How do we build habits?
Habit building revolves around a four part process.
Cue/Craving/Response/Reward
Today let’s explore what the cues and cravings.
According to James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, “The cue triggers your brain to initiate a behavior. It is a bit of information that predicts a reward.”
This cue leads to a craving which is what motivates us toward a habit.
Honestly, without this craving we have little reason to act. We can muster up all the willpower in the world, but eventually we can’t rely on willpower alone.
Clear reminds us that, “What you crave is not the habit itself, but the change in state it delivers.”
Pretty much every craving you have is linked to a desire to change how you are feeling at that moment.
Think about how easy it is to crave chocolate when you are feeling down. Technically, chocolate has actually been shown to improve depression and anxiety. So in this case, your cue is feeling blue, and the craving is for chocolate.
Tomorrow we will see how response and reward play into habit formation.
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