss next to the place you keep your toothbrush. The number of daily repetitions of behaviors have to match. If the existing behavior happens twice a day, the same has to apply to the new one.
The ability to do the behavior is crucial too. It is easy to design the right trigger, but it is harder to estimate the ability to execute a behavior. When you want to create a behavior, execution has to follow the path of least resistance principle. The easier, the simpler the behavior itself is, the higher the odds it is sustainable and consistent. All behaviors begin with a small and simple step. Trust in gradual development is hard but worth it. Some exceptions can only think big and manage it, but they are rare.
If you want to create a behavior of eating vegetables, start with your favorite and eat one piece of it. After you have created a consistent behavior of eating one piece of your favorite vegetable, try to eat two of them. By slowly increasing the portion, you can reach the point where you want to be. Once you fail, diminish the number of pieces you want to eat, until you get back on track. Expect failures at some point. React to them, but do not give up.
Last, but not least, motivators have to be forceful enough. Do not depend on willpower. Focus on internal desires to create behaviors. Pleasant feelings and emotions are signs of desire. Do not create behaviors you hate, even though they are good for you. They have low odds of implementation. For example, eating healthy food is a respectful goal. Eating lots of vegetables you hate decreases the strength of motivator. The strongest motivators often relate to excessive self-regard. The strength of motivator go hand in hand with ability. The easier the behavior is, the weaker the motivator can be. It cannot wait and has to appear right after the behavior.
Invert the question: ”How can I produce a behavior?” Ask instead: ”How can I fail once I create it?” The answers are: failure to create an available trigger, the behavior is too hard to execute, or motivator is too weak or appears too late after the behavior itself. Sometimes the combination of these factors is the right answer. Seeing the points of failure in advance reduces its odds.
Four components of behavior change
Existing behavior is hard to eliminate but easier to change. The more repetitions you have, the harder it is to change, and the longer it takes. The number of repetitions has to be larger than it was before. Remember the path of least resistance model. Change one behavior at a time. Behavior change has four components:
Recognizing a behavior
Experimenting with symbols of motivator
Isolating a trigger
Creating a strategy
All three components of behavior are not self-evident. Behavior itself is the easiest to recognize. For example, you want to buy healthier food instead of crap. It is easy to recognize what you buy from groceries with low effort.
A real motivator is hard to recognize. Try several symbols of motivator. For example, buy different groceries every time. Ask for help from a friend or a partner, or anyone who is a part of your life. Use a notebook to record behavior and how you feel right after it. Keep a record of which feelings and emotions occur without delay. Share them with a person who helps. Do this until you are sure about your findings.
Triggers are hard to identify, but they have common characteristics. You can associate them with environments, persons, emotional or physical states, times of day, and previous behaviors. They can be combinations of associations. Notebook and help from others become handy again. Buying unhealthy groceries is an exemplary example:
Environment (The nearest grocery store from your home)
Company (With your partner)
Emotional/Physical state (Frustrated and tired)
Time (Between 4 and 5 pm.)
Previous behavior (Commuting for half an hour)
Keep notes until you have noticed the trigger. Try what happens without it to be sure you are right. If you have identified a combination of characteristics, eliminate one and see what happens. If it does not trigger the behavior, eliminate this characteristic. Do this until the trigger is as simple as possible. You can try to hide the trigger of inappropriate behavior from your senses or diminish its availability. Sometimes you can eliminate the whole trigger. When part of it is an emotional or a physical state, elimination is next to impossible. When you have simplified components of the existing behavior, it is time to create a strategic plan to change the behavior. This plan could look like:
When I am at the door of the grocery store at 4 pm, with my partner, frustrated and tired after commuting from work (trigger).
I avoid shelves and stands with unhealthy food (changed behavior).
I do this to buy healthy food that normalizes my blood glucose level (a better motivator that causes the same effect as bad food).
Execute this plan as often as possible.
Changing the existing behavior takes longer and more repetitions than creating a novel one. You can also expect more frequent setbacks. The more the behavior has repeated, the higher the odds of failures.
Timing
Timing is important. Significant behavior changes start from the path of least resistance. The easier the behavior itself, the stronger the motivator, and the more available the trigger is, the least resistance you confront. Timing is best when you feel good about yourself, motivated, and able to execute the change. The effect of a motivator depends on a cycle. The daily cycle is the most important. Behavior change is the hardest during slumps. It is easiest during the top-part of the cycle. Change does not occur without an enormous quantity of conscious effort in the beginning, which requires the least amount of effort during tops. Behavior change is easier right after a vacation or during it. Change does not occur, unless the behavior is part of your vacation.
Gradual change is a reasonable path to follow. Do not change everything at once. Schedule new behaviors first, unless bad behaviors are lethal or produce fast destruction. When the environment changes, timing to change behavior is optimal. If you change location, be open to behavioral change. If you have to do the latter, choose the former. Triggers and abilities to behave can disappear. This is great when you have to reduce destructive behavior.
Sometimes changes are forced upon. Current Covid-19 pandemic has created significant chances to change behavior. Sudden changes in environments have hidden triggers and created obstacles to behaviors themselves. They have changed some motivators. Start changing now if you suffer from the pandemic. Do not despair if it causes you problems. Sudden events like the pandemic produce surprising changes that you can exploit to become the person you want to be. It is a favorable chance to create lasting changes.
Checklist for behavior change
Checklist of mental models that appear in this chapter:
Reactions
Combinations and permutations
Systems
Motivation
Association
Evolution
The path of least resistance
Feedback loops
Compounding
Critical mass
Decision-making systems
Inertia
Checklist
Availability
Probabilities (Odds)
Simplicity
Willpower
Excessive self-regard (ego)
Inversion
You can understand behavior change better by using this checklist. Every time you think about it, go through the list with deep thought.
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