Charles Duhigg's Blog

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Thank You

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The Power of Habit Paperback (is out today)

 

Thank you to everyone who has been so helpful over the past two years. It’s enormously kind of you. To a great 2014, and beyond!

Got a New Year’s Resolution? Here’s how to make it stick!

It’s 2014! Congratulations on making it through another year!

If you’re anything like me, New Years is also a great time to take stock and determine how you want to completely transform every aspect of your life. (Or, at least, figure out how to exercise every day. Or, you know, once a month.)

Luckily, we’ve got a flowchart that tells you how to design New Year’s Resolutions according to the science of habit formation.

The key is to take advantage of the  3-step neurological process that creates a habit. First, choose a cue, like leaving your running shoes by the door, then pick a reward — say, a piece of chocolate when you get home from the gym. Eventually, when you see the shoes, your brain will start craving the reward, which will make it easier to work out day after day.

 

Please feel free to download this flowchart, post it on your desk, send it to friends – do whatever you want with it.

And, if you think it’s helpful, might I recommend checking out The Power of Habit, now out in paperback? You can find it here.

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Indiebound

iBookstore

 

Das Kapitalism

One of the nicest things about writing a series like the iEconomy is that it provides an opportunity to reflect on the mission of journalism. I was fortunate to attend the RFK Journalism Awards this week and get exposed to really fantastic investigative work occurring at a variety of news organizations. (This segment, from the sadly passed Rock Center, is a great example of what television reporting can accomplish.)

The RFK Center asked me to answer a few questions before the ceremony. One of the reasons I became a journalist is because of a belief that capitalism, as much as it is a set of tools, is also a system of values. And while those values are often rightfully lauded, they also impose a structure of winners and losers upon the world. Today, there is nothing competing with capitalism – and so those victories and failures often seem inevitable and just. But they often aren’t.

One of the greatest inspirations of Robert F. Kennedy’s legacy is his commitment to answering the most important questions and to elevating those debates and struggles beyond the mediocrity of easy compromise. He seemed generous and furious and aware of his own – and other’s – pettiness, and committed to truth. I like to imagine that he, like all of us, loved capitalism – its logic and messy efficiency, its energy and anxious spirit of gain. But what’s more admirable is his recognition that as much as capitalism offers gifts, it also extracts costs, and his commitment to reminding us of the alternatives that lay just beneath the surface of the choices we make, often cavalierly, every day.

Welcome Virginia Wesleyan College freshmen and freshwomen!

Hi! If you happen to be a VWC student, then let me say: welcome to college! You are about to have a great time!

(If you’re not a student, a quick note of explanation: VWC is using The Power of Habit as part of their First Year Experience, and so every student will read the book.)

In any event, if you are a student and have any questions, I would love to hear from you (just email me at charles@charlesduhigg.com). There’s a video for you here.

If you’re VWC faculty, and are looking for the teacher’s guide, please feel free to click here.

And if you’re someone else, please join me in recalling how much fun it is to be in college and in wishing the new arrivals a great year.

A Pulitzer Prize

This blog has become, unfortunately, a bit of a cesspool of bragging. That’s gonna change! I promise!

But, in the meantime, I’m receiving a Pulitzer Prize next week, which is nice. So, I thought I would mention it. (The prize is for the iEconomy series, which appeared in the New York Times, and was co-authored by 9 other reporters, all of whom are amazing.)

Many non-self-infatuated posts to come. I promise.

37 Weeks and 31 Languages

Thank you.

The Power of Habit, as of this writing, has been on the NYT bestseller list for 37 weeks, which is – to be totally honest – kind of surreal.

And, it’s been translated into 31 other languages. I did not know that there were 31 other languages.

All of that is true because all of you have been so kind and generous with your time and enthusiasm – I can’t tell you how thankful I am, and how lucky I feel.

So, thank you. If you drop me an email at charles@charlesduhigg.com, I’ll send you a personal thank you reply.

Here’s to great habits.

The Power of Habit on This American Life!

I became a journalist, in part, because of the radio program This American Life.

So, it’s an enormous treat for me that this weekend, they are airing a show that is built, in part, around a chapter from my book. If you like (a) This American Life, (b) stories about gambling, (c) stories about people loosing almost $1 million dollars, (d) stories about people suing casinos, (e) The Power of Habit, then might I suggest you check your local listings and tune in?

You can learn about the show here, or find when it will air in your local area here. (Let me know what you think!)

Infographics! (Or, a flowchart for changing a habit)

At long last, I have flowcharts!

Have you ever been sitting at work, wondering to yourself, “is there a flowchart that can tell me how to change a habit?”

Now there is! Please feel free to download, email, post on your wall, send to friends or make paper airplanes out of this handy guide to changing a habit.

Click here to download! (Right click on link to save to your desktop.)

Coming soon: a flowchart for creating a habit.