1 00:00:15,476 --> 00:00:26,156 Speaker 1: Pushkin. Hey, Happiness Lab listeners, welcome back to our special 2 00:00:26,196 --> 00:00:29,596 Speaker 1: series on spring Cleaning Your Happiness. In honor of this 3 00:00:29,636 --> 00:00:32,716 Speaker 1: season of new beginnings, we're clearing out all our outdated 4 00:00:32,756 --> 00:00:35,876 Speaker 1: behaviors and mindsets so that we can refresh our emotional 5 00:00:35,956 --> 00:00:38,876 Speaker 1: junk drawers, so to speak. We'll also be doing our 6 00:00:38,876 --> 00:00:41,876 Speaker 1: own Happiness Lab closet refresh as we head back into 7 00:00:41,916 --> 00:00:45,316 Speaker 1: the episode archives to find throwback insights from past episodes 8 00:00:45,356 --> 00:00:47,716 Speaker 1: that you might have missed, And in today's episode from 9 00:00:47,756 --> 00:00:50,676 Speaker 1: the archives, we're diving into a very tough spring clean 10 00:00:50,756 --> 00:00:55,356 Speaker 1: up job. We'll be exploring how to freshen up our habits. Now, 11 00:00:55,436 --> 00:00:57,076 Speaker 1: I'm going to go out on a limb and guess 12 00:00:57,116 --> 00:00:59,276 Speaker 1: that there's at least one routine that you do on 13 00:00:59,316 --> 00:01:02,396 Speaker 1: autopilot all the time, even though it makes you feel 14 00:01:02,596 --> 00:01:05,796 Speaker 1: kind of crappy. Wouldn't you like to break free, to 15 00:01:05,796 --> 00:01:08,356 Speaker 1: toss out that bad habit like an old pair of genes, 16 00:01:08,556 --> 00:01:10,756 Speaker 1: and replace it with a routine that fits your current 17 00:01:10,796 --> 00:01:14,036 Speaker 1: goals a bit better. That sounds awesome in theory, you're 18 00:01:14,036 --> 00:01:16,916 Speaker 1: probably thinking, but is it really possible to break a 19 00:01:16,956 --> 00:01:21,716 Speaker 1: well learned bad habit? Turns out yes, totally possible, but 20 00:01:21,836 --> 00:01:24,596 Speaker 1: the process is way easier if you have a more 21 00:01:24,676 --> 00:01:27,916 Speaker 1: nuanced understanding of the way our brains structure habits and 22 00:01:27,956 --> 00:01:30,596 Speaker 1: how they really work. And that is what you're going 23 00:01:30,636 --> 00:01:33,116 Speaker 1: to learn in our episode. Today. You're going to meet 24 00:01:33,156 --> 00:01:35,636 Speaker 1: a scientist who sleeps in her running gear and a 25 00:01:35,716 --> 00:01:38,836 Speaker 1: Vietnam war doc who turned to heroin addicts to debink 26 00:01:38,916 --> 00:01:42,396 Speaker 1: some important misconceptions about habit change. By the end of 27 00:01:42,396 --> 00:01:45,196 Speaker 1: the show, you'll have gained some practical tips for dropping 28 00:01:45,276 --> 00:01:48,596 Speaker 1: your own not so great routines and for building healthier ones. 29 00:01:49,436 --> 00:01:51,876 Speaker 1: Sound good, We'll get ready to clear out all your 30 00:01:51,916 --> 00:01:55,396 Speaker 1: bad habits with this week's Spring Cleaning Happiness Lab throwback 31 00:01:55,716 --> 00:01:58,156 Speaker 1: coming up right after this quick break. 32 00:02:11,196 --> 00:02:13,996 Speaker 2: For starters. It was the last thing I particularly wanted 33 00:02:14,036 --> 00:02:14,396 Speaker 2: to do. 34 00:02:15,036 --> 00:02:18,356 Speaker 1: Like many young Americans back in nineteen seventy, Richard Ratner 35 00:02:18,396 --> 00:02:20,156 Speaker 1: wasn't all that excited about going to war. 36 00:02:20,676 --> 00:02:23,556 Speaker 2: I had just been married, and when I found out 37 00:02:23,556 --> 00:02:26,716 Speaker 2: that I was going to Vietnam, we try to figure 38 00:02:26,716 --> 00:02:29,036 Speaker 2: out any way to get out of it, you know, 39 00:02:29,076 --> 00:02:33,196 Speaker 2: which involved oh, I don't know, talking to the military 40 00:02:33,196 --> 00:02:35,636 Speaker 2: and Stane whether it's assignment could be changed. None of 41 00:02:35,676 --> 00:02:40,316 Speaker 2: it worked. They were well prepared for people who didn't 42 00:02:40,316 --> 00:02:40,796 Speaker 2: want to go. 43 00:02:41,596 --> 00:02:44,356 Speaker 1: The army didn't want to hear Richard's excuses. As a 44 00:02:44,396 --> 00:02:47,076 Speaker 1: newly qualified doctor, he had just the skills that the 45 00:02:47,076 --> 00:02:52,396 Speaker 1: military desperately needed. Richard was one of many American men 46 00:02:52,436 --> 00:02:54,996 Speaker 1: who were plucked from their civilian lives and forced into 47 00:02:55,036 --> 00:03:02,396 Speaker 1: the armed services. September fourteen, zero zero won. There was 48 00:03:02,436 --> 00:03:05,476 Speaker 1: even a televised lottery draw where young men were selected 49 00:03:05,516 --> 00:03:08,996 Speaker 1: from military service and in Vietnam based on their birthday. 50 00:03:09,356 --> 00:03:12,076 Speaker 2: April twenty four is zero zero two. 51 00:03:12,836 --> 00:03:15,396 Speaker 1: Richard was lucky enough to delay his service until after 52 00:03:15,436 --> 00:03:18,756 Speaker 1: his medical training, but arriving in Saigon as a twenty 53 00:03:18,756 --> 00:03:21,356 Speaker 1: something new doctor was still a shock to the system. 54 00:03:21,716 --> 00:03:25,276 Speaker 2: We are in buses where they have this steel mash 55 00:03:25,436 --> 00:03:29,036 Speaker 2: covering the windows, and I'm absolutely sure that any minute 56 00:03:29,076 --> 00:03:30,836 Speaker 2: someone is going to toss a lamb at us. 57 00:03:31,076 --> 00:03:33,956 Speaker 1: But Richard wasn't a trained surgeon heading to Vietnam to 58 00:03:33,956 --> 00:03:37,516 Speaker 1: take care of bullet wounds. He was a psychiatrist, but 59 00:03:37,596 --> 00:03:42,116 Speaker 1: he still wouldn't be treating depression or even PTSD. Richard 60 00:03:42,196 --> 00:03:44,276 Speaker 1: was about to use his training to wage a war 61 00:03:44,316 --> 00:03:47,876 Speaker 1: against bad habits, the kind of behaviors we really want 62 00:03:47,876 --> 00:03:51,956 Speaker 1: to change, but somehow can't. Richard would soon learn that 63 00:03:51,996 --> 00:03:54,756 Speaker 1: our habits don't always work the way we think. His 64 00:03:54,876 --> 00:03:58,276 Speaker 1: findings not only shocked scientists, but also change the way 65 00:03:58,276 --> 00:04:01,556 Speaker 1: that researchers think about the science of behavior change even 66 00:04:01,636 --> 00:04:05,356 Speaker 1: decades later, and his story provides some important hints for 67 00:04:05,436 --> 00:04:07,756 Speaker 1: how we can win our own personal battles with the 68 00:04:07,796 --> 00:04:13,276 Speaker 1: bad habits that her our happiness. Our minds are constantly 69 00:04:13,276 --> 00:04:15,356 Speaker 1: telling us what to do to be happy. But what 70 00:04:15,396 --> 00:04:17,716 Speaker 1: if our minds are wrong? What if our minds are 71 00:04:17,796 --> 00:04:20,436 Speaker 1: lying to us, leading us away from what will really 72 00:04:20,436 --> 00:04:23,516 Speaker 1: make us happy. The good news is that understanding the 73 00:04:23,556 --> 00:04:25,796 Speaker 1: science of the mind can point us all back in 74 00:04:25,876 --> 00:04:29,116 Speaker 1: the right direction. You're listening to the Happiness Lab of 75 00:04:29,236 --> 00:04:31,436 Speaker 1: doctor Laurie Santos. 