How to Build Habits157When we consciously set fruit on the table instead of a
candy bowl, we are using choice architecture to help Ray focus
on what we want him to focus on. We see the fruit and think
about how hungry we are and how we really do like a good
apple and, “Oh, look! There’s one right there.” Voila! A good
choice made possible by choice architecture and our reticular
activating system. On the contrary, if we surround ourselves
with things we really don’t want to focus on (candy, negative
people, things like that), Ray will focus on those things, allow
them through, and set us up for dangerous choices.
How can you use choice architecture to build your habits?
Keystone habits also help Ray because you’re creating a
big sign for him that says, “This is important. Focus on things
like this.” If Ray could talk, he’d be saying, “Help me, help
you.” Just as you set up your work environment to help you
work, it’s important to set up your habit- building environment
to help you build good habits. And we do that by focusing on
one important thing at a time.
As Kelly McGonigal, PhD, a Stanford University lecturer
and author of The Willpower Instinct, put it, “If there is a
secret for greater self- control, the science points to one thing:
the power of paying attention.”^9
Now that you understand some habit- building tools, how
will you use choice architecture, tiny habits, keystone hab-
its, and your new buddy Ray to help you build your morning
routine? (In the appendix you’ll find a Habit- Building Quick
Guide with practical examples of how to apply these tools.)