<ul>Mentioning the Ten Commandments before a tempting situation <a href="https://www.bakadesuyo.com/how-do-you-get-others-to-lie-and-cheat-less">reduced cheating </a>on a test. </ul>What's the best way to use reminders? Have a checklist. Atul Gawande, MacArthur "Genius" award winner and bestselling author of <a href="https://amzn.to/22sI4gv">The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right </a>, tells the story of how much of a difference checklists made in a hospital ICU. What happens when doctors used checklists? <a href="https://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/12/last-damn-thing-new-years-resolutions/">Twenty-one fewer people died </a>:

Of course not. What did make students show up and do what they said they would? Giving them a map and having them make an appointment in their calendar. In short, creating a simple plan for how to get the job done. From <a href="https://amzn.to/1XGfsQ6">Collaboration: How Leaders Avoid the Traps, Build Common Ground, and Reap Big Results </a>: A portion of students received a detailed plan on how to get to the medical clinic; they were told the times when shots were available; they were given a map with the clinic clearly circled; and they were asked to review their schedule to find a time. Of the students who received this detailed plan, 28 percent went to get a shot, compared with 3 percent of students without the plan.

From <a href="https://amzn.to/1TNnHdE">Yes!: 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive </a>: Why might writing down our goals be so effective at strengthening our commitments? Put simply, commitments that are made actively have more staying power than those that are made passively... In all, the clear majority of those who appeared as scheduled (74 percent) were those who had actively agreed to volunteer for the program.

<a href="https://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/11/stop-procrastinating/">Katherine Milkman </a>at the University of Pennsylvania suggests you tie a "want" to a "should." She wanted to listen to the audiobook of the " <a href="https://amzn.to/1qU61iV">Hunger Games </a>." And she knew she should exercise. Solution? She only let herself listen to audiobooks at the gym. It worked for her - and when she did a <a href="https://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/11/stop-procrastinating/">study of 226 students </a>it worked for them too. So reward yourself. Tie a "want" to a "should." When you do what you're supposed to, you get the treat.

(To learn how to end bad habits for good, click <a href="https://www.bakadesuyo.com/2016/04/bad-habits/">here </a>.) Okay, picking a habit that changes how you see yourself is like a "three-for-one" deal. That's great. But making that one change can still be a lot of work, right? Wrong... Want to floss more often? Okay, just floss one tooth. Sound silly? That's fine. Just like your mom told you: focus on baby steps.

From <a href="https://amzn.to/1TNnHdE">Yes!: 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive </a>: (To learn the four rituals neuroscience says will make you happy, click <a href="https://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/09/make-you-happy-2/">here </a>.) Alright, I know: planning feels like homework. Where's the fun? Well, since you asked, I shall bring the fun ... <a href="https://www.bakadesuyo.com/2010/04/can-you-pay-people-to-develop-good-habits/">Research </a>shows that bribing people to go to the gym works: ...it appears that providing financial incentive to attend the gym regularly for a month serves as a catalyst to get some people past the threshold of actually getting started with an exercise regimen.

And once you're flossing one tooth consistently, try flossing two teeth... (To learn what Harvard research says will make you happier and more successful, click <a href="https://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/09/be-more-successful/">here </a>.) Okay, keystone habits and minimum viable effort. Now how do you really make sure you actually follow through ? Think like Hannibal from the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyz_2DEah4o">A-Team </a>: you love it when a plan comes together. But does creating a plan make a difference when it comes to building good habits? Yup. Researchers wanted to convince students to get a tetanus shot. They showed them grisly photos of what could happen if they didn't. And students who saw the pictures were far more likely to say they would get the shot. But did they follow through?

We all want to get to the gym, be more productive, be kinder to our loved ones... and then we don't do it. Why? Well, building solid personal habits can be hard. In fact, research shows it takes an average of 66 days to build a new good habit.

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