76 00:04:35,396 --> 00:04:37,756 Speaker 2: You got to have those shoes shined. You got to 77 00:04:37,796 --> 00:04:40,556 Speaker 2: show up at formation. You know, you have to have 78 00:04:40,636 --> 00:04:41,636 Speaker 2: your bed made. 79 00:04:41,836 --> 00:04:44,796 Speaker 1: Richard's soldiers were trapped in Vietnam, far away from home. 80 00:04:45,516 --> 00:04:48,316 Speaker 1: Some were facing life or death situations on the battlefield, 81 00:04:48,916 --> 00:04:52,556 Speaker 1: but according to Richard, the biggest enemy many soldiers faced 82 00:04:53,036 --> 00:04:57,316 Speaker 1: was back in the barracks. It was boredom. Away from combat, 83 00:04:57,476 --> 00:05:01,596 Speaker 1: soldiers spent their days doing repetitive tasks that they didn't enjoy, 84 00:05:01,796 --> 00:05:06,556 Speaker 1: shining boots, dealing with annoying superior officers, and generally just 85 00:05:06,596 --> 00:05:09,796 Speaker 1: not having anything fun to do. And that's why many 86 00:05:09,836 --> 00:05:12,476 Speaker 1: of them wound up turning to a particularly bad habit, 87 00:05:13,116 --> 00:05:15,196 Speaker 1: one that the army really didn't approve of. 88 00:05:15,716 --> 00:05:17,796 Speaker 2: People would just kind of get high, and you know, 89 00:05:17,956 --> 00:05:21,076 Speaker 2: not necessarily that different from if you come home from 90 00:05:21,116 --> 00:05:23,476 Speaker 2: a hard day at the steel mill and you know, 91 00:05:23,636 --> 00:05:25,556 Speaker 2: go into the bar and have a few drinks. It's 92 00:05:25,596 --> 00:05:27,436 Speaker 2: not totally unlike. 93 00:05:27,156 --> 00:05:29,836 Speaker 1: That, yeah, but you know, what was available wasn't a 94 00:05:29,876 --> 00:05:32,076 Speaker 1: few drinks, at least for the soldiers who weren't twenty one. 95 00:05:32,436 --> 00:05:36,196 Speaker 1: What was available was like incredibly hardcore heroine exactly. 96 00:05:36,916 --> 00:05:41,716 Speaker 2: The first phase was where soldiers were smoking marijuana. If 97 00:05:41,716 --> 00:05:46,036 Speaker 2: you're smoking weed, it's not going to take too long 98 00:05:46,076 --> 00:05:48,196 Speaker 2: for it to waft down to where the first sergeants 99 00:05:48,876 --> 00:05:51,636 Speaker 2: Woch was and he'd come up looking for you. 100 00:05:51,956 --> 00:05:55,556 Speaker 1: Conveniently enough, soldiers had access to a less smelly drug option. 101 00:05:56,476 --> 00:05:59,436 Speaker 1: With the Golden Triangle, a massive area of poppy production 102 00:05:59,716 --> 00:06:02,956 Speaker 1: just across the border, suppliers were ready and willing to 103 00:06:03,036 --> 00:06:06,316 Speaker 1: sell an alternative drug to US troops heroin. 104 00:06:06,796 --> 00:06:10,716 Speaker 2: They could do it under the nose of the commanding officers, 105 00:06:11,156 --> 00:06:13,316 Speaker 2: and it was a great deal more potent. 106 00:06:13,636 --> 00:06:16,156 Speaker 1: As one GI addict told The New York Times, the 107 00:06:16,196 --> 00:06:20,676 Speaker 1: skag was everywhere. Estimates very, but it's generally thought that 108 00:06:20,756 --> 00:06:24,796 Speaker 1: around twenty percent of low ranking soldiers used heroin. The 109 00:06:24,836 --> 00:06:28,836 Speaker 1: Times called the addiction rates an epidemic. With hundreds of 110 00:06:28,916 --> 00:06:32,716 Speaker 1: thousands of American troops stationed all over Vietnam, the government 111 00:06:32,796 --> 00:06:35,556 Speaker 1: was worried that gis would return to their families as 112 00:06:35,556 --> 00:06:36,476 Speaker 1: desperate junkies. 113 00:06:37,116 --> 00:06:40,516 Speaker 2: This notion that we had a whole army full of 114 00:06:40,676 --> 00:06:43,796 Speaker 2: drug crazed people who were going to be unleashed on 115 00:06:43,836 --> 00:06:48,916 Speaker 2: these communities truly had people frightened. The Army announced that 116 00:06:48,956 --> 00:06:54,716 Speaker 2: anybody who was dependent on heroin could report to the 117 00:06:54,876 --> 00:06:59,796 Speaker 2: Amnesty Center. They would not be arrested or charged with 118 00:06:59,916 --> 00:07:03,756 Speaker 2: criminal activities. They could come, they could detox and then 119 00:07:03,796 --> 00:07:06,036 Speaker 2: go home. You know, no harm, no foul. 120 00:07:06,476 --> 00:07:10,116 Speaker 1: The American public demanded action, so, without a better plan, 121 00:07:10,316 --> 00:07:12,956 Speaker 1: the Army opted to force the gis to go cold 122 00:07:12,956 --> 00:07:14,356 Speaker 1: turkey when they. 123 00:07:14,276 --> 00:07:17,236 Speaker 2: Came into the detox center. We did not taper them 124 00:07:17,236 --> 00:07:20,556 Speaker 2: off on heroin. I really had no idea, and I 125 00:07:20,716 --> 00:07:23,436 Speaker 2: was sort of frantically trying to get information on how 126 00:07:23,756 --> 00:07:25,916 Speaker 2: does one properly detox somebody. 127 00:07:26,116 --> 00:07:28,436 Speaker 1: But what Richard had even less of an idea about 128 00:07:28,956 --> 00:07:31,196 Speaker 1: was how he was going to help soldiers stay clean 129 00:07:31,396 --> 00:07:34,516 Speaker 1: once they got home. I mean, heroin isn't just any 130 00:07:34,556 --> 00:07:39,036 Speaker 1: old bad habit, It's an incredibly addictive substance. By making 131 00:07:39,076 --> 00:07:41,996 Speaker 1: his soldiers go cold turkey, Richard could help his men 132 00:07:42,036 --> 00:07:45,036 Speaker 1: get through the withdrawal phase, that first step to breaking 133 00:07:45,116 --> 00:07:48,796 Speaker 1: the physical part of their addiction. But the bigger challenge 134 00:07:48,876 --> 00:07:51,436 Speaker 1: was helping them avoid the behavioral parts of their addiction, 135 00:07:52,196 --> 00:07:54,596 Speaker 1: that habit of turning to heroin in order to feel 136 00:07:54,596 --> 00:07:58,236 Speaker 1: better whenever they were feeling depressed or bored or stressed, 137 00:07:58,916 --> 00:08:01,956 Speaker 1: the almost automatic urge to reduce their craving with a 138 00:08:01,996 --> 00:08:05,076 Speaker 1: quick hit. Simply hoping that these men would have the 139 00:08:05,076 --> 00:08:08,156 Speaker 1: willpower to avoid heroin wasn't going to be enough. 