Every now and again we need to update our operating system (our OS) on our phones & computers because the old OS isn’t as adept at keeping up with the new applications. It’s not that the old one is “bad”, it’s just a little outdated.
And like our devices, we have a human Operating System: our habits.
When we make these upgrades to our phones or computers, it’s likely that the old OS had many features that once served us quite well. However, as things evolve or we get new applications, those features don’t make as much sense.
Or perhaps as we tried to use the old OS we started to notice certain “bugs” or kinks in the system that weren’t working exactly as intended.
It’s clear to see that as time passes and things change, updates to the software become increasingly important.
Just like our devices, we need to occasionally upgrade our habits as well.
Fortunately for us, our hardware and software are both malleable: we can greatly influence and improve both our physical and mental capacity. The challenge is that if we don’t actively attempt to improve our capabilities, they automatically decline.
Thankfully, with a basic understanding of psychology we can hack our habits and make some major upgrades.
With each and every action we do, three things occur in sequential order:
trigger → action → reward (or consequence)
From the moment we wake up to the moment we go to sleep, these little micro cycles of trigger → action → reward happen continuously. Exploring this even further, these cycles are often a feedback loop where the reward reinforces the trigger or even becomes the trigger for the next action.
This is the basis of a forming a habit.
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