The Power of Habit - Cheatsheet

Champions don’t do extraordinary things.
They do
ordinary things, but they do them without thinking, too
fast for the other team to react. They follow the habits
they’ve learned.
Why should I listen to - Charles Duhigg

Charles?
PULITZER PRIZE WINNER
JOURNALIST:
THE NEW YORK TIMES
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER OF
THE POWER OF HABIT AND
SMARTER FASTER BETTER
30-Second Summary
This book will teach you how to break bad habits and
adopt healthier ones. In short, habits are a three step
loop—first there is a trigger, then an automatic
response, and finally a reward for that response.
Some of these are healthy loops, like pulling your
hand away from a hot surface. Trigger: hot.
Response: pull hand away. Reward: not burnt. But
what about too much television? Bad eating habits?
Stress? Negativity? Sloth? Drinking too much? If we
are able to recognize the loop for what it is, and then
see what’s happening, we are able to consciously step
in between any trigger and our normal response to
BIG IDEA #1
it—thus creating a new reward…and a new habit. Do PG. 20
this repeatedly—and you’ll change your life. THE HABIT LOOP
Know this— A habit is a three-step loop. First, there is a

trigger that tells your brain to go into automatic mode.
Then there is the routine, which can be physical or mental
or emotional: “what do I do now?” Finally, there is a reward,
Why This Is Important? which helps your brain figure out if this particular loop is
worth remembering for the future.
What to do—Recognize your loop cycles. Choose a daily
habit that you want to get rid of. Recognize the three-step
Everything you do in your life is a habit: when you wake up, who loop that creates the pattern. What is the reward you
you spend time with, how much money you have, your receive for this bad habit?
happiness or sadness, your physical health—everything is a
consequence of what you choose to do or not do.
BIG IDEA #1
PG. 43
Many of our most intensely ingrained beliefs and routines are A CUE
just simple habit loops. They are “what we’re used to”—sure,
but they are not us. They are not who we are at our core. We Know this— A habit is triggered first by a Cue—a small,
can change them! sometimes subconscious trigger that is at the core of
every habit.
If you learn to control your reactions to outside stimuli, if you What to do—The key to changing a habit is to identify
learn to step between the world’s events and your reaction to behaviors ahead of time in order to see patterns (location,
time, emotional state, other people, immediately preceding
them—you have a superpower. You are no longer a victim of
action) Ask yourself—When I do X action, what happens
your circumstance. You are now in control. immediately preceding it?
BIG IDEA #3 PG. 62 BIG IDEA #4 PG. 85
THE GOLDEN RULE OF HABIT CHANGE BELIEF

Know this— To change a habit, you must keep the old cue, and Know this—I f you don’t believe you can improve—you
deliver the old reward, but insert a new routine. won’t—which is why you should get your community involved.
What to do— Pick a habit you’d like to change. Identify its habit Committing publicly changes the game.
loop. Then answer this question—what is a new routine I can What to do— Commit to changing as part of a group, even if that
implement that will give me the same (or a better) reward? community is only as large as two people.
KEYSTONE HABITS (NEGATIVE) KEYSTONE HABITS (POSITIVE)

Know this— Negative keystone habits are habits that drastically Know this— A positive keystone habit will inform every other
and negatively affect other aspects of your life. For example: if habit in your life. As an example, a morning exercise or meditation
you don’t get a good night’s sleep—it can ruin your ability to routine has been proven to improve happiness and cognitive
maintain other positive habits. function in every other aspect of your life.
What to do— Identify your current negative keystone habit and What to do— Pick out one positive keystone habit that you’d like
work to eliminate it immediately. What is the one thing you do, to add to your life (telling your partner that you love him/her,
that if you stopped doing it, would massively improve all aspects exercise, diet, etc.) and commit to it.
of your life?
SMALL WINS WILLPOWER

Know this— Sometimes the best way to learn how to change a Know this— Willpower is a muscle. If you use it up too early, all
habit is to choose a small one: making your bed in the morning,
the strength will be gone by the time you get home.
walking to the gym (before going in), getting in bed at 10 pm, etc.
What to do— Write down exactly what you are going to do.
These small wins can teach you how to make larger changes
Execute that behavior as early on in your day as possible.
later.
What to do— Pick something incredibly small that you can do to
practice habit alteration. Commit to doing it every day. Teach
yourself that it’s possible to adopt a new habit.
HABITS IN THE WORKPLACE CONSCIOUS CHOICE

Know this—Destructive habits in the workplace can be Know this— To modify a habit, you must first decide to change it;
transformed by leaders who know how to seize the right then once you modify it, it will become automatic.
opportunities. What to do— Pick a habit (one!) that you want to adopt and work
What to do — Seek out moments of crisis—or create the on it for at least three months. Do not miss a single day. Commit
perception of crisis---to cultivate the sense that something must to yourself. Then watch: by the end it’ll become a part of who you
change, until everyone is finally ready to overhaul the patterns are.
they live with each day.
IF NOTHING ELSE—REMEMBER THIS…
1. In order to improve your life, you must genuinely modify your

habits. To do this—you must work to change your responses to
everyday stimuli.
2. Not all habits are created equal. Some habits are catalysts for
the rest, both negatively and positively. Identify and improve upon
your keystone habits first, and the rest will follow.
3. Even companies are affected by bad habits and inefficient

routines. Remember: “Because that’s how we do it” is a terrible
reason. To keep your competitive edge as a business—you must
constantly reevaluate your systems.

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Champions don’t do extraordinary things.

Why should I listen to - Charles Duhigg

Know this— A habit is a three-step loop. First, there is a

THE GOLDEN RULE OF HABIT CHANGE BELIEF

BIG IDEA #5 PG. 109 BIG IDEA #6 PG. 109

KEYSTONE HABITS (NEGATIVE) KEYSTONE HABITS (POSITIVE)

BIG IDEA #7 PG. 112 BIG IDEA #8 PG. 131

SMALL WINS WILLPOWER

BIG IDEA #9 PG. 180 BIG IDEA #10 PG. 273

HABITS IN THE WORKPLACE CONSCIOUS CHOICE

1. In order to improve your life, you must genuinely modify your

3. Even companies are affected by bad habits and inefﬁcient

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