140 00:08:08,476 --> 00:08:12,836 Speaker 2: Here we have these guys who are eighteen nineteen, and 141 00:08:13,436 --> 00:08:15,636 Speaker 2: when a little too much pressure is put on them, 142 00:08:16,316 --> 00:08:16,796 Speaker 2: they pop. 143 00:08:17,316 --> 00:08:19,436 Speaker 1: At the time, Richard was worried that there was no 144 00:08:19,476 --> 00:08:22,036 Speaker 1: way to avert this wave of addiction. Sure, the men 145 00:08:22,076 --> 00:08:24,596 Speaker 1: could detox at his center, but no one seemed to 146 00:08:24,676 --> 00:08:26,516 Speaker 1: know what to do to help them and overcome their 147 00:08:26,516 --> 00:08:32,316 Speaker 1: awful habit so that they could become healthier and happier. Now, 148 00:08:32,356 --> 00:08:34,996 Speaker 1: I'm guessing most people listening to this podcast won't ever 149 00:08:35,036 --> 00:08:38,556 Speaker 1: face a behavioral challenge as hard as kicking heroin. But 150 00:08:38,716 --> 00:08:41,636 Speaker 1: like those soldiers, all of us have bad habits that 151 00:08:41,676 --> 00:08:44,476 Speaker 1: detract from our health and happiness. You don't need to 152 00:08:44,476 --> 00:08:46,916 Speaker 1: be an opioid drug user to understand that it can 153 00:08:46,956 --> 00:08:50,076 Speaker 1: be difficult to change are not so good ways, and 154 00:08:50,116 --> 00:08:52,796 Speaker 1: the science suggests that the everyday habits that plague us 155 00:08:53,196 --> 00:08:55,556 Speaker 1: can sometimes be just as hard to overcome as the 156 00:08:55,596 --> 00:08:59,476 Speaker 1: addictive kind. The problem is that the path to happiness 157 00:08:59,516 --> 00:09:03,276 Speaker 1: requires changing a lot of these habitual bad behaviors. We 158 00:09:03,316 --> 00:09:06,116 Speaker 1: need to stop griping, we need to put down our phones, 159 00:09:06,516 --> 00:09:09,756 Speaker 1: and we need to stop craving material possessions. But how 160 00:09:09,796 --> 00:09:12,836 Speaker 1: do we do that? If you're like me, it probably 161 00:09:12,836 --> 00:09:16,516 Speaker 1: feels like changing these repeated behaviors is really really challenging. 162 00:09:17,556 --> 00:09:20,116 Speaker 1: But what our lying minds don't realize is that we 163 00:09:20,156 --> 00:09:23,236 Speaker 1: have a powerful mental tool that really could help us 164 00:09:23,276 --> 00:09:27,236 Speaker 1: achieve lasting behavioral change with ease, if only we understood 165 00:09:27,396 --> 00:09:32,276 Speaker 1: how that tool worked. I wanted to learn more about 166 00:09:32,396 --> 00:09:36,036 Speaker 1: why our intuitions about behavior change were so bad, and 167 00:09:36,076 --> 00:09:37,556 Speaker 1: I knew just the person to ask. 168 00:09:37,876 --> 00:09:42,276 Speaker 3: My name is Wendy Wood. I am Professor of Psychology 169 00:09:42,316 --> 00:09:45,396 Speaker 3: and Business here at the University of Southern California. 170 00:09:45,516 --> 00:09:47,916 Speaker 1: Wendy is the author of a new book, Good Habits, 171 00:09:47,956 --> 00:09:51,476 Speaker 1: Bad Habits, The Science of making positive changes that stick. 172 00:09:52,076 --> 00:09:56,476 Speaker 3: Most of us are very good at understanding what we 173 00:09:56,596 --> 00:10:00,356 Speaker 3: need to do better to be healthier, to be more 174 00:10:00,436 --> 00:10:05,276 Speaker 3: financially stable, to have happier families. Most of us know 175 00:10:05,396 --> 00:10:06,716 Speaker 3: what those things are. 176 00:10:07,076 --> 00:10:09,596 Speaker 1: The problem, according to Wendy, is that most of us 177 00:10:09,636 --> 00:10:13,956 Speaker 1: mistakenly think that changing our behavior requires willpower and hard work. 178 00:10:14,356 --> 00:10:18,796 Speaker 3: I think that we admire willpower and we view it 179 00:10:19,076 --> 00:10:23,396 Speaker 3: as a very positive attribute. The way that the Puritans 180 00:10:23,396 --> 00:10:26,836 Speaker 3: thought they would go to heaven is through self denial 181 00:10:27,276 --> 00:10:31,796 Speaker 3: and showing that they were strong enough to resist temptations. 182 00:10:32,076 --> 00:10:34,196 Speaker 1: But there's a problem with this. Willpower is next to 183 00:10:34,236 --> 00:10:38,516 Speaker 1: godliness notion, and that is that willpower doesn't really work. 184 00:10:39,076 --> 00:10:44,836 Speaker 3: When you exert willpower and control your behavior, what you're 185 00:10:44,836 --> 00:10:48,996 Speaker 3: doing is you are thinking about the thing that you 186 00:10:49,116 --> 00:10:52,796 Speaker 3: don't want to do, and in doing so, you give 187 00:10:52,836 --> 00:10:58,716 Speaker 3: it energy to keep re emerging. So there's a sort 188 00:10:58,716 --> 00:11:03,716 Speaker 3: of a self defeating aspect to willpower that gets in 189 00:11:03,756 --> 00:11:04,276 Speaker 3: our way. 190 00:11:04,836 --> 00:11:07,596 Speaker 1: So if willpower doesn't work, what can we actually do 191 00:11:07,676 --> 00:11:11,156 Speaker 1: to successfully tam our bad habits. The answer is that 192 00:11:11,196 --> 00:11:13,436 Speaker 1: we need to be working smarter, not harder. 193 00:11:13,916 --> 00:11:20,316 Speaker 3: When you observe people when they are being effective at 194 00:11:20,716 --> 00:11:24,956 Speaker 3: controlling their behavior and doing the right thing, say eating 195 00:11:25,036 --> 00:11:30,076 Speaker 3: healthfully or saving money for the future, what they're doing 196 00:11:30,156 --> 00:11:34,116 Speaker 3: is they're not exerting willpower. What people do is they 197 00:11:34,796 --> 00:11:38,996 Speaker 3: set up the situations around them to make it easy 198 00:11:39,156 --> 00:11:43,716 Speaker 3: to repeat the desired behavior, and they repeat it over 199 00:11:43,756 --> 00:11:47,996 Speaker 3: and over so that it becomes automatic. We don't realize 200 00:11:48,036 --> 00:11:52,516 Speaker 3: how much of that we really could harness if we 201 00:11:52,676 --> 00:11:53,876 Speaker 3: just knew how it worked. 202 00:11:54,396 --> 00:11:56,396 Speaker 1: When we get back from the break, we'll do just that. 203 00:11:57,116 --> 00:11:59,876 Speaker 1: We'll take a deep dive into how habits work and 204 00:11:59,916 --> 00:12:01,956 Speaker 1: how you can harness them to behave in ways that 205 00:12:01,996 --> 00:12:05,876 Speaker 1: promote your health and your happiness. The Happiness Lab will 206 00:12:05,876 --> 00:12:06,556 Speaker 1: be right back. 207 00:12:16,836 --> 00:12:19,676 Speaker 3: I get up in the morning, I walk into my 208 00:12:19,796 --> 00:12:23,636 Speaker 3: kitchen and making coffee is the first thing that comes 209 00:12:23,636 --> 00:12:24,076 Speaker 3: to mind. 210 00:12:24,476 --> 00:12:28,156 Speaker 1: Psychologist and behavior change expert Wendy Would knows that engaging 211 00:12:28,156 --> 00:12:31,396 Speaker 1: in routine is the secret to changing our bad behaviors. 212 00:12:31,836 --> 00:12:34,236 Speaker 3: I don't ask myself how to do it. I don't 213 00:12:34,276 --> 00:12:35,996 Speaker 3: need to do that. I've done it so often in 214 00:12:36,036 --> 00:12:39,596 Speaker 3: the past. I don't ask myself whether I want coffee? 215 00:12:39,916 --> 00:12:42,556 Speaker 3: Am I really tired this morning? Do I need coffee? 