POWER OF HABIT: THE LOOP

 We have all heard it said: "Knowledge is power". 

So true. And I would add "Self knowledge is the greatest power of all". 

In his book on habits, Charles Duhigg unveils a potent bit of self knowledge, what he calls the "habit loop". It is the basic structure of any habit - good or bad - and familiarity with it puts us back in the driver seat when it comes to starting new good habits or breaking bad habits. 

It is not just a matter of willpower, as I have assumed throughout most of my life.

The habit loop is a system that operates within the brain to save it from the exhaustion of making and remaking thousands of little decisions on a daily basis. 

In essence, if the brain recognizes a certain action regularly tends to pay off in a particular reward, it will place the routine on a loop that gets kicked off each time a particular cue presents itself.

We're not too different from the lab rat placed in a box where a wall slides away with a click and the rat finds his way through a maze to a chunk of chocolate. The rat will quickly learn the maze and the click cue will trigger a craving for the reward and instantly engage the routine that will take the rat scurrying directly towards the reward.

The author illustrates it this way:

(Charles Duhigg, The Power of Habit page 19)

For now let's stick to how knowledge of the habit loop makes it possible to start a good habit fairly easily:

The key to starting a new good habit is to establish a particular cue and an appropriate reward for the routine you want to start. 

Want to read the Bible on a regular basis? Pick a cue, like starting the coffee maker in the morning. Start the coffee brewing, read for five minutes and then pour a cup of coffee as your reward. Repeat for several days, and before you know it, you have a new habit. 

Eventually, each morning as soon as you click the "On" button, you will actually have a desire to sit down with your Bible.

It's not a question of willpower but rather brain mechanics.

That's some powerful knowledge.