PARR Methodology

Are Habits Better Than Goals? Are Goals Bad?

creativity, energy, goal, goal theory, goals, Habit Alignment, habits, learning, PARR Methodology

I recently received an email from an uber-successful entrepreneur. This lady has a multi-million-dollar company and she’s a mentor and coach for other entrepreneurs.

However, given some of the recent articles on the Internet she’s read about goal achievement, she was wondering if perhaps having a group of entrepreneurs set goals for themselves might be harmful. She asked my thoughts.

Do you think it’s useful to set goals that are related to company revenue?

Example: Goal to hit $1 million in sales in 2016.

Some articles are saying that setting a company goal like this can cause a feeling of failure, since actually hitting this goal is out of our control. I have always set goals like this in my company and it’s how I grew.

It’s a bit crazy to continually see and/or hear about this concept of “Habits vs. Goals.”

BTW: You’d think, being often referred to as “the habits guy,” that I would love to see and hear this sort of meme. However I don’t, and here’s why.

To put it simply, it’s illogical and dichotomous. One isn’t “better” than the other. And, it’s probably important to note that such a mindset isn’t supportive of what The Habit Factor represents or promotes anyway: A process that includes habit alignment, where one designs and establishes habits that are supportive of a goal in order to achieve that goal more quickly.

If people start believing GOALS are “bad,” or it’s “Goals vs Habits,” then they don’t have a destination or target to aim for. And, without a goal, it takes much of the juice (motivation/desire) out of the habit development process; the desire to develop the habit becomes somewhat impotent.

According to Dr. Stephen Covey, three things are required for habit development: Knowledge, Skill & Desire. The desire is often supplied by the goal — that provides the juice! To understand the P.A.R.R. habit development process, see this post.

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It’s simply NOT an either/or proposition when it comes to habits and goals. Habits serve goals and goals serve habits.

Each (it could be argued) is equally valuable, and I suspect that is by design. It’s easy to understand how having a goal could help you to identify what habits you should set out to develop. And, once established, those habits help you more quickly achieve your goal.

The child who has the goal of becoming a pianist — well, she develops the habit of playing piano. The runner who has the goal of becoming a marathoner? Correct! He develops the habit of running. The writer who wants to become a published author develops the habit of writing.

HABIT SERVES GOAL ACHIEVEMENT.

So, in response to her email I wrote,

It is VERY useful (in my experience) to still set the goal. It is true, many things are beyond one’s control. However, the goal is just something to aim for / a scoreboard / a result / a target. As you know, it’s the process, strategy and the HABITs that will help one get there.

Postscript:

Granted, this video (link) and the post itself is probably a bit more about a book promotion and less about philosophy of goals and achievement. However, as you watch this video (from a couple of “influencers”), it’s easy to see how the “goals are bad” message becomes popularized. And, since these guys are smart, I’d like to think it’s important to them as well to share this important understanding and relationship.

Who knows — maybe even to promote it. Some day. ; )

~mg

Take away paradox from the thinker and you have a professor.” – Soren Kierkegaard

The Habit Factor’s Top Ten — No, Make that 13 — Reasons It’s the Best

belief, discipline, goals, Habit Alignment, HabitStregth™, P.A.R.R. Methodology, PARR Methodology, Podcast, SMART Goals, TED Talk, vision

By Martin Grunburg:

Warning! Before you read this it’s highly recommended that you read the prior post to understand the context of this post and why it was written.

In the prior post, I recounted a discussion with a lawyer about the critical importance of understanding WHY he (and his firm) provides a superior solution/option for any potential client who may be shopping for his services.

At the same time, I could completely relate to his unwillingness to boast about his work or his firm’s accomplishments. His thinking was along the lines of, “Well, if they choose me great; if they don’t, that is great too.”

Unfortunately, I explained to him (as I’ve begun to recognize lately), that such an attitude of humility (an unwillingness to be proud of his accomplishments) was actually doing his clients, his family and himself a huge disservice.

Even if it was against his nature, he had to find a way to “boast” about his accomplishments and that of his company, if only to help differentiate his business/solutions for his prospects. After our conversation, I asked him to list 10 great reasons why he and his firm are superior. After sharing this experience in my last post, it occurred to me that I should give myself the same homework.