216 00:12:42,796 --> 00:12:45,756 Speaker 3: I don't ask those questions. I just do it, and 217 00:12:45,796 --> 00:12:50,276 Speaker 3: then in the end I get the reward of repeating 218 00:12:50,316 --> 00:12:52,436 Speaker 3: what I've done in the past, which is that great 219 00:12:52,436 --> 00:12:56,396 Speaker 3: cup of coffee. And that's how people who are really 220 00:12:56,476 --> 00:12:59,636 Speaker 3: successful at meeting their goals, that's how they do it. 221 00:13:00,036 --> 00:13:04,036 Speaker 1: Wendy's morning coffee making illustrates a willpower free strategy that 222 00:13:04,156 --> 00:13:06,316 Speaker 1: all of us can use to change our behavior for 223 00:13:06,396 --> 00:13:08,996 Speaker 1: the better. It's called habit formation. 224 00:13:09,636 --> 00:13:15,876 Speaker 3: Habits are just the behaviors we repeat until they become 225 00:13:16,116 --> 00:13:21,316 Speaker 3: sort of mental shortcuts. There's shortcuts about what you can 226 00:13:21,476 --> 00:13:25,276 Speaker 3: do that's likely to get you the same reward as 227 00:13:25,356 --> 00:13:26,436 Speaker 3: you got in the past. 228 00:13:27,436 --> 00:13:30,476 Speaker 1: Habits canform for any repeated behavior that gets us a reward, 229 00:13:31,036 --> 00:13:33,556 Speaker 1: whether that reward is ultimately good for us, like a 230 00:13:33,636 --> 00:13:36,236 Speaker 1: nice cup of coffee in the morning, or bad for us, 231 00:13:36,636 --> 00:13:39,916 Speaker 1: like a shot of heroin. But Wendy's work has shown 232 00:13:39,996 --> 00:13:43,276 Speaker 1: the good habits and bad habits work exactly the same way. 233 00:13:44,076 --> 00:13:47,476 Speaker 1: They have a very particular structure, one that involves three 234 00:13:47,516 --> 00:13:51,596 Speaker 1: critical parts. The first critical part of habit formation is 235 00:13:51,636 --> 00:13:52,196 Speaker 1: the reward. 236 00:13:52,676 --> 00:13:57,036 Speaker 3: Rewards here are just behaviors that meet your goals, behaviors 237 00:13:57,036 --> 00:14:03,276 Speaker 3: that make you feel good, behaviors that achieve some outcome 238 00:14:03,476 --> 00:14:05,036 Speaker 3: that you're looking for. 239 00:14:05,036 --> 00:14:07,956 Speaker 1: For morning, Wendy, that reward was having the positive taste 240 00:14:07,996 --> 00:14:10,876 Speaker 1: of a nice cup of coffee. But habit formation can 241 00:14:10,876 --> 00:14:14,316 Speaker 1: involve lots of other kinds of rewards too. The endorphins 242 00:14:14,316 --> 00:14:17,636 Speaker 1: that kick in after a good exercise session, the reduced 243 00:14:17,676 --> 00:14:20,236 Speaker 1: boredom we feel after we do a quick social media check, 244 00:14:20,876 --> 00:14:23,476 Speaker 1: or the satisfaction you get learning something new from your 245 00:14:23,516 --> 00:14:27,196 Speaker 1: favorite podcast. Anything that feels nice or meets a goal 246 00:14:27,476 --> 00:14:30,036 Speaker 1: can serve as a reward that leads to a new habit. 247 00:14:30,836 --> 00:14:33,516 Speaker 1: But habits not only require a reward at the end. 248 00:14:34,076 --> 00:14:38,076 Speaker 1: They also have a second critical component, the routine. A 249 00:14:38,156 --> 00:14:41,236 Speaker 1: routine is the specific sequence of actions that gets us 250 00:14:41,276 --> 00:14:45,196 Speaker 1: to a reward. For Wendy's caffeine habit, that might be 251 00:14:45,316 --> 00:14:48,316 Speaker 1: each step she takes to make her morning coffee. If 252 00:14:48,316 --> 00:14:51,036 Speaker 1: you're a yoga lover like me, your routine might involve 253 00:14:51,036 --> 00:14:54,556 Speaker 1: grabbing your mat and driving to your favorite studio. The 254 00:14:54,596 --> 00:14:57,916 Speaker 1: science shows that having a specific routine is critical to 255 00:14:57,916 --> 00:15:01,596 Speaker 1: habit formation, in part because our minds care about them 256 00:15:01,636 --> 00:15:05,716 Speaker 1: a lot. In fact, when your brain experience is something wonderful, 257 00:15:06,036 --> 00:15:09,476 Speaker 1: it drops everything to remember the exact sequence of whatever 258 00:15:09,516 --> 00:15:12,196 Speaker 1: you just did to get that reward, and when it 259 00:15:12,276 --> 00:15:15,196 Speaker 1: lays down a new memory of that sequence, it definitely 260 00:15:15,276 --> 00:15:17,876 Speaker 1: doesn't want to screw anything up, and so it doesn't 261 00:15:17,916 --> 00:15:20,196 Speaker 1: just remember what you did as a bunch of individual 262 00:15:20,236 --> 00:15:24,356 Speaker 1: action steps. Instead, it stores your whole sequence of behaviors 263 00:15:24,596 --> 00:15:29,716 Speaker 1: as a single solitary routine, what researchers call chunking. It 264 00:15:29,796 --> 00:15:32,676 Speaker 1: even uses a totally different neural system to do so. 265 00:15:33,516 --> 00:15:37,276 Speaker 3: When you're repeating a task that you have practiced many 266 00:15:37,316 --> 00:15:41,276 Speaker 3: times in the past, you are relying on something called 267 00:15:41,556 --> 00:15:46,796 Speaker 3: the sensorymotor system, which involves the protament, which is part 268 00:15:46,796 --> 00:15:51,156 Speaker 3: of the basic anglia, and when you start a new task, 269 00:15:51,796 --> 00:15:56,716 Speaker 3: in contrast, using much more of the frontal lobes, because 270 00:15:56,756 --> 00:16:00,716 Speaker 3: those are the active thinking parts of your brain. And 271 00:16:00,796 --> 00:16:04,556 Speaker 3: these two things are definitely connected, but they also function 272 00:16:04,676 --> 00:16:06,596 Speaker 3: somewhat independent line. 273 00:16:06,596 --> 00:16:10,156 Speaker 1: And that's why habits are such fantastic mental shortcut because 274 00:16:10,156 --> 00:16:12,596 Speaker 1: we don't need our conscious thinking frontal lobes to remember 275 00:16:12,636 --> 00:16:16,876 Speaker 1: each individual action. Whenever we want a reward, the unconscious 276 00:16:16,876 --> 00:16:19,236 Speaker 1: bits of our brain can just hit go and our 277 00:16:19,276 --> 00:16:22,076 Speaker 1: minds get the entire perfectly stored routine for. 278 00:16:22,076 --> 00:16:28,996 Speaker 3: Free driving is the prototypic habo. It's something we have 279 00:16:29,316 --> 00:16:32,956 Speaker 3: to think about when we first learn to do it, 280 00:16:33,796 --> 00:16:39,476 Speaker 3: but then over time that thought becomes less and less necessary, 281 00:16:40,116 --> 00:16:43,876 Speaker 3: and we start just responding automatically based on what we 282 00:16:43,956 --> 00:16:48,476 Speaker 3: did in the past, and that achieves the goal of 283 00:16:48,596 --> 00:16:51,836 Speaker 3: getting us somewhere we want to go, and it does 284 00:16:51,876 --> 00:16:54,716 Speaker 3: so efficiently and quickly most of the time, unless you 285 00:16:54,756 --> 00:16:57,836 Speaker 3: live in la and then there's nothing efficient about driving. 