The Power of Habit Summary

At its core, The Power of Habit contains an exhilarating argument: The key to exercising regularly, losing weight, raising exceptional children, becoming more productive, building revolutionary companies and social movements, and achieving success are about understanding how habits work. By harnessing this new science, we can transform our businesses, our communities, and our lives.

Here’s what you’ll learn about in this summary:

– How cravings create and power new habits.

– How to apply the golden rule of habit change.

– Why the brain tries to make routines into habits.

– What “keystone habits” are and the importance of them creating a new routine.

“When a habit emerges, the brain stops fully participating in decision making. It stops working so hard or diverts focus to other tasks. So unless you deliberately fight a habit—unless you find new routines—the pattern will unfold automatically.”

There are these two young fish swimming along and they happen to meet an older fish swimming the other way, who nods at them and says “Morning, boys. How’s the water?” And the two young fish swim on for a bit, and then eventually one of them looks over at the other and goes “What the hell is water?”

— David Foster Wallace

The water is habits: The unthinking choices and invisible decisions that surround us — and which, just by looking at them, become visible again.

• Some habits matter more than others in remaking our lives.
• These are ‘keystone habits’, and they can influence how people work, eat, play, live, spend, and communicate.
• The habits that matter most are the ones that, when they start to shift, dislodge and remake other patterns.
• For example, a common personal keystone habit for many people is regular exercise. It’s common for people who nail get that right start to sleep and eat better, drink less, etc.

This is how new habits are created: By putting together a cue, a routine, and a reward, and then cultivating a craving that drives the loop.

To create a new habit (such as running each morning), you need to choose a simple cue (e.g. leaving your gym clothes out, lacing your sneakers before breakfast, etc), and a clear reward (e.g. a midday treat, the satisfaction of completing the run, etc).

Habits, scientists say, emerge because the brain is constantly looking for ways to save effort. Left to its own devices, the brain will try to make almost any routine into a habit, because habits allow our minds to ramp down more often.

The core concept of the book is the habit loop, which consists of three components: cue, routine, and reward. The cue triggers the habit, the routine is the behavior itself, and the reward is the benefit gained. Understanding this loop is crucial for identifying and changing habits.

To change a habit, keep the same cue and reward but change the routine. For example, if you want to stop snacking on unhealthy foods, recognize the cue (boredom), and replace the routine (eating chips) with a healthier one (eating an apple).

Some habits have the power to influence other behaviors. These keystone habits can start a chain reaction of positive changes. Exercise is an example of a keystone habit; it often leads to better eating habits, improved sleep, and reduced stress.

1. The Habit Loop

Put simply, the habit loop is composed of cues, routines, and rewards.

✅Train yourself to notice particular cues, which then trigger routines and bring you rewards.

5 main categories of cues:

- location

- time

- emotional state

- other people

- action immediately preceding the cue

👉Recognizing what cues you currently have in your life and how to seek out or avoid them is critical.

Keystone habits are usually small and result in a “win” for you, which snowballs into greater habit formation and control. 

👉As an example, dieters who keep a food journal are more successful at losing weight.

According to a 2006 paper published by a Duke University researcher, more than 40% of the actions we perform each day aren’t actual decisions, but habits.

The reason is simple: our brain is constantly on the lookout for new ways to save energy, so when it notices a sequence of actions with a beneficial result, it converts it in an automatic habit and stores it in a primitive part of the brain called the basal ganglia. 

All habits share a similar pattern by 3 step loop:

• First, there is the external cue, that is, the trigger that tells your brain to go into automatic mode and which habit to use. This can be anything from the familiar music of an ice cream truck to the smell of fresh coffee in the morning. 
• Then, there is the routine itself, the most obvious element of a habit, the behavior you wish to change (e.g., nail biting) or reinforce (e.g., taking the stairs instead of the elevator). 
• Finally, there is the reward that helps your brain figure out if this particular loop is worth remembering for the future.

Over time, this habit loop – cue, routine, reward – becomes more and more automatic. “The cue and reward become intertwined in such a way that a powerful sense of anticipation and craving emerges,” writes Duhigg. It is this craving that powers the habit loop and gives habits their strength.

Habbit is a way of Living. Habbits can make a man very successful and also can ruin a man completely.

I'm your companion

I'm your greatest helper or your heaviest burden.

I will push you onward or drag you down to failure.

I'm completely at your command.

Half the things you do.....

You might just as well turn them over to me,

And I will be able to do them quickly and correctly

I'm easily Managaed.

You must merely be firm with me.

Show me exactly how you want something done.

And after a few lessons, I will do it automatically.

I'm the servant of all great men and alas of all great failures.

Have you noticed that every morning, you brush your teeth almost the same way, your actions are almost automated, the way you brush, the way you keep it back and also your actions you do after brushing. Why? Read next

Habit Chunks are group of habits that are almost automated inorder to reduce making decision by your brain. These are repeated behaviors.

Basal Ganglia:

Part of the brain that gets activated while habits are turned on and decision taking is reduced

Ever been into trap of same negative sequence happening and you falling into same trap of negative loop automaticaly, yes there can be sequence for your emotional habits too.

We all are living a very busy lives nowdays.. But most of us waste our most of time to focus on other peoples matter...

So here are some tips to Focus on your own things rather than other peoples lives..☝

When you create more than you consume, it motivates you to focus on your life. Creating means studying, building strong relationship with someone, exercise, doing what you enjoy.. And many more.

And when you consume more than you create you end up feeling angry & guilty for doing nothing. Consuming means empty scrolling on social media, watching motivational videos 🎥 on YouTube but doing nothing. You'll feel like ' everyone is doing so much in their lives except me'.. So

"Create more than you consume"

When you learn to control your Emotions, everything seems like simple and easy to control.

Routine seems trivial, but in truth they are one of the most powerful forces that shape our life.Take routine vacuuming as an example, it keeps your place clean,and most importantly,it gives you a sense of tidiness.

The above picture perfectly illustrates the formation of a habit.

One must come up with a reward in order to implement the routine.This can be anything-from happiness to monetary gain-that you held dear , that you CRAVE particularly.

Take jogging as an example, most people run in order to relief stress and ,to them, that's the reward.After a certain period of time, they become so accustomed to the exhilaration of the after-run that they developed a craving for it.

This way, a healthy habit is formed.