It turns out, with a little prodding I not only have 10, but actually 13 (and probably even more) reasons why the Habit Factor is the best goal achievement methodology around. Hold me back! ; )

So, here we go:

The Habit Factor was the first Habits AND Goals app. In fact, when the app debuted in June of 2009, the most popular kind of app in the iTunes Productivity marketplace was the To-Do app. The Habit Factor, though, was the first to introduce the concept that habit is the most crucial path to goal achievement, superseding and at the same time complementing the S.M.A.R.T. Goals methodology as a practice to achieving your goals more quickly. And, all this was explained in the …
Bestselling book: The Habit Factor is the only habit app complemented by a best-selling personal development book. True story: The book was in the works well before the app, germinating with early writings as far back as 2003. However, the book wasn’t an earnest project until 2008, and that is when the iPhone and, equally important, the iTunes App Store was introduced. My entrepreneur group encouraged me to stop writing the book and to develop an app ASAP (which I did), and then I returned to finish the book, which was published in November, 2010.
P.A.R.R. Methodology: The Habit Factor employees the Plan, Act, Record and Reassess methodology for habit development. This is far superior to Cue, Routine, Reward (the 3 R’s of Habit development) and even B-MAT ideas/processes taught elsewhere. All of these are “backward” facing and do NOT involve tracking and tracking periods. The “funny” thing: Nearly all the other habit apps that have entered the marketplace have at least partially copied The Habit Factor process — Planning, Acting, Recording. Nearly all these apps employ “Target Days” and “Minimum Success Criteria.” But, what they don’t have — and seem to not understand — is the idea of the…
“Tracking Period”: This is entirely unique to The Habit Factor process, which recommends an ideal tracking period of 4 weeks. However, some people use longer periods while some use periods as short as one week. By using P.A.R.R. and employing the tracking period feature, the user may incrementally increase the frequencies per week and even the minimum success criteria (20 push-ups or 45 push-ups) — another totally unique feature to The Habit Factor called,
HabitStrength™: Habit strength as a concept was introduced by Clark Hull, Ph.D., and while it was a seemingly overly complex formula, the base premise was that habit (like a muscle) increases with use over time and is NOT dependent upon consecutive days (as so many of these “habits” courses that are popping up now teach). Watch this video about how the PARR methodology and HabitStrength work together. Again, the key point is that tracking periods and reassessment are what make this possible!
The Law of Cosmic Habit Force: This (see post) is the great secret and missing ingredient that was never in the classic self-help bestseller, Think and Grow Rich — these are not my words, but those of Napoleon Hill, the author who, after spending 20 years writing the classic bestseller, recognized that “something was missing.” He went back to the drawing board and (again, in his words) identified the missing ingredient after another 20 years. Yes, that is 40 years total to come up with his 17th principle in his Science of Personal Achievement (Amazon, one of my favorite programs). It’s very rare to find anyone who’s listened to it, and rarer still to find anyone who’s listened to it as many times as I have. You can find the program on Audible.com here (with that link you can get it FREE; just click on the ‘Get my free book’ and search “The Science of Personal Achievement.” What I’m saying here is The Habit Factor is, in many ways, The Law of Cosmic Habit Force. It picks up where Mr. Hill left off and helps to explain in clear and practical, easy to understand terms what Mr. Hill never got to fully share — by that time he formulated these theories he was in his 70s. The Habit Factor goes a bit further, though, with the correlation of habit development and tracking as a process to achieve goals. (The sound bites — Napoleon Hill’s own words are in the above referenced post.)
Success Stories: The Habit Factor has proven time and again with countless success stories/case studies that applying this process works and, here’s the best part, it works every time — when the user works every time. Whether it’s a marathon or writing a book or getting fit, applying The Habit Factor process creates fantastic results. See this and this (links to a few pretty cool success stories!).
Certified Professionals Program: While any coach and professional is free to teach these ideas and share them (and they do), only The Habit Factor has established a Certified Professionals Program specifically for how professionals can best employ the ideas in the book and the app to get the best results with your clients and patients.
Podcast: The Habit Factor is now a triple threat : ): book, app and now podcast. The podcast in its second season — just re-launched and off to an amazing start with 3 weekly episodes: Monday (Mind Bullet Monday), Wednesday (interviews), and Friday (Frequently Asked Fridays). Listeners have reported higher levels of motivation and engagement by augmenting their app usage and book lessons with the podcast discussions, interviews and ongoing ideas.
MG: That’d be me. (You should have seen this one coming). I tell you it’s been a bit tough to write this, and it’s encouraging at the same time. It makes me feel really good that there is so much value in not just the ideas (as a foundation), but in the practical use of this process and methodology. I list me as a positive, I guess, since while some of the app’s content is copied, what can’t be copied (at this point anyway) is me — the man behind the book and app. There is no doubt I’m immeasurably grateful to all those who’ve come before me and paved the way with their great insights and ideologies around personal development. It was their fundamental groundwork that spurred me to research and study and write about HABIT. The Habit Factor, while taking a significant leap forward, I’m sure, synthesized many of the all-time industry greats and many of their ideas: Hill, Rohn, Covey, Robbins, Tracy, Dyer, etc., to name a few. BTW: If you’re a fan of the book StrengthFinders, here are my Top 5 strengths according to its comprehensive survey: Strategic, Relator, Achiever, Futurist, Positivity. (I’m not sure about the order, but sounds about right.)
My Mission with THF: This is the scary thing, and I’ll just throw this out there. It was rare, VERY rare, to find any book (ebook or otherwise) on HABIT as the sole subject back in 2010. Today it’s commonplace. My mission was simply this: To alter the negative association of habit and help people to understand it’s the greatest (built-in) tool we all have to achieve our goals. The idea that habit is most often regarded as negative is nearly tragic, and I undertook the writing of the book to help spark that awareness — in fact, it’s the same awareness William James lectured about at Harvard in his now famous “Talks to Teachers” in the late 1800s compelling teachers to understand what HABIT truly is:

