“This is how willpower becomes a habit: by choosing a certain behavior ahead of time, and then following that routine when an inflection point arrives.”Willpower is the most important keystone habit for individual success. Studies show that it’s more important than IQ and other factors. People with high willpower get better grades in their classes and gain admission into more selective schools. They spend less time watching TV and more time doing homework.

The Habit of Success

“Cravings are what drive habits. And figuring out how to spark a craving makes creating a new habit easier.”Habits are very powerful because they create neurological cravings. This craving is at the core of creating a new habit. For example, after eating a meal, we can feel that our teeth are dirty. That’s the cue. And we crave to make them feel clean and fresh. That’s the reward. Once there is a cue; we crave the reward.

How to Create New Habits

“If you focus on changing or cultivating keystone habits, you can cause widespread shifts.”Some habits have the power to start a chain reaction. Some habits are better than others. These habits are “keystone habits.” A keystone habit starts a process that changes everything. Success does not depend on many small things but instead relies on identifying a few priorities.Keystone habits are like small wins. Accomplishing them is not a big deal. In fact, it’s quite easy. But this small win will drive bigger wins over time.

The Keystone Habit

“Habits can be changed, if we understand how they work.”Habits emerge because the brain wants to save effort. The brain, instead of analyzing the situation and thinking about behavior, can simply execute a routine. This gives the logical part of the brain more space for other important things.The habit loop 3, and the first one is a cue. It’s a trigger that tells your brain to start executing a habit. Then there is a routine. It can be physical, mental, or emotional. And the last step is a reward. This gives the brain information about whether the routine is worth remembering in the future.

How Habits Work

“That’s the rule: If you use the same cue, and provide the same reward, you can shift the routine and change the habit. Almost any behavior can be transformed if the cue and reward stay the same.”You cannot truly extinguish bad habits. Habits are strong, and when the cue appears, your brain will always crave the reward. However, what you can do is replace the routine. The cue and the reward have to stay the same, but the routine does not.This is called a Golden Rule. This rule has helped with treatments for alcoholism, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and hundreds of other destructive behaviors

Why Transformation Occurs

Groundbreaking new research shows that by grabbing hold of the three-step "loop" all habits form in our brains--cue, routine, reward--we can change them, giving us the power to take control over our lives. "We are what we repeatedly do," said Aristotle. "Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." On the most basic level, a habit is a simple neurological loop: there is a cue (my mouth feels gross), a routine (hello, Crest), and a reward (ahhh, minty fresh). Understanding this loop is the key to exercising regularly or becoming more productive at work or tapping into reserves of creativity. Marketers, too, are learning how to exploit these loops to boost sales; CEOs and coaches are using them to change how employees work and athletes compete. As this book shows, tweaking even one habit, as long as it's the right one, can have staggering effects. In The Power of Habit, award-winning New York Times business reporter Charles Duhigg takes readers inside labs where brain scans record habits as they flourish and die; classrooms in which students learn to boost their willpower; and boardrooms where executives dream up products that tug on our deepest habitual urges. Full of compelling narratives that will appeal to fans of Michael Lewis, Jonah Lehrer, and Chip and Dan Heath, The Power of Habit contains an exhilarating argument: our most basic actions are not the product of well-considered decision making, but of habits we often do not realize exist. By harnessing this new science, we can transform our lives.

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Books

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • This instant classic explores how we can change our lives by changing our habits. NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The Wall Street Journal • Financial Times In The Power of Habit, award-winning business reporter Charles Duhigg takes us to the thrilling edge of scientific discoveries that explain why habits exist and how they can be changed. Distilling vast amounts of information into engrossing narratives that take us from the boardrooms of Procter & Gamble to the sidelines of the NFL to the front lines of the civil rights movement, Duhigg presents a whole new understanding of human nature and its potential. At its core, The Power of Habit contains an exhilarating argument: The key to exercising regularly, losing weight, being more productive, and achieving success is understanding how habits work. As Duhigg shows, by harnessing this new science, we can transform our businesses, our communities, and our lives. With a new Afterword by the author   “Sharp, provocative, and useful.”—Jim Collins   “Few [books] become essential manuals for business and living. The Power of Habit is an exception. Charles Duhigg not only explains how habits are formed but how to kick bad ones and hang on to the good.”—Financial Times   “A flat-out great read.”—David Allen, bestselling author of Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity “You’ll never look at yourself, your organization, or your world quite the same way.”—Daniel H. Pink, bestselling author of Drive and A Whole New Mind “Entertaining . . . enjoyable . . . fascinating . . . a serious look at the science of habit formation and change.”—The New York Times Book Review

Charles Duhigg is an American journalist and non-fiction author. He was a reporter for The New York Times, currently writes for The New Yorker Magazine and is the author of two books on habits and productivity, titled The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business and Smarter Faster Better.

The Keystone Habit

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