286 00:16:58,036 --> 00:16:59,916 Speaker 1: I want to focus in on this lack of awareness 287 00:16:59,916 --> 00:17:02,516 Speaker 1: for a second because it's really weird when you think 288 00:17:02,556 --> 00:17:05,956 Speaker 1: about it. I mean, our driving routine involves tracking lots 289 00:17:05,956 --> 00:17:09,276 Speaker 1: of complicated stuff, from where your right foot is to 290 00:17:09,316 --> 00:17:11,636 Speaker 1: how fast your car is going, to whether there are 291 00:17:11,676 --> 00:17:14,476 Speaker 1: pedestrians about to cross the street, to where other cars 292 00:17:14,516 --> 00:17:17,316 Speaker 1: are moving, to when a traffic light might change, to 293 00:17:17,356 --> 00:17:19,516 Speaker 1: when you need to click your turn signal, and to 294 00:17:19,556 --> 00:17:21,836 Speaker 1: whether you have your radio set to your favorite podcast. 295 00:17:22,716 --> 00:17:25,276 Speaker 1: It's amazing that we can juggle all that information at all, 296 00:17:25,796 --> 00:17:28,796 Speaker 1: let alone that we can do so easily and unconsciously. 297 00:17:29,676 --> 00:17:33,396 Speaker 1: But that is the amazing psychological power of habits. Once 298 00:17:33,436 --> 00:17:35,556 Speaker 1: we form a new habit, we get to engage in 299 00:17:35,636 --> 00:17:39,596 Speaker 1: all kinds of complicated behaviors without a moment's thought. And 300 00:17:39,636 --> 00:17:42,236 Speaker 1: that's why habits are so much more effective than willpower 301 00:17:42,276 --> 00:17:45,356 Speaker 1: for changing our behaviors. Once we make the things we 302 00:17:45,436 --> 00:17:48,516 Speaker 1: want to do habitual, they don't require any more work. 303 00:17:49,356 --> 00:17:52,036 Speaker 1: The problem, though, is that not all of our unconscious 304 00:17:52,036 --> 00:17:53,956 Speaker 1: habitual behaviors are good for us. 305 00:17:54,636 --> 00:17:57,916 Speaker 3: So sitting on the couch when you get home at 306 00:17:58,036 --> 00:18:01,996 Speaker 3: night and eating potato chips that's just as much of 307 00:18:02,036 --> 00:18:05,916 Speaker 3: a habit as going home and then just heading out 308 00:18:05,956 --> 00:18:10,716 Speaker 3: to the gym. One looks habitual and star structured to us, 309 00:18:10,916 --> 00:18:13,676 Speaker 3: and the other might look sort of a bit lazier, 310 00:18:14,276 --> 00:18:16,836 Speaker 3: but they're both habits in the same way. 311 00:18:17,556 --> 00:18:20,476 Speaker 1: Sadly, those lazier, not so good for us routines are 312 00:18:20,636 --> 00:18:23,556 Speaker 1: just as automatic as our positive habits, which means that 313 00:18:23,596 --> 00:18:26,956 Speaker 1: our bad habits, the ones that inhibit our happiness, are 314 00:18:27,036 --> 00:18:29,876 Speaker 1: really really hard to shed. We might want to shut 315 00:18:29,876 --> 00:18:32,756 Speaker 1: those habits off, but we can't because our minds are 316 00:18:32,756 --> 00:18:36,996 Speaker 1: on autopilot, but Wendy's work shows that we do have 317 00:18:37,116 --> 00:18:40,076 Speaker 1: some control over when our habit routines get turned on 318 00:18:40,916 --> 00:18:43,756 Speaker 1: whether our minds unconsciously decide to execute that sit on 319 00:18:43,796 --> 00:18:46,156 Speaker 1: the couch and munch behavior or the throw on our 320 00:18:46,196 --> 00:18:50,076 Speaker 1: gym closed one. The answer comes from the third critical 321 00:18:50,076 --> 00:18:54,156 Speaker 1: part of our habit loops, the context. The context is 322 00:18:54,236 --> 00:18:57,516 Speaker 1: any part of our situation or environment that cues our behavior. 323 00:18:58,316 --> 00:19:01,596 Speaker 1: For Wendy's coffee habit, the context was a location, being 324 00:19:01,596 --> 00:19:04,596 Speaker 1: in her kitchen and a time of day it was morning, 325 00:19:05,276 --> 00:19:08,716 Speaker 1: and a preceding event she had just woken up. For 326 00:19:08,796 --> 00:19:12,156 Speaker 1: Richard Heroin addicts, the context might be their barracks, or 327 00:19:12,196 --> 00:19:15,036 Speaker 1: the site of other gis using drugs, or just being 328 00:19:15,076 --> 00:19:15,916 Speaker 1: in Vietnam. 329 00:19:16,156 --> 00:19:20,236 Speaker 3: In our research, we've found that context can be pretty 330 00:19:20,276 --> 00:19:24,036 Speaker 3: much everything around you that's not you. It can be 331 00:19:24,116 --> 00:19:28,276 Speaker 3: the people that you're with. There are certain people who 332 00:19:28,796 --> 00:19:33,836 Speaker 3: trigger certain behaviors that we've done with them in the past. 333 00:19:34,236 --> 00:19:37,476 Speaker 3: You may have friends that you typically go and have 334 00:19:37,516 --> 00:19:40,476 Speaker 3: a drink with, and if you see them again, that's 335 00:19:40,516 --> 00:19:44,116 Speaker 3: what tends to come to mind. The moods we're in 336 00:19:44,756 --> 00:19:49,316 Speaker 3: can also be triggers, so I think that one of 337 00:19:49,356 --> 00:19:54,876 Speaker 3: the most common triggers for checking your cell phone is 338 00:19:54,916 --> 00:19:58,636 Speaker 3: being bored. Even if you're in a meeting and it's 339 00:19:58,716 --> 00:20:02,276 Speaker 3: quite rude, you may find yourself checking your phone. You 340 00:20:02,276 --> 00:20:04,796 Speaker 3: don't want to be rude, but the idea of your 341 00:20:04,796 --> 00:20:07,076 Speaker 3: phone just comes to mind when you're bored. 342 00:20:07,356 --> 00:20:10,396 Speaker 1: When our brains notice a context that's associated with the habit, 343 00:20:10,916 --> 00:20:13,276 Speaker 1: one that goes with a particular routine and a certain 344 00:20:13,356 --> 00:20:16,436 Speaker 1: kind of reward, we get an incredibly strong urge to 345 00:20:16,516 --> 00:20:19,996 Speaker 1: execute the habitual behavior, even if it's a behavior that's 346 00:20:20,036 --> 00:20:24,436 Speaker 1: no longer useful or relevant. In fact, Wendy's work has 347 00:20:24,476 --> 00:20:27,876 Speaker 1: shown that cues can elicit habitual behavior even when the 348 00:20:27,916 --> 00:20:31,916 Speaker 1: rewards from those behaviors aren't even there anymore. She tested 349 00:20:31,956 --> 00:20:34,956 Speaker 1: this out in a clever study involving movie trailer screenings. 350 00:20:35,956 --> 00:20:38,476 Speaker 1: One group of subjects watched the movie trailers on a 351 00:20:38,476 --> 00:20:42,436 Speaker 1: computer in Wendy's lab, just like a typical study, but 352 00:20:42,516 --> 00:20:45,116 Speaker 1: a second group of subjects got to watch the trailers 353 00:20:45,196 --> 00:20:49,316 Speaker 1: inside a movie theater. Wendy was interested in whether the 354 00:20:49,316 --> 00:20:52,636 Speaker 1: movie theater cues spurred on a habitual movie going behavior, 355 00:20:53,116 --> 00:20:56,156 Speaker 1: popcorn eating, but she also wanted to know whether her 356 00:20:56,196 --> 00:20:59,556 Speaker 1: subjects would engage in that habitual behavior even when it 357 00:20:59,596 --> 00:21:02,956 Speaker 1: was no longer rewarded to do that. She varied the 358 00:21:02,956 --> 00:21:04,756 Speaker 1: deliciousness of the popcorn she offered. 