It is very important that teachers should realize the importance of habit, and psychology helps us greatly at this point. We speak, it is true, of good habits and of bad habits; but, when people use the word ‘habit,’ in the majority of instances it is a bad habit which they have in mind. They talk of the smoking-habit and the swearing-habit and the drinking-habit, but not of the abstention-habit or the moderation-habit or the courage-habit. But the fact is that our virtues are habits as much as our vices. All our life, so far as it has definite form, is but a mass of habits,—practical, emotional, and intellectual,—systematically organized for our weal or woe, and bearing us irresistibly toward our destiny, whatever the latter may be.
Not sure it qualifies as a very good reason why The Habit Factor is better, but it’s kind of funny and I’ll let you decide. The Habit Factor introduced this idea/concept of the infinity symbol as a representative symbol for habit.

I thought the concept of an infinity symbol to represent habit was powerful. Particularly if I broke the symbol slightly to introduce the idea/concept that a habit could break down if not reinforced or, maybe more importantly, symbolically demonstrate to those trying to break bad habits that it was possible. Shortly, and not so shortly, following The Habit Factor, here are some of the other apps’ representative logos…
Unsolicited Praise: While many competing apps/companies are experts at getting press and coverage to help promote their habit app, The Habit Factor has flourished with priceless unsolicited coverage in prominent online publications including The New York Times, C|Net, Lifehacker.com, and Mashable.com, not to mention the countless other productivity blogs (sample here).

So why spend all this time talking about The Habit Factor? Well, in the spirit of this post… it can be a HUGE difference maker (Free tracking template), and as I explained to my lawyer friend, if WE can’t recount the important distinctions about our products/services, chances are good our clients/users won’t be able to either. And, here’s the best reason this process (and app) is all readily available to you. Apparently, it’s my job to make sure you know about THF and WHY The Habit Factor is the best value/solution available when it comes to building new, positive habits and breaking bad ones. Hence, the extended list.

Final thoughts related to #11 above: Regarding the creation of a movement recognizing habit as a force for good and specifically for goal achievement, it’s important to recognize that even the great work of Dr. Stephen Covey and The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People was not just a book about (solely) HABIT. That book was specifically about 7 Habits, an important distinction because, as great as The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People is, it didn’t teach the reader about HABIT (as a craftable force for good), nor how to create habits, nor did it correlate habit as a process to achieve goals. A powerful and fantastic book nonetheless. And, it helps to prove that the message really isn’t just about 7 habits (no matter how great that book is), but rather, about HABIT. And, to be clear that’s not me saying this, it’s Dr. Covey himself who then went on to write The 8th Habit.

Even the uber-popular The Power of Habit, which came out about 16 months after The Habit Factor (to see a post and my thoughts on that book, click here), also failed to correlate habit as a process to achieve goals and even provide a meaningful or specific methodology to create new habits. A great book with a few important shortcomings; 300 pages of anecdotes on the power of habit and approximately 11 pages in the appendix about how to apply them to modify behavior and create a new habit. Yes. The appendix. Long on supportive examples of the power of habit and short on how to apply the lessons with no practical-go-forward methodology, such as P.A.R.R.

