Summary - A breakdown of; what a habit is, how to change old habits and how to create new ones.

Introduction - My battle with depression almost claimed my life on three separate occasions last year. Through all of my failed attempts at change, it was ultimately one book that proved pivotal and that book was 'The Power of Habit' by Charles Duhigg. Scientifically backed research, coupled with an actionable structure, provided me with all of the necessary tools for change. I have done my best to lay those same key ideas out here on the off chance that they help another troubled guy, struggling to swallow the RedPill.

Why are Habits important? -

"Successful people are simply those with successful habits." - Brian Tracy

Habits are the, often neglected and underestimated, foundations on which your life is built. Situated as the backbone in all pursuits of progress and excellence, they account for 40% of all daily actions. Considering this, the decline becomes all the more prominent amidst the degenerative lives led by the masses. It was, after all, Benjamin Franklin who defined one's net worth to the world as the remains after his bad habits are subtracted from the good.

Habits are the reason Alphas drag themselves out of bed at 4:00am every morning.

Habits are the reason Alphas will walk for miles, through torrential rain, to get to the gym after their car broke down.

Habits are the reason Alphas are willing to put their muscles through intense pain day after day, whilst all of the Betas are jerking off to Mike chang videos.

What is a Habit - Within the brain, conscious decision making is the responsibility of the prefrontal cortex. Due to it's constant pursuit towards greater efficiency, it identifies repeated sequences of actions and, over time, converts them in to an automatic routine (Known as chunking). When a routine is triggered, the Basal Ganglia, in it's pivotal role of governing habits, takes over from the prefrontal cortex. This leads to a drastic drop in neurological activity, in which the mind is able to divert more energy and attention towards other tasks. There is a reason why a lot of the best thinking is accomplished whilst performing monotonous activities like walking or taking a shower.

Upholding the consensus that human beings are not rational creatures, our brains have almost no ability whatsoever to discern between good habits and bad; a bitter reality, reinforced by the fact that a large majority of our habits had very little conscious thought input when they were created.

Structure - Habits can be broken down in to a loop in which there are three main components. The Cue, Routine and the Reward.

Cue - The cue is responsible for triggering the habit loop and takes on a vast number of forms. Cue's can be a specific time (as soon as you wake up you have a shower) or an emotional state (when you feel depressed, you start to eat). Other common cues are people, a preceding event or a specific location.

Routine - The routine is the automatic action or activity that directly follows the Cue. A few routines were mentioned in the previous point such as the routine of eating however routines can be physical, mental or emotional.

Reward - The reward can be anything, such as the stimulation from nicotine after smoking a cigarette. One of the most important roles of the reward is helping your brain decide which habit loops are worth remembering for the future.

These habit loops are quite delicate and even a slight change to one of the components, in particular the cue, can stop the habit from working.

Anticipation and Cravings - Neurological activity is fairly high at the Cue, before it drops down to a low, steady level during the routine and finishes at its highest point for the reward. This is the standard activity in the early stages of formulating a habit however over time this neurological activity changes. As a habit becomes stronger, instead of just signalling the routine, the cue also signals a pleasure response in anticipation of the reward thereby causing activity to spike directly after the cue. This pleasure response, if left unsatisfied, is what causes powerful cravings and leads to anger and depression.

Example - The cue for a smoking habit is often feelings of stress. As the habit loop kicks in, a pleasure response is triggered in response to the anticipation of stimulation from the nicotine. This response is powerful and explains why it is often so hard to quit smoking.

How to create new Habits - Both, the habit as a whole as well as each individual part need to be clearly defined when attempting to create a new habit. Take, a habit of meditating for example:

The cue could be something physical such as a cup of coffee in the morning, or it could be an emotional state like anger (a basic understanding of your own emotional states is required).

The Routine could be finding somewhere quiet, where you will not be disturbed and meditating for 5 or 10 minutes.

For the Reward, it could either be intrinsic (Mental clarity/sense of calm) or extrinsic (Spending time on a hobby).

The craving requires all 3 other parts to be clearly defined and completed repeatedly. As the habit loop becomes stronger, the pleasure response will begin to be signaled and a craving for the reward will develop, thereafter powering the loop.

How to change old Habits - Attempting to change old habits requires a different approach. The 'golden rule' for changing old habits is to keep the cue and reward the same but insert a new routine that provides the same reward. The habits and cravings that drive our behaviors, until we make an effort to look for them, are often unknown to us. The first step in changing old habits is to become better at identifying the different components of them, in particular the Cue. This means consciously making a note of it every time you notice a trigger. Once you become more aware of them, then you can start to dissect the habit, and come up with a substitute routine that carries the same rewards.

The example of smoking is good to illustrate this point. If the reward that you identify is stimulation (from nicotine), then you can switch out the smoking routine for one that, whilst still providing the reward of stimulation, is not as harmful. This could be stimulation from caffeine or even from completing a set of pushups.

Keystone Habits (Lifting) - A keystone Habit is a priority habit and one that carries disproportionate results (80/20 principle). The benefits of keystone habits ripple out, disrupting bad habits and positively influencing other areas of a person's life.

To start lifting is the fundamental advice given to newcomers and I think this lies in it's designation as a keystone habit. The increased energy levels mean an increased productivity in everything else you do. The work ethic developed from lifting heavy weights allows you to stay more focused at your job. The way lifting itself acts as a form of meditation brings enormous results to your state of mind. These are just a few of the ways in which Lifting, as a keystone habit, can kickstart change in every other area of your life.

Mirroring the common advice given, I recommend that any beginner focus on establishing a solid workout regime first, and then branch out in to wealth creation, game etc.

Role of Belief in Habits - The Importance of belief is, in my opinion, often understated. Belief in yourself, belief in change, a belief that things will improve. Whatever form your belief happens to take, just focus on increasing it. From personal experience, nothing else mattered if I wasn't able to develop some kind of belief in something and overcome the horrific nihilism that accompanied my depression. The Red Pill community played an important role in developing my own belief system and for that I am extremely grateful.