359 00:21:05,716 --> 00:21:09,036 Speaker 3: Some people got popcorn that was stale, and it was 360 00:21:09,356 --> 00:21:13,316 Speaker 3: really stale, so it had been sitting in our lab 361 00:21:13,436 --> 00:21:16,516 Speaker 3: for a week in a plastic bag. It was pretty gross. 362 00:21:17,116 --> 00:21:20,756 Speaker 3: Others got popcorn that was fresh that had just been pomped. 363 00:21:21,476 --> 00:21:23,316 Speaker 1: Very few people who watched the film in the lab 364 00:21:23,476 --> 00:21:26,276 Speaker 1: ate the gross popcorn. They didn't have any cues that 365 00:21:26,316 --> 00:21:30,116 Speaker 1: pushed them to engage in an otherwise yucky behavior. But 366 00:21:30,196 --> 00:21:32,956 Speaker 1: what happened to the subjects who experienced all the normal 367 00:21:32,996 --> 00:21:36,836 Speaker 1: cues of being inside a cinema, Well, it depended on 368 00:21:36,876 --> 00:21:39,236 Speaker 1: how they normally acted when watching movies. 369 00:21:39,716 --> 00:21:43,316 Speaker 3: People who had habits to eat popcorn in the movie 370 00:21:43,396 --> 00:21:48,236 Speaker 3: cinema ate just about the same amount of stale popcorn 371 00:21:48,236 --> 00:21:51,836 Speaker 3: as fresh. They could tell us when we asked them 372 00:21:51,876 --> 00:21:55,516 Speaker 3: that they hated the stale popcorn. They ate it anyway. 373 00:21:56,036 --> 00:22:00,476 Speaker 3: People who didn't have habits deep popcorn in the movie cinema, 374 00:22:00,556 --> 00:22:04,236 Speaker 3: they did just what you'd expect, but rationally we think 375 00:22:04,276 --> 00:22:06,996 Speaker 3: we would all do, which is eat the fresh popcorn, 376 00:22:07,476 --> 00:22:09,876 Speaker 3: but if they got a bag of stale, just lave it. 377 00:22:10,316 --> 00:22:12,716 Speaker 1: When our brains see a cue that's been associated with 378 00:22:12,716 --> 00:22:16,716 Speaker 1: the habitual behavior, we can't help but execute that behavior, 379 00:22:17,316 --> 00:22:21,156 Speaker 1: even when the behavior is no longer rewarding. But despite 380 00:22:21,156 --> 00:22:23,956 Speaker 1: the power of these cues, Wendy has found that we 381 00:22:23,996 --> 00:22:27,956 Speaker 1: don't often realize how much context affects our behavior, and 382 00:22:27,996 --> 00:22:30,596 Speaker 1: that means we often forget that we can't count on 383 00:22:30,636 --> 00:22:34,476 Speaker 1: our habitual routines once the cues go away, and Wendy 384 00:22:34,516 --> 00:22:38,156 Speaker 1: has seen the negative effects of removing our habitual cues firsthand. 385 00:22:38,836 --> 00:22:42,316 Speaker 3: I bought a new car a few years ago that 386 00:22:42,476 --> 00:22:45,396 Speaker 3: has all kinds of wonderful safety sensors, so it beeps 387 00:22:45,436 --> 00:22:49,116 Speaker 3: when I get close to an obstacle, and I hated 388 00:22:49,156 --> 00:22:51,716 Speaker 3: that at first. It really irritated me because I wasn't 389 00:22:51,796 --> 00:22:56,916 Speaker 3: used to it, But I started responding to those signals automaticly. 390 00:22:57,316 --> 00:23:00,756 Speaker 3: Over time, you just stop noticing them. When the car beeps, 391 00:23:00,796 --> 00:23:04,676 Speaker 3: you just automatically respond to it. And I didn't realize 392 00:23:04,756 --> 00:23:07,916 Speaker 3: how automatic that had become, how much of my driving 393 00:23:07,996 --> 00:23:11,996 Speaker 3: habit that had become, until I rented a car and 394 00:23:12,076 --> 00:23:17,276 Speaker 3: it didn't have that warning sensor system, and the first 395 00:23:17,276 --> 00:23:19,156 Speaker 3: thing I did is I backed into a brick wall. 396 00:23:21,556 --> 00:23:23,356 Speaker 1: The Happiness Lab will be right back. 397 00:23:31,036 --> 00:23:37,596 Speaker 2: I am a Vietnam veteran, a ex marine medic, and 398 00:23:37,636 --> 00:23:38,796 Speaker 2: an ex morphine addic. 399 00:23:39,836 --> 00:23:43,436 Speaker 1: Back in nineteen seventy one, a documentary called GI Junkie 400 00:23:43,676 --> 00:23:46,436 Speaker 1: followed a group of returning soldiers going through rehab. 401 00:23:46,716 --> 00:23:50,036 Speaker 2: I don't need no pills, no warning or a needle 402 00:23:50,036 --> 00:23:50,476 Speaker 2: in my arm. 403 00:23:50,556 --> 00:23:52,876 Speaker 1: I mean, like, I'm there, I know what I want. 404 00:23:52,876 --> 00:23:53,676 Speaker 3: I'm going to go get it. 405 00:23:54,276 --> 00:23:57,396 Speaker 1: The film argued that nearly forty thousand hardened GI junkies 406 00:23:57,676 --> 00:24:00,316 Speaker 1: were about to return to American soil and would soon 407 00:24:00,356 --> 00:24:04,516 Speaker 1: become a major problem, but in reality, no such army 408 00:24:04,516 --> 00:24:07,996 Speaker 1: of drug addicts actually existed. The kind of surprising key 409 00:24:08,036 --> 00:24:10,196 Speaker 1: is that I think once, you know, once these soldiers 410 00:24:10,196 --> 00:24:12,676 Speaker 1: got on the plane and got back home, they were good, 411 00:24:12,756 --> 00:24:14,676 Speaker 1: Their cravings didn't kick in, and they weren't trying to 412 00:24:14,676 --> 00:24:16,236 Speaker 1: find the stuff once they got back. 413 00:24:16,276 --> 00:24:19,676 Speaker 2: Exactly That's exactly right. And no one, I don't think 414 00:24:19,716 --> 00:24:21,196 Speaker 2: anyone could have predicted. 415 00:24:20,756 --> 00:24:24,116 Speaker 1: That psychiatrist Richard Ratner had been sent to Vietnam to 416 00:24:24,156 --> 00:24:28,076 Speaker 1: diffuse what one newspaper called a time bomb. And that's 417 00:24:28,076 --> 00:24:31,836 Speaker 1: what made Richard's soldier's outcomes all the more surprising. A 418 00:24:31,876 --> 00:24:35,436 Speaker 1: team of researchers followed addicted Vietnam vets after they came home. 419 00:24:36,156 --> 00:24:39,036 Speaker 1: The scientists interviewed the men about their recent opioid habits 420 00:24:39,356 --> 00:24:42,996 Speaker 1: and even conducted drug tests using urine samples, and what 421 00:24:43,076 --> 00:24:47,396 Speaker 1: they found pretty much stunned everyone, including Richard. Only a 422 00:24:47,516 --> 00:24:50,756 Speaker 1: very tiny percentage of soldiers continued their drug use after 423 00:24:50,796 --> 00:24:54,436 Speaker 1: they got home. More than ninety percent of soldiers stayed clean. 424 00:24:55,316 --> 00:24:58,636 Speaker 1: Compared to the typical heroin user, Vietnam vets seemed to 425 00:24:58,636 --> 00:25:01,796 Speaker 1: have little trouble kicking the habit. The study was so 426 00:25:01,956 --> 00:25:06,236 Speaker 1: shocking that at first researchers didn't even believe it, but 427 00:25:06,276 --> 00:25:10,676 Speaker 1: slowly behavioral scientists like Richard to figure out the soldier's secret. 428 00:25:11,356 --> 00:25:14,156 Speaker 1: They were able to use their contextual cues to break 429 00:25:14,196 --> 00:25:14,916 Speaker 1: their bad habit. 