So, there you have it my friends…this is why The Habit Factor is pretty good — OK, I’ll say it, it is the best — and now at least I can revert to the prior thinking shared by my lawyer friend. “If you select The Habit Factor, great. If not, well, I guess that is great too.”

Talk soon,

-mg

Btw: I hope you checkout our latest podcast interview w/ R. Michael Anderson about happiness, joy and the journey.

The Magic of Breakthrough Ideas: Spark Creativity, Solve Problems and Smash Through Standard Industry Thinking

belief, energy, goal theory, goals, Habit Alignment, habits, HabitStregth™, P.A.R.R. Methodology, PARR Methodology, self esteem, SMART Goals

I’m more fascinated than ever with the idea of GOOD ideas. That is, how breakthrough ideas rarely come from inside of their own industry. After all, isn’t that the basis for the cliché, “You gotta think outside the box”?

Many businesses are looking for that one, great breakthrough idea. Or, maybe YOU just want to start a new business and are looking for a fresh idea.

In either case, the funny thing is so many people seem to be resigned to the notion that all the “good” ideas already exist.

I want to share a short list of examples of “outsider” thinking that reshaped — and in some cases paved the foundations for — new industries.

From Buffet to Grocery Store

Not too many people I know are familiar with the story about the grocery store “model” for shopping. That is, loading up your cart or bag and selecting the items for yourself. That self-service model reportedly came from a man who saw many similarities as he stood in line one fateful day at a buffet.

Napoleon Hill enjoyed sharing this story of synthetic imagination (as he called it) about a grocery clerk in a small town who had never made more than $20 a week. Then one day Clarence Saunders was struck with an idea like a bolt of lightning!

What if, he wondered, the people could load up their own bag (or, later cart) and select items for themselves? Clarence Saunders later founded the Piggly Wiggly grocery store chain, and soon an entire industry followed.

Theater Makeup Results in Potentially Lifesaving Breakthrough for 3M

In this Harvard Business Review article, “Sometimes the best ideas come from outside your industry” (yes that’s the title), the authors cite how 3M “discovered” a way to save lives (and make a lot of money) by preventing infections after surgery.

The Source Code of All Computing Can Be Traced to a Nearly 5,000-Year-Old Book

I recently came across this article in the Guardian and a similarly backed story in Wikipedia about the origins of binary source code and a man named Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz who became fascinated with the iChing. The iChing is an ancient spiritual text (reportedly one of the oldest in history, predating the bible by thousands of years). Sidenote: The iChing sent me on a personal spiritual journey decades ago (after my first business “failure”), and while I’ve reviewed a few translations of the iChing, this is my favorite.

Drive Thru . . . Banking!?

Chances are on a daily basis you may not think twice about driving through In-n-Out Burger, Starbucks, McDonald’s or pick your favorite drive-thru. However, I’m willing to bet $1 that you didn’t know (I certainly didn’t) that the first drive-thru was reportedly the Grand National Bank of St. Louis in 1930!

The Recipe for Compelling Heroes . . . Just Add a Recipe

Take a few minutes to listen to this excerpt of a fantastic episode (embedded below) of The TED Radio Hour, and you’ll hear how Joseph Campbell deconstructs the “Hero’s Journey” in a beautiful and simplistic fashion. In fact, at some point George Lucas himself cites his deep understanding of said formula.

Incredibly, the main component parts to the “Hero’s Journey” (Departure, Initiation, Return) brilliantly match the paths of many whom I consider to be real-life heroes, including Roz Savage, who was kind enough to write the foreword to The Habit Factor book.

Finally, The Habit Factor

If it weren’t for all the above examples and hundreds or rather thousands, of others, I’d be as surprised as anyone that I (some surfer-guy from Pacific Beach, CA), with a Bachelor’s in Art/Graphic Design, wrote and then developed The Habit Factor methodology.

Until The Habit Factor was introduced, the all-time, most popular goal achievement methodology was something known as S.M.A.R.T. goals (introduced in 1981) — a very good process, but entirely missing the influence and contribution of HABIT to goal achievement (see video below).

Perhaps it was my #BlueMind? ; ) Just started reading J’s book, Blue Mind, and enjoying it.

Today, The Habit Factor and the P.A.R.R. methodology for goal achievement have been adopted and applied by Ph.D.s, counselors, and business consultants around the world. I’m only now comfortable understanding that had I actually been in any of those industries, there is little doubt that The Habit Factor would not exist (at least via my efforts).

