I have no idea how to make myself do things in the consistent, reliable way that others seem to: work out, get dressed, cook a veg bowl, book appointments. On rare days, I miraculously do them all. Most others, I thumb screens, nap relentlessly and eat neon-colored snacks covered in sugar and salt. After seven years of freelance life, it's gotten dire.
Our mental system constantly generates expectations about what will happen next, including what we ourselves are likely to do, think, or feel. These expectations are often outside of awareness, but they quietly shape our behavior: We tend to act, think, and feel in ways that fit our expectations. As a result, the system becomes self-reinforcing: When our expectations are confirmed, they grow stronger, making the predicted behavior feel even more natural next time.
Why are bad habits so hard to break? Neuroscientist Carl Hart, PhD, journalist Charles Duhigg, and psychologist Adam Alter, PhD explain how your brain wires habits as cue-routine-reward loops that control nearly half of your daily life. They show why willpower alone rarely works, why technology fuels new forms of addiction, and why habits can only be replaced, not erased.
I am a creature of habit and of comfort. This is not to say I'm an unadventurous eater; I'll give almost anything a try, so long as it doesn't include goat cheese or Brazil nuts. (The former is a taste thing, the latter a nonsensical allergy.) Left to my own devices, however, I return again and again to the things I know and love: my favorite feel-good movies, the same local coffee shop, the same old hotels in the same old cities.
The Pavlok bracelet gives users a penalty of a 350-volt electric shock every time they step out of line. It works for a wide range of nasty habits including smoking, sleeping in, spending too much time on the internet and even sleeping in.
