Author: sovihealth

In order to remember to do our new behavior, we need a good, reliable reminder to do so. This is where the last element of the Fogg Behavior Model, called the Prompt, comes in. And that is all a prompt is: a reminder to do something. As with most elements of behavior change, it is not quite as simple as that. We need a specific tool to ensure the prompt works.

One of the most well researched tools in performing a behavior consistently is the use of the implementation intention. It was discovered in 2001 by a group of British scientists looking for ways to improve making exercise a habit. What they found was that the group who scheduled the date, time, and place they would complete their weekly workout were successful 91% of the time. That was nearly double the next closest group.

So how does it work? There are quite a few variations that have been developed over the years. James Clearprefers being reminded to do something by a time and location, in the following format: I will [BEHAVIOR] at [TIME] in [LOCATION]. As in I will meditate at 7 AM in my kitchen. This can certainly work, but if you are like most people, you may need something that will be more compelling. Dr. Fogg has an answer for this. It is called an anchor moment.

The best way to reliably do the new behavior is to perform it directly after a behavior you already do. So the implementation intention now looks like this: After I [ANCHOR – Behavior I already do}, I will [NEW HABIT]. BJ is somewhat famous for doing 2 push-ups after he pees. The push-ups were the habit he wanted to form. He used the anchor moment of going pee, something he reliably does, to anchor the new tiny habit of 2 push-ups. He successfully was able to go from 2 push-ups to a lot more in no time! It worked!

There is another trick that may be deployed if you’re having trouble getting yourself motivated to do your new habit. It’s called a temptation bundle. Let’s say you want to workout for 20 minutes at the gym, but you’re having a problem keeping your commitment to do it. What you can do is pair the behavior you want to do with one that you really love to do, like listening to a book on Audible. By pairing the activity you are trying to do with one you really love doing, you will be more likely to do it.

Putting this work:

Make a list of the habits you already do every day

Take your new habit and think about what habit or behavior you reliably do that could naturally serve as an anchor moment (prompt) for your new behavior. It should be in a similar location, done at a similar frequency, and match the theme or purpose of the new habit.

Write the implementation intention as: After I [ANCHOR – Behavior I already do}, I will [NEW HABIT].

Try a temptation bundle if you’re struggling to get started on a behavior.

Up Next:

It is not enough for a habit to be done consistently, although that is a necessary first step. Humans turn behaviors that are rewarded into habits. We will discuss how to structure rewards in our next lesson.

We all have habits we want to change. Whether it’s eating healthier, exercising more, or taking more time to relax, making a change can be challenging. One of the biggest mistakes people make when trying to change a habit is starting too big. They try to overhaul their entire lifestyle in one go, and when they inevitably slip up, they feel like a failure and give up altogether.

If we think back to the Fogg Behavior Model again, a behavior occurs when three things come together at the same time: Motivation, Ability, and a Prompt. And there is a relationship between motivation and ability. When motivation is high and you are prompted, you are able to do really hard things, although usually not for long. We can imagine a mother whose child is trapped under a heavy object mustering incredible strength to move that object and save their child.

That is usually the approach people take when trying to get healthy. They embark on a grand plan because they are really motivated, and for a time, they can do something that is really hard for them. Unfortunately it doesn’t take long for the motivation to wane, and what was hard now seems impossible. That’s when most people give up, believing change is too hard.

The Fogg Behavior Model also shows us that even when motivation is low, if something is easy enough to do, we will be able to do it if we are prompted to do so. Take an example of forming a habit of regularly doing 20 push-ups. For most people, the motivation for doing twenty push-ups every day would be pretty low, so getting yourself to do this habitually would be pretty hard. But what if you did just two push-ups standing up against the wall. If reminded to do so, you could get yourself to do this reliably every day because it is easy.

According to Wendy Wood and David Neal, habits are formed when people do behaviors in the same context, while receiving some sort of reward for doing so. Would it be easier to do 20 regular push-ups or 2 wall push-ups with enough regularity to make it a habit? Of course it would be easier to do 2 wall push-ups. In his book Tiny Habits, Dr. Fogg says, “When you are designing a new habit, you are really designing for consistency.” This means that with any change you are trying to make, you do not have to rely on motivation to start making a change. Consistency will come from keeping your behavior small.

Consistency also helps a habit grow. If you were to do those same two-push ups daily, over time your body will get stronger, allowing you to naturally increase the number of push-ups you do, still without having to rely on motivation. By getting stronger and doing more push-ups over time, you feel successful, which naturally increases your motivation to do more. This formula can be applied to any habit you are trying to make. Big changes can be made by getting 1% better every day.