It had to be my outsider ideas, specifically my study of habit related to goal achievement, that ultimately helped to create The Habit Factor (app and book), and consequently resulted in a solution so innovative that it ultimately reshaped the productivity marketplaces (apps and books) related to habit and goal achievement.

Pay attention to your own “outsider” ideas and don’t feel trapped by what you consider to be your areas of expertise. Maybe a new industry is ready for a spark — from you!

We’ll take another look at this subject in the next post.

~mg

Dispelling The 6 Great Myths of Habit, Developing New Habits Just Got Easier!

goal, goal theory, goals, Habit Alignment, HabitStregth™, P.A.R.R. Methodology, PARR Methodology

“All our knowledge has its origins in our perceptions.”
~ Leonardo da Vinci

By: Martin Grunburg

For each of the following “myths” I will do my best to share its origin, (if possible) the general fallacy and why there is a better understanding and way to proceed when it comes to developing new productive habits!

Myth #1: Habits are bad…
Probably more of a powerful and unfortunate misunderstanding (less a myth). However, it’s still tough to deny the existing negative connotation that permeates throughout western society. This has massive consequences on how people and organizations attempt to achieve their goals. Why? Because they are largely focusing on the one-off, steps or a ToDo list of actions instead of the core, related behaviors (habits).

There is a large number of personal development “gurus” and even business and management coaches who haven’t yet keyed in on habit as the pathway to goal achievement. A few quick examples recently observed: One coach blogs, “to achieve your goals you must avoid habits.” Another tweets, “five habits that keep you from achieving your goals.” Negative connotation again and again.

Where does this negative connotation originate from? I am not sure. It’s obviously been passed down from generation to generation (ironically enough) a societal habit!

I do know this issue dates back well before the great teacher/philosopher William James who lectured at Harvard on the very subject and admonished his fellow teachers and students to stop regarding habit has bad – and went on to share this (excerpt, Laws of Habit, Talks to Teachers):

We speak, it is true, of good habits and of bad habits; but, when people use the word ‘habit,’ in the majority of instances it is a bad habit which they have in mind. They talk of the smoking-habit and the swearing-habit and the drinking-habit, but not of the abstention-habit or the moderation-habit or the courage-habit. But the fact is that our virtues are habits as much as our vices. All our life, so far as it has definite form, is but a mass of habits,—practical, emotional, and intellectual,—systematically organized for our weal or woe, and bearing us irresistibly toward our destiny, whatever the latter may be.

The second aspect is nearly as interesting. In my trip to China earlier this year a friend and I surveyed several total strangers at a market square (local Chinese) and asked them what they thought first when they heard the word “habit”. We wanted to understand their gut, initial response and associations.

Interestingly, unlike their western counterparts, they didn’t share the same negative association. In fact, associated words we heard included, “early” (as in a habit is something I want to take care of early). Even a bit stranger were words like “news” or “weather” (think patterns).

Finally, we were received with laughter if we asked outright which they might first associate with the word habit, either “good” or “bad”. The answer was “good” in every instance. In the United States however, the answer about 7 or 8 times out of 10 is still something like, smoking, drinking or drugs.

MYTH #2: “It takes 21 days to develop a habit.”

Ironically, this comes from perhaps the most popular and powerful personal development programs of all time, Pycho-Cybernetics. The author Dr. Maxwell Maltz, a brilliant man (plastic surgeon) who recognized from his own patients experience and as he observed in many amputees that they began to lose the sensation of missing limbs after around the 21st day. He posited that the neural wiring in the brain began to change after about the 21st day. Rather than perform his plastic surgery he would counsel many of his patients to work on affirmations about their own self concept, realizing that in many cases there wasn’t a real need for plastic surgery, just a self-image upgrade.

After these patients would perform his recommended affirmations he noticed that it took about 21 days and then they appeared to shed the old self-image. Unfortunately, when it comes to habit development, there is no hard-set rule or number of days required yet, you will see 21, 28, 30, 44, 66, days etc., all over the internet. Please know, the ability to develop a habit varies based upon the behavior itself, the person, the level of desire and a host of other variables. What is certain is that if you stick with the behavior and prove consistent over time you will develop the habit! (more below!)

Myth #3: In order to develop the habit you must perform the behavior for consecutive days.

