Skip to main content

THE 2ND LAW "Make It Attractive"

How to Make a Habit Irresistible


The more attractive an opportunity is, the more likely it is to become habit-forming. 

If you want to increase the odds that a behavior will occur, then you need to make it attractive.

THE DOPAMINE-DRIVEN FEEDBACK LOOP 

Habits are a dopamine-driven feedback loop. Every behavior that is highly habit-forming—taking drugs, eating junk food, playing video games, browsing social media—is associated with higher levels of dopamine. The same can be said for our most basic habitual behaviors like eating food, drinking water, having sex, and interacting socially.

When it comes to habits, the key takeaway is this: dopamine is released not only when you experience pleasure, but also when you anticipate it. Gambling addicts have a dopamine spike right before they place a bet, not after they win. Cocaine addicts get a surge of dopamine when they see the powder, not after they take it. Whenever you predict that an opportunity will be rewarding, your levels of dopamine spike in anticipation. And whenever dopamine rises, so does your motivation to act.

It is the anticipation of a reward—not the fulfillment of it—that gets us to take action. 

Interestingly, the reward system that is activated in the brain when you receive a reward is the same system that is activated when you anticipate a reward. This is one reason the anticipation of an experience can often feel better than the attainment of it. As a child, thinking about Christmas morning can be better than opening the gifts. As an adult, daydreaming about an upcoming vacation can be more enjoyable than actually being on vacation. Scientists refer to this as the difference between “wanting” and “liking.”

THE DOPAMINE SPIKE 

Desire is the engine that drives behavior. Every action is taken because of the anticipation that precedes it. It is the craving that leads to the response.

We need to make our habits attractive because it is the expectation of a rewarding experience that motivates us to act in the first place. 

HOW TO USE TEMPTATION BUNDLING TO MAKE YOUR HABITS MORE ATTRACTIVE

Temptation bundling works by linking an action you want to do with an action you need to do.

You’re more likely to find a behavior attractive if you get to do one of your favorite things at the same time.

Temptation bundling is one way to apply a psychology theory known as Premack’s Principle. Named after the work of professor David Premack, the principle states that “more probable behaviors will reinforce less probable behaviors.” In other words, even if you don’t really want to process overdue work emails, you’ll become conditioned to do it if it means you get to do something you really want to do along the way.

You can even combine temptation bundling with the habit stacking strategy
The habit stacking + temptation bundling formula is:
1. After [CURRENT HABIT], I will [HABIT I NEED]. 
2. After [HABIT I NEED], I will [HABIT I WANT].

If you want to read the news, but you need to express more gratitude:
1. After I get my morning coffee, I will say one thing I’m grateful for that happened yesterday (need). 2. After I say one thing I’m grateful for, I will read the news (want).

If you want to watch sports, but you need to make sales calls: 
1. After I get back from my lunch break, I will call three potential clients (need). 
2. After I call three potential clients, I will check ESPN (want).

If you want to check Facebook, but you need to exercise more: 
1. After I pull out my phone, I will do ten burpees (need). 
2. After I do ten burpees, I will check Facebook (want).

Doing the thing you need to do means you get to do the thing you want to do.

Temptation bundling is one way to create a heightened version of any habit by connecting it with something you already want. Engineering a truly irresistible habit is a hard task, but this simple strategy can be employed to make nearly any habit more attractive than it would be otherwise.

Chapter Summary
  • The 2nd Law of Behavior Change is make it attractive. 
  • The more attractive an opportunity is, the more likely it is to become habit-forming.
  • Habits are a dopamine-driven feedback loop. When dopamine rises, so does our motivation to act. 
  • It is the anticipation of a reward—not the fulfillment of it—that gets us to take action. The greater the anticipation, the greater the dopamine spike. 
  • Temptation bundling is one way to make your habits more attractive. The strategy is to pair an action you want to do with an action you need to do.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Maximizing Your Profits with Scoring

SETTING YOUR MAXIMUM INTRADAY TRADING LOSS First things first: set a max intraday trading loss. There will be days when you just do not have it. Why do you think coaches pull their players when they are not playing well? They are more harmful on the field than off. When you are underperforming, you are hurting your team and your trading business. You need a system to yank yourself over to the bench. A stop loss is your answer. TRADING BASED UPON THE TIME OF DAY A good trader makes note of what time of day it is, when he trades most profitably, and adjusts his trading to fit such times. Your numbers at the end of the month will not reflect your true trading potential. Make the most trades with the most size during the trading periods that statistically are most profitable for you. Money saved during your weaker trading periods is money earned. Consistency The fact is that most trades you make will start working for you right away. But the new traders also hold stocks that are trading ag...

So what is your money blueprint set for?

Are you programmed for managing your money well or mismanaging it? Are you a spender or a saver ? Wealth principle: The only way to permanently change the temperature in the room is to reset the thermostat. In the same way, the only way to change your level of financial success "permanently" is to reset your financial thermostat. You can become an expert in real estate or the stock market. All of these are tremendous "tools." But in the end, without an inner "tool-box" that is big enough and strong enough for you to create and hold on to large amounts of money, all the tools in the world will be useless to you. Your income can grow only to the extent that you do. Remember that the first element of all change is awareness.Watch yourself, become conscious, observe your thoughts, your fears, your beliefs, your habits, your actions, and even your inactions. Put yourself under a microscope. Study yourself. Wealth principle: Consciousness is observin...

Wealth File #4 Rich people think big. Poor people think small

Wealth principle: The law of Income: You will be paid in direct proportion to the value you deliver according to the marketplace. The keyword is value. It's important to know that four factors determine your value in the marketplace: supply,demand,quality and quantity. The factor that presents the biggest challenge for most people is the quantity. The quantity factor simply means, how much of your value do you actually deliver to the marketplace? Another way of stating this is, how many people do you actually serve or affect? Most people choose to play small. Why? First, because of fear. They're scared to death of failure and they're even more frightened of success. Second, people play small because they feel small. They feel unworthy. They don't feel they're good enough or important enough to make a real difference in people's lives. But hear this: your life is not just about you. It's also about contributing to others. It's about living true...