How to Change

From Switch by Cheap Heath and Dan Heath

On making change.. To change behavior, you've got to direct the Rider, motivate the Elephant and shape the Path

1. Direct the Rider
-Find the bright spots: See what's worked before and repeat it
- script the critical moves: Make crystal clear directions
- point to the destination: Make the end result or the destination clear
2. Motivate the Elephant
- Find the feeling - Make people feel something to embrace the change
Shrink the Challenge - Break down the change so it seems not too daunting
Grow your People - Cultivate a sense of identity, instill a mindset
3. Shape the Path
- Tweak the Environment - Change the environment to change behavior
Build Habits - Make things automatic
Rally the Herd - Re-enforce good behavior

The takeaway: If I have to sum up the above, first, is to recognize that change is needed and second, to effect change, one must make change simple and automatic.

2011 Books

Non-Fiction:
1. Different: Escaping the Competitive Herd by Youngme Moon
2. The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins
3. The Moral Landscape by Sam Harris
4. Switch: How to Change When Change is Hard by Chip Heath and Dan Heath

Belief

Your beliefs define your vision of the world; they dictate your behavior; they determine your emotional responses to other human beings

-From End of Faith by Sam Harris