430 00:25:15,516 --> 00:25:20,436 Speaker 2: Probably the majority of users would basically kind of detox 431 00:25:20,796 --> 00:25:24,556 Speaker 2: on their own. They would self detox while they used 432 00:25:24,556 --> 00:25:28,876 Speaker 2: this crutch to help them get through military life over there. 433 00:25:29,596 --> 00:25:33,556 Speaker 2: They understood that the home environment is very different from 434 00:25:33,556 --> 00:25:34,316 Speaker 2: this environment. 435 00:25:34,756 --> 00:25:37,156 Speaker 1: Richard realized that a few hours on an airline and 436 00:25:37,196 --> 00:25:39,836 Speaker 1: a change back into civy clothes was enough to break 437 00:25:39,836 --> 00:25:43,516 Speaker 1: his soldier's habit routine. They weren't bored or stressed anymore, 438 00:25:43,956 --> 00:25:46,076 Speaker 1: and they weren't hanging out with their drug taking buddies. 439 00:25:46,716 --> 00:25:50,116 Speaker 1: They also didn't have easy access to cheap heroin. Nearly 440 00:25:50,196 --> 00:25:52,636 Speaker 1: every single one of their habit cues was different. 441 00:25:53,036 --> 00:25:55,236 Speaker 2: Most of these guys, they got home and they kind 442 00:25:55,236 --> 00:25:58,756 Speaker 2: of reintegrated into their previous lives. 443 00:25:59,196 --> 00:26:02,396 Speaker 1: Richard's veteran's success in kicking heroin has now become a 444 00:26:02,396 --> 00:26:06,476 Speaker 1: classic example in the science of behavior change. Because of 445 00:26:06,556 --> 00:26:09,436 Speaker 1: a simple context switch can be powerful enough to help 446 00:26:09,476 --> 00:26:13,436 Speaker 1: someone overcome heroin addiction. Imagine how powerful it can be 447 00:26:13,516 --> 00:26:16,876 Speaker 1: for changing simpler behaviors like the ones many of us 448 00:26:16,916 --> 00:26:17,596 Speaker 1: want to change. 449 00:26:17,996 --> 00:26:21,756 Speaker 3: We did some research where we beeped people once an 450 00:26:21,796 --> 00:26:25,836 Speaker 3: hour to figure out what they were thinking, feeling, doing, 451 00:26:26,796 --> 00:26:30,956 Speaker 3: and what we found is that about forty three percent 452 00:26:30,996 --> 00:26:35,516 Speaker 3: of the time, people are doing what they did yesterday 453 00:26:35,676 --> 00:26:39,356 Speaker 3: and the day before in the same context, and they're 454 00:26:39,356 --> 00:26:41,556 Speaker 3: doing it without thinking much about it. 455 00:26:41,996 --> 00:26:43,876 Speaker 1: The idea that nearly half of our working day is 456 00:26:43,916 --> 00:26:47,516 Speaker 1: on autopilot, that we're constantly governed by cues and context 457 00:26:47,956 --> 00:26:51,236 Speaker 1: is pretty shocking. But if that's true, then it gives 458 00:26:51,276 --> 00:26:54,356 Speaker 1: us a powerful opportunity to change some of our daily behaviors. 459 00:26:54,996 --> 00:26:57,196 Speaker 1: If we can use our conscious minds to exert some 460 00:26:57,236 --> 00:27:00,276 Speaker 1: control over the context we find ourselves in, then we 461 00:27:00,316 --> 00:27:02,796 Speaker 1: can shift our bad behaviors to the ones we want 462 00:27:02,796 --> 00:27:03,316 Speaker 1: to adopt. 463 00:27:03,836 --> 00:27:07,596 Speaker 3: Our environments can do the same thing for us in 464 00:27:08,036 --> 00:27:12,396 Speaker 3: pushing us to help us meet our goals and making 465 00:27:12,436 --> 00:27:17,796 Speaker 3: it hard for us to stray from the good behaviors 466 00:27:17,876 --> 00:27:19,436 Speaker 3: that we're trying to practice. 467 00:27:20,076 --> 00:27:22,196 Speaker 1: This is something you can do right now, whether in 468 00:27:22,236 --> 00:27:25,036 Speaker 1: your home or at your workplace. Think of it as 469 00:27:25,036 --> 00:27:28,436 Speaker 1: feng shui for habits, but with an actual scientific basis. 470 00:27:29,276 --> 00:27:32,236 Speaker 1: Make small changes in your environment that provide the cues 471 00:27:32,316 --> 00:27:36,396 Speaker 1: you need to promote good behaviors. Wendy's research has shown 472 00:27:36,436 --> 00:27:38,956 Speaker 1: that simple changes like these work time and again. 473 00:27:39,436 --> 00:27:44,356 Speaker 3: In one study, people had a bowl of apple slices 474 00:27:44,796 --> 00:27:48,516 Speaker 3: and a bowl of hot buttered popcorn. When the apple 475 00:27:48,596 --> 00:27:51,596 Speaker 3: slices were right in front of them and the popcorn 476 00:27:52,076 --> 00:27:57,436 Speaker 3: was arms reach, people ate a third less calories than 477 00:27:57,476 --> 00:27:59,716 Speaker 3: when the popcorn was right in front of them and 478 00:27:59,756 --> 00:28:03,556 Speaker 3: the apple slices were a reach. I mean, we're talking 479 00:28:03,876 --> 00:28:09,436 Speaker 3: a minimal distance that makes little sense to our our 480 00:28:09,716 --> 00:28:15,716 Speaker 3: conscious thinking cells, but to our habits and our automatic 481 00:28:15,876 --> 00:28:20,156 Speaker 3: reacting cells, that's a big difference. We don't realize how 482 00:28:20,196 --> 00:28:23,276 Speaker 3: much of a difference proximity makes to our behavior. 483 00:28:23,836 --> 00:28:26,276 Speaker 1: But context doesn't just affect what we reach for when 484 00:28:26,316 --> 00:28:28,996 Speaker 1: we're hungry. There are lots of simple ways we can 485 00:28:29,076 --> 00:28:32,236 Speaker 1: use the cues around us to disrupt the autopilot behaviors 486 00:28:32,316 --> 00:28:33,516 Speaker 1: we don't want to engage in. 487 00:28:33,876 --> 00:28:37,636 Speaker 3: There are forces in our environments that make some actions 488 00:28:37,676 --> 00:28:43,116 Speaker 3: more difficult and other actions easier, and those resisting forces 489 00:28:43,356 --> 00:28:47,236 Speaker 3: can be termed friction. It just becomes too difficult. 490 00:28:47,636 --> 00:28:50,516 Speaker 1: The same sort of friction help Vietnam bits avoid drug 491 00:28:50,596 --> 00:28:53,676 Speaker 1: use when they return home. Many had never taken heroin 492 00:28:53,756 --> 00:28:56,276 Speaker 1: before going to war, so they'd actually have to find 493 00:28:56,276 --> 00:28:59,396 Speaker 1: a dealer, and the heroin available in the States was 494 00:28:59,436 --> 00:29:02,276 Speaker 1: a far lower quality, which meant that soldiers would have 495 00:29:02,276 --> 00:29:05,316 Speaker 1: to inject it rather than snort or smoke it. The 496 00:29:05,356 --> 00:29:08,596 Speaker 1: price was also far far higher, and the GI's mood 497 00:29:08,596 --> 00:29:12,036 Speaker 1: had shifted completely. Those feelings of boredom that drove them 498 00:29:12,036 --> 00:29:14,876 Speaker 1: to use opioids. Those were replaced by the excitement of 499 00:29:14,876 --> 00:29:18,276 Speaker 1: being home and just the pace of normal life. Each 500 00:29:18,316 --> 00:29:20,476 Speaker 1: and every one of the cues that prompted that heroin 501 00:29:20,556 --> 00:29:25,236 Speaker 1: routine was gone. And this is super important because these 502 00:29:25,276 --> 00:29:29,036 Speaker 1: contextual changes were more powerful than any of the detox 503 00:29:29,076 --> 00:29:32,276 Speaker 1: ideas the army came up with. The new cues meant 504 00:29:32,276 --> 00:29:34,556 Speaker 1: that soldiers just didn't think about the reward of a 505 00:29:34,596 --> 00:29:38,316 Speaker 1: quick heroin hit because their entire habit chains were disrupted. 