I was interested in
this book from a variety of perspectives:
·
As a professional marketer the formation of
habits certainly has some implications for what I do for a living.
·
My wife suffered a stroke which impacted her
brain and the way she deals with information.
·
A family member with addictive tendencies and
shows signs of obsessive compulsive and bipolar disorders.
In the The Power of
Habit author Charles Duhigg certainly discusses how the brain reacts and
acts in the formation of habits. Duhigg also gives examples of how people who
have suffered some form of traumatic brain injury may have unaffected portions
of their brain compensate for the injured sections. Along the way Duhigg really
highlights the overall lack of definitive knowledge physicians and scientists
truly have about the brain and its function.
Duhigg offers some
basic steps in the formation of habits as well as the modification of habits
and how even small changes in the process can have a dramatic impact in
altering habits; including both positive and negative habits. When it comes to
those with addictions, many will disagree with this section, which in the end
doesn’t really have a foundation in science but does have some practical implications
in our lives.
Particularly interesting are the portions of the book that
deal with consumer habits and how businesses and marketers can use big data and
predictive analytics to drive consumer habits by altering the decision making
process to drive choice.
While it doesn’t offer “scientific proof” that some may be
seeking, The Power of Habit does
offer some intriguing insights into habit formation and the potential methods
of alteration.
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