Consider that if you didn’t floss for 21 days in a row you’d have to start over and try again. Really? Nope, doesn’t work that way. The only truth is you would need to continue to perform the behavior but shouldn’t consider the effort or existing performance or streak a failure if you had to skip a day.

Basically, habit formation comes as a result of repetition. While that is not the only criteria it may be the most important along with DESIRE (see more on this below). The more a behavior or thought is experienced (repeated) the greater the strength of the behavior and the likelihood of developing a habit increases.

“Habits are cobwebs at first and cables at last.” ~Chinese proverb. Repetition is critical and this is why the concept of requiring consecutive days is so often incorrectly reaffirmed throughout the web. Certainly, consecutive days are helpful but they are NOT a requirement.

A personal example I like to share is running. My knees wouldn’t like it too much if I were to try and run everyday, yet I’ve certainly developed the running habit over the years.

Myth #4: You will need to reward yourself to develop a habit.

This originates from a multitude of psychology experiments originally with lab rats who, for example, might get out a maze more quickly after each successive reward. There is even a similar experiment with a girl in a large room of books trying to locate a hidden chocolate bar. Each time she entered the room she found the chocolate more quickly.

Perhaps if you’re a rat or this young girl seeking a chocolate bar this applies to reinforcing the new behavior/habit. However, when it comes to real world habit development rest assured you don’t have to go feed yourself a pizza after you’ve studied for an hour. Or serve yourself some cake after you’ve run a mile.

In fact, what we now have learned over the last several years (particularly through feedback from The Habit Factor® app) and this is very significant, is that the act of intentionally PLANNING then performing and TRACKING a behavior becomes it’s own reward. Following the P.A.R.R. methodology for Habit formation.

Over time, this becomes a significant demonstration of self-efficacy which is really the true reward!

I know that I don’t need to eat a cookie after I’ve just run for an hour. In fact, the greatest reward I know is looking back over The Habit Factor® charts or reviewing the Nike run app chart (check out my October! 65 miles… ; )

Myth #5: You will need discipline to develop habits

When’s the last time you met a disciplined baby?

Where you born with discipline? Discipline is a result of HABIT which is developed over time.

If you had the desire to create the habit of getting out of bed by 5:30am every morning and then you intentionally planned and tracked that behavior, (P.A.R.R.) you would in fact develop that habit.

Then, in about a year or two all your friends would be talking about how disciplined you are! **Important Note: you must have the DESIRE. There are three critical aspects to habit development shared by the late, great Dr. Stephen Covey: Knowledge; you have to know how to develop/perform the behavior. Skill; you have to be physically capable of performing the behavior. And finally, DESIRE; without the desire to develop the habit, the knowledge and skill won’t amount to much. However, with the desire, chances are you would find the knowledge and figure out the skill!

Myth #6: It’s about a list or number of habits…

A bit more irony here as this is likely attributed to incredible success of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, by Dr. Stephen Covey. An absolutely brilliant book and man!

Unfortunately, in many cases, the success of the book has led to dozens of copycat-type books, all with a set number of habits in their title. “The 7 Habits of Successful businesses”, “The 5 Habits of Happy Fathers”, “The 12 Habits of Lazy Mothers”, “The 100 Habits of Millionaires” (a couple of these are real and others made for affect ; )

The point is this; lists are great and Covey’s Seven habits are essential, even foundational to understand. Yet, having said that, as great as his work is— it is NOT about 7 habits, or even 52 habits or, 3 habits or 49 habits. It’s about HABIT.

This remarkable force* that enables any of these habit list books to work. Understanding HABIT, what it is, why it’s so powerful (beginning with the above ideas is a good start).

Finally, let me share this. If it WERE about 7 Habits (just seven) Dr. Covey himself wouldn’t have released a sequel, “The 8th Habit” and who knows, had he lived longer he might have released, “The 9th and 10th Habit”. Again, the key is to really grasp and understand this seemingly magical force EVERYONE has been endowed with!

Until next time my friends,

~mg

Need More Discipline? How to Develop Willpower? Forget About It

goal theory, goals, Habit Alignment, HabitStregth™, P.A.R.R. Methodology, PARR Methodology

By: Martin Grunburg

This is a brief excerpt of Napoleon Hill’s (highly recommended) The Science of Personal Achievement from Nightingale-Conant.

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As you may recall, this, THE LAW OF COSMIC HABIT FORCE is Hill’s great discovery he described it. What makes it so remarkable is he “discovered” this, 20 years AFTER he wrote and published Think & Grow Rich. He was truly dumbfounded by the number of people who did not “grow rich” and did not become “successful” after reading and applying his 16 principles outlined in his best-selling book. For a refresher on this topic see this post.

