Vanens magt

Human beings are fundamentally creatures of habit. That is why we find it so hard to change - really change. Perhaps you too have found it hard to fulfil your New Year's resolutions - just like the rest of us. And perhaps you have also experienced first-hand how hard it is to change your colleagues, even though your change project is really well thought out.

In this book, journalist and Pulitzer winner Duhigg digs into the latest research on habits and looks, among other things, at how they are created and stored in our brains. The power of habit lies in the fact that a habit loop arises, which tends to reinforce itself. The loop consists in the fact that, when we receive a particular cue, we go onto autopilot and carry out a routine that gives us a reward. The reward leads to us once again getting a craving to do the whole thing again.

The book is built around this simple proposition, but shows through a sea of examples how both research and practice have demonstrated that much of our behaviour is governed by precisely habits. Among other things, there is a very interesting example involving the swimmer Michael Phelps.

The book is moreover structured starting with individual habits, then the habits of successful organisations and finally societal habits.