506 00:29:39,396 --> 00:29:42,316 Speaker 1: But frictions can also be introduced to tackle the problems 507 00:29:42,356 --> 00:29:43,996 Speaker 1: associated with legal drugs. 508 00:29:44,876 --> 00:29:47,356 Speaker 3: In the middle of the last century, we all learned 509 00:29:47,396 --> 00:29:50,276 Speaker 3: that smoking was bad for US. About half of America 510 00:29:50,356 --> 00:29:54,316 Speaker 3: smoked at that point, but smoking still didn't go down. 511 00:29:54,636 --> 00:30:00,516 Speaker 3: Smoking rates continued reasonably high until the US decided to 512 00:30:01,236 --> 00:30:06,676 Speaker 3: put friction on smoking by taxing cigarettes so you can't 513 00:30:06,676 --> 00:30:11,436 Speaker 3: afford them as easily, bannings smoking in public places, and 514 00:30:11,916 --> 00:30:15,316 Speaker 3: by making it difficult to purchase cigarettes so that you 515 00:30:15,396 --> 00:30:18,556 Speaker 3: actually have to ask somebody. And all of those things 516 00:30:18,636 --> 00:30:23,436 Speaker 3: combined put enough friction on smoking so that the smoking 517 00:30:23,516 --> 00:30:26,756 Speaker 3: rates in the US are now down to a level 518 00:30:26,876 --> 00:30:30,716 Speaker 3: of only fifteen percent of US smoke. And that's because 519 00:30:30,756 --> 00:30:31,196 Speaker 3: of friction. 520 00:30:31,676 --> 00:30:34,396 Speaker 1: Even if you don't smoke or use illegal drugs, there's 521 00:30:34,396 --> 00:30:36,996 Speaker 1: a lesson here for you. Think about the things you 522 00:30:37,036 --> 00:30:39,396 Speaker 1: want to change in your life, the bad habits you 523 00:30:39,396 --> 00:30:42,076 Speaker 1: want to stop or the good habits you want to adopt. 524 00:30:42,836 --> 00:30:45,116 Speaker 1: We can use the conscious part of our brain to 525 00:30:45,276 --> 00:30:48,436 Speaker 1: increase friction to inhibit our bad habits and break down 526 00:30:48,476 --> 00:30:50,796 Speaker 1: the barriers that prevent us from doing the good ones. 527 00:30:51,476 --> 00:30:53,836 Speaker 1: Are there social media apps that drive you nuts but 528 00:30:53,916 --> 00:30:56,076 Speaker 1: you can't help checking whenever you pick up your phone, 529 00:30:56,556 --> 00:30:59,596 Speaker 1: Well delete them. Do you want to call your mom 530 00:30:59,636 --> 00:31:02,316 Speaker 1: more often, well, then choose a photo of her as 531 00:31:02,316 --> 00:31:05,716 Speaker 1: your screensaver. Don't want to buy certain items in the store, 532 00:31:06,756 --> 00:31:09,676 Speaker 1: plan your shopping trip to avoid the candy issle. Or 533 00:31:09,676 --> 00:31:11,436 Speaker 1: maybe you want to try some of the new habits 534 00:31:11,476 --> 00:31:15,116 Speaker 1: that we've talked about in the season, like experiencing more gratitude, 535 00:31:15,756 --> 00:31:18,076 Speaker 1: Then download a gratitude app and stick it front and 536 00:31:18,116 --> 00:31:20,556 Speaker 1: center on your phone. Or maybe you want to make 537 00:31:20,596 --> 00:31:23,596 Speaker 1: better use of your time, Then put that time windfall 538 00:31:23,596 --> 00:31:26,836 Speaker 1: list somewhere you can see it easily. In all of 539 00:31:26,876 --> 00:31:30,156 Speaker 1: these examples, you can hack the cues around you to 540 00:31:30,196 --> 00:31:32,516 Speaker 1: help promote the kinds of behaviors that you want in 541 00:31:32,556 --> 00:31:36,276 Speaker 1: your life. Wendy had to go through this exact same 542 00:31:36,316 --> 00:31:39,396 Speaker 1: conscious process when her daily fitness habit took a nose 543 00:31:39,436 --> 00:31:43,316 Speaker 1: dive thanks to motherhood. Rather than powering through or giving up, 544 00:31:43,676 --> 00:31:46,276 Speaker 1: she analyzed where her growing family was adding a bit 545 00:31:46,316 --> 00:31:47,756 Speaker 1: of friction to her workout plans. 546 00:31:48,036 --> 00:31:51,636 Speaker 3: Every time I decided two o'clock, three o'clock, four o'clock, 547 00:31:52,076 --> 00:31:55,356 Speaker 3: maybe six o'clock tonight, i'll exercise, something always comes up 548 00:31:55,396 --> 00:31:58,356 Speaker 3: when you have little children. So I decided I would 549 00:31:58,356 --> 00:32:01,716 Speaker 3: have to start exercising early in the morning. Although it 550 00:32:01,796 --> 00:32:06,116 Speaker 3: was a really dreadful thing to start doing, once you 551 00:32:06,156 --> 00:32:08,956 Speaker 3: get used to it, it actually is very efficient. 552 00:32:09,196 --> 00:32:11,716 Speaker 1: So at six am, Wendy would be ready to exercise. 553 00:32:12,356 --> 00:32:15,876 Speaker 1: But what exercise? Wendy realized it had to be something 554 00:32:15,916 --> 00:32:17,556 Speaker 1: with as few frictions as possible. 555 00:32:17,956 --> 00:32:20,956 Speaker 3: I didn't have much time to drive to a gym 556 00:32:21,436 --> 00:32:25,596 Speaker 3: or do any fancy workout thing. I couldn't go to 557 00:32:25,636 --> 00:32:29,236 Speaker 3: a class. I just didn't have that level of control 558 00:32:29,276 --> 00:32:31,876 Speaker 3: over my time. So it had to be something that 559 00:32:31,956 --> 00:32:34,756 Speaker 3: was very efficient and easy for me to do. And 560 00:32:34,836 --> 00:32:37,556 Speaker 3: putting your running shoes on and going out the door 561 00:32:37,676 --> 00:32:41,996 Speaker 3: is probably the most frictionless kind of exercise that you 562 00:32:41,996 --> 00:32:46,036 Speaker 3: could imagine. I actually used to sleep in my running clothes. 563 00:32:46,076 --> 00:32:48,636 Speaker 3: I hate to admit this, but that was another thing 564 00:32:48,716 --> 00:32:50,276 Speaker 3: that reduced the friction. 565 00:32:51,596 --> 00:32:54,396 Speaker 1: Talking with Wendy has really inspired me to think about 566 00:32:54,396 --> 00:32:56,836 Speaker 1: how I can use my conscious brain to hack the 567 00:32:56,876 --> 00:33:01,116 Speaker 1: autopilot of all my bad habits. I'm already planning strategies 568 00:33:01,116 --> 00:33:03,796 Speaker 1: I can use to increase or reduce friction so I'll 569 00:33:03,836 --> 00:33:06,516 Speaker 1: be able to reach my own well being goals literally 570 00:33:06,516 --> 00:33:09,956 Speaker 1: without thinking. I hope you've gotten some insight into how 571 00:33:09,956 --> 00:33:12,396 Speaker 1: you can hack your own habits, and I hope you'll 572 00:33:12,396 --> 00:33:14,996 Speaker 1: be willing to form a new, happier habit and set 573 00:33:15,076 --> 00:33:17,396 Speaker 1: up all your context cues to remind you to come 574 00:33:17,436 --> 00:33:20,436 Speaker 1: back for the next episode of The Happiness Lab with me, 575 00:33:20,756 --> 00:33:21,876 Speaker 1: Doctor Laurie Santos