Why is this important?

Well, just as The Law of Comic Habit Force (as he points out) keeps the planets in orbit, it has the ability to carry your behaviors (supportive and non-supportive) on indefinitely. However, unlike your dog or cat (or any other animal with ingrained habits/instincts), YOU have the ability to intentionally select and craft habit patters that support your goals and ideals. Re-read that last sentence please.

The key word is effortlessly. Your behaviors become EASIER not harder, over time because of HABIT. This example is a bit overused at this point because it’s a good one: How hard was it to learn to tie your shoes? Now, how easy is it? Does it require any conscious thought? Does it require much energy, effort, brain power? The efficiency of HABIT is can not be over-emphasized!

And, the beauty is, knowing you can intentionally and deliberately craft supportive habits you need NOT worry about willpower or discipline since they too are habits.

Earlier this year I posted the “Discipline Dilemma” and just a few weeks ago I put this image (above) on the THF facebook fan page (I hope you join me here / there ; ).

As you can see, I continue to emphasize that the big “D” DISCIPLINE and even “Willpower” are totally and completely over-rated. In fact, if you are trying to achieve ANY goal perhaps the best thing you can do is forget about either and simply focus on developing core, supportive HABITS!

As a coach the one thing I hear all too often is, “I’m not disciplined enough, I know what i need to do but don’t seem to do it.” (Sound familiar?) I also reference this in the book.

The challenge with that statement is that the person is focusing on discipline which is a result instead of the process. And, it’s the process of baby-steps and creating habits that actually helps you achieve such an end result. It is habit that carries you there. Nobody is born with willpower or discipline— each are forged / learned behaviors refined and reinforced over many years (often through our upbringing / our environment) until one day, somebody turns to you and says, wow, I wish I were as discipline as you.”

HOW DO I DO THAT?

By following The Habit Factor’s methodology to form good habits. First, you establish Target Minimums (Minimum Success Criteria), Target Days and a Tracking Period. Only The Habit Factor® allows users the ability to establish this core criteria and most importantly measure it against their ideal / target behaviors—(did I say only The Habit Factor®?) And, only The Habit Factor® offers, the user the ability to compare Actuals vs Targets over the Course of the Tracking Period. For more on this check out this post.

You see, HABIT consists of different strength levels. In fact, one of the earliest researches Clark C. Hull referenced something called, Drive Theory and in my opinion more importantly habit strength which is a product of past conditioning.

To underscore the importance of HabitStrength™ vs Willpower. Let me share with you that I had no willpower or discipline to write a book yet, I have written a book. And, I certainly didn’t have the willpower or discipline to complete an Ironman triathlon yet I’ve now completed several. My friend didn’t have the willpower to lose 30 pounds and guess what, he didn’t need it. He simply tracked the core, related behaviors and developed HabitStrength™ by following The Habit Factor’s P.A.R.R. methodology for habit development.

Please though, don’t take it from me, thankfully, a study was recently released by a couple great behavioral researchers from USC restating what The Habit Factor has been teaching for years.

“The whole focus on controlling your behavior may not actually be the best way to get people to meet goals,” she said. “If you are somebody who doesn’t have a lot of willpower, our study showed that habits are even more important.” … Wood said. “Habits don’t require much willpower and thought and deliberation.”

And, worth noting this study came out years after The Habit Factor®

So there you have it. Take it from me or take it from the Ph.D’s but just take it. Use it. Apply it.

The next post will dive into the path to HabitStrength™ and how applying The Habit Factor’s own, P.A.R.R. methodology specifically strengthens your intentionally crafted, favorable habits that lead you to achieving your goals!

Until then, do me and you a favor FORGET ABOUT WILLPOWER. FORGET ABOUT DISCIPLINE. (please) ; )

~mg

Habit Building Part III: The PARR Method and Progressive Behavior Modification Therapy

goal, goal theory, goals, Habit Alignment, habits, HabitStregth™, P.A.R.R. Methodology, PARR Methodology

P.A.R.R.  (Plan, Act, Record & Reassess)

[By: Martin Grunburg]

A simple method to intentionally build good habits.

P.A.R.R. takes advantage of HabitStrength™, a concept proven to reinforce any particular behavior over time. Strengthening and reinforcing the behavior helps it to become a habit. When this is coupled with Habit Alignment Technology™, anyone can achieve their goals more quickly and easily.

