The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business

So what, exactly, did Hopkins do? He created a craving. And that craving, it turns out, is what makes cues and rewards work. That craving is what powers the habit loop.

creating new food habits requires a predetermined cue—such as planning menus in advance—and simple rewards for dieters when they stick to their intentions.2.14

But countless studies have shown that a cue and a reward, on their own, aren’t enough for a new habit to last. Only when your brain starts expecting the reward—craving the endorphins or sense of accomplishment—will it become automatic to lace up your jogging shoes each morning.

You don’t have to believe in God, but you do need the capacity to believe that things will get better.

Habits, scientists say, emerge because the brain is constantly looking for ways to save effort.

Habits never really disappear. They’re encoded into the structures of our brain, and that’s a huge advantage for us, because it would be awful if we had to relearn how to drive after every vacation. The problem is that your brain can’t tell the difference between bad and good habits, and so if you have a bad one, it’s always lurking there, waiting

(Attempts to give up snacking, for instance, will often fail unless there’s a new routine to satisfy old cues and reward urges.

THE GOLDEN RULE OF HABIT CHANGE You Can’t Extinguish a Bad Habit, You Can Only Change It.

Self-discipline has a bigger effect on academic performance than does intellectual talent.”