Putting this work:

Make a behavior easier to do in one of two ways.

Take the behavior you chose during our initial workshop. Ask yourself:

Can I make the habit easier to do? Like turning 20 regular push-ups into 2 wall push-ups or

Can I do a Starter Step? If you want to start walking 10,000 steps per day, the starter step would be to put on your walking shoes.

In this multi-part series we are are going to explore Sovi Health Habits Foundations Course. These modules are designed to give you the basics of habit formation. We then move to the Skills of Change spread across the 4 Pillars of Wellness:

Why is it that improving healthy habits is so difficult? We get a burst of motivation to change, make some progress, and then slip back into our old way of doing things when motivation wanes. Sounds familiar? The problem is that our habits and routines are deeply ingrained in our identity, and trying to change them without addressing the underlying identity can feel like trying to swim upstream. 

Eating habits are especially troublesome because research has shown that people habitually consume food they do not want. Think about it. You are tired from a long day. You made a half-hearted attempt to eat a healthy dinner, and sit down to decompress in front of the television. The minute the TV turns on, all of a sudden you want your favorite salty or sweet snack, even though you are not hungry. It feels like you have no control over it because it’s a habit and it happens automatically. 

What’s worse, those around us have an impact on us as well. Our family members, our friends, and our coworkers all impact our health decisions in different ways. Maybe it’s the birthday celebrations at work where there is always a cake. Or maybe you have a family tradition of celebrating certain events by getting together with a bunch of unhealthy (but delicious) meals. Our habits are already working against us, and these other social factors stack the deck even further. 

We see the power of our habits already. And we know we want to change our habits to work for us to improve our health and not against us. But where do we start to ensure the changes we make stick and don’t get derailed by those around us? 

As James Clear describes in Atomic Habits, a good starting point for reversing habits is to focus on identity-based outcomes. If you consider it for a moment it makes sense. If you focus on a particular goal first, like losing 20 lbs, once you achieve that goal you are finished. Yet you’ve done nothing to change who you are, which makes it easy to slip into your old patterns. “It’s hard to change your habits if you never change the underlying beliefs that led to your past behavior. You have a new goal and a new plan, but you haven’t changed who you are.”

When we focus on shifting our identity first, our behavior naturally follows. For example, if you see yourself as someone who values fitness and health, you will be much more likely to consistently make choices that align with that identity, such as going to the gym or choosing healthier food options. Instead of setting a goal to “lose 10 pounds,” we might set a goal to “become the kind of person who exercises regularly.” This shift in focus allows us to see our actions as expressions of our identity, rather than a means to an end. By aligning our actions with our values and beliefs, we can harness the power of our identity to drive long-term change. Once you’ve adopted the new identity, any behavior that does not match your new identity will have a hard time sticking around.

Another important aspect of identity-based behavior change is understanding that our identity is not fixed, but rather is constantly evolving. This means that we can always be working to improve and evolve who we are. Instead of seeing our past failures as evidence that we can’t change, we can see them as opportunities to learn and grow.

The behavior formula B = MAP, with motivation being an ingredient for making a behavior happen. This is a key element for making changes when things get tough. And they will get tough. Research has shown that the more you feel something as part of your identity, then the harder you will fight for it. You know what it feels like when someone challenges something you believe to your core. It stirs something in you. It is this motivation you access when you start your journey to better health by focusing on your identity, and it is this motivation that will keep you going.

Again from Atomic Habits, “The ultimate form of intrinsic motivation is when a habit becomes part of your identity. It’s one thing to say I’m the type of person who wants this. It’s something very different to say I’m the type of person who is this. The more pride you have in a particular aspect of your identity, the more motivated you will be to maintain the habits associated with it.”

This is also where your group identities come back in. Your new identity may not be congruent with those around you. And that’s OK. You will learn you can find groups to participate with (not to the exclusion of your friends, family, and coworkers in a corporate wellness setting ) that are in alignment with your new identity and that strengthen your identity based habits. So go ahead. Join a group that displays the behaviors you want to have as part of your identity. Buy a t-shirt that says you are a part of this group. Wear it with pride. In no time, you will start to see these new changes become a part of you.

Putting this work: Think about what identities you hold today. Are you a runner? A couch potato? A parent? Then think about who you want to become? An active person? An early riser? Someone who eats healthy foods? Relate that back to the behavior you identified in the initial workshop. Does that behavior support your new identity?

-The Sovi Health Team