P.A.R.R. simply stands for PLAN, ACT, RECORD (which is tracking + notes) and REASSESS.

Plan: Define your intended behavior (habits)

Act: Perform the behavior as planned (habits)

Record: Tracking and notes (habits)

Reassess: Is it time to raise the bar? (habits)

FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) about P.A.R.R. and Building Habits

How is this any different from the Cue, Routine, Reward concept popularized by The Power of Habit (book)?

PARR distinguishes itself from Cue, Routine, Reward (see video) by directing attention forward and helping to craft new, favorable habits. Cue, Routine, Reward is terrific for providing information in retrospect. However, the method does little to guide the user to develop new, favorable habits. And, unfortunately, Cue, Routine, Reward provides no specific method to develop a habit. It does not offer insight into how one might improve any behavior’s HabitStrength™. In fact, according to The Power of Habit, Cue, Routine, Reward is merely a “framework.” (This is covered in a recent post.)

How about the requirement for a “Reward” when I try to develop a habit?

In the above-referenced video, Duhigg states: “Then there is the reward, in some respects that is the most important part, because that is why habits exist.”

If you’ve read The Habit Factor, you know why habits exist and it isn’t because of the reward. In fact, rewards are NICE but not (repeat) NOT a necessary component for habit development. As an example, think Drill Sergeant, or Mom’s daily morning routine of getting the kids off to school. You might look for ancillary “rewards” like NOT being yelled at. But, please know, that isn’t WHY the habits develop — and certainly not why habits exist.

The referenced “reward” data comes largely from experiments with lab animals. Fortunately, we are humans and not lab animals. We have a unique capacity to intentionally align and craft our behaviors to develop constructive, supportive habits. Obviously, all other animals are tied infinitely more directly to their instincts and habits.

I know there is no need for me to go eat a chocolate bar after I’ve accomplished a goal. One of the great secrets about The Habit Factor is this: the simple act of RECORDING becomes its own reward. People gain a great deal of satisfaction in checking off the desired behavior. Then, of course, seeing their progress and results is its own ancillary reward.

How long does it take to develop a habit?

Perhaps the question I’m most often asked is, “How long does it take to build a habit?” A fair question with no straightforward answer. There are many myths around the exact number of days, ranging anywhere from 21 to 48 or even 66. However, our experience shows that some habits can take up to several months to develop. A key factor in the development of any habit is what we have identified as HabitStrength™. (Note: Not to be confused with Hull’s “Drive Reduction Theory,” although they share a few basic principles.)

Can you please share/explain or even provide an example of how Habit Alignment Technology™ and HabitStrength™ work? How they can be applied in the service of goal achievement?

EXAMPLE:
GOAL: Joe has a goal to lose 35lbs over the next 6 months.

First, by following The Habit Factor’s methodology for goal achievement, Joe recognizes the important distinction between GOALS and HABITS. (This distinction is often lost.)

Therefore, Joe decides to identify and develop a few core, related behaviors (habits) instead of working against a check list. So, for each behavior, Joe will PLAN the behavior’s required minimums. Then he will TRACK the behavior to help craft his new habits.

In order to track each new behavior (with the intent of developing a habit), he needs to first identify the Frequency per Week (days of the week), the Minimum Success Criteria (Minimum QTY or Time to perform the behavior), and finally, the Tracking Period (typically 4 weeks), all explained in detail below.

Habit #1: “No Large Meals after 5:30pm” (Qty=0), (M,T,W,Th,F)

Habit #2: “Drink Water” (6 glasses) (M,T,W,Th,F,S, ) 6x / week

Habit #3: “Walking” (2 Miles) (T,Th,S) 3x Week Habit

Habit #4: “Eat Fruit” (3x day) (M,T,W,Th,F) 5x Week

With each of the above behaviors, there is what we call Minimum Success Criteria. For example, it’s “2 Miles” in the case of the Walking behavior or QTY 6 in the case of the Drink Water behavior. The idea behind the Minimum Success Criteria is for Joe to identify how long (time) or how far (distance) the behavior must be done on designated “target” days to be a “success.” And, if completed, he would give himself a successful Checkmark for the behavior.

If he should only walk 1.5 miles and his Minimum Success Criteria were 2 miles, he would NOT get a successful Checkmark for the effort. Note: This keeps the tracking of his performance to either a YES or a NO. This makes the success of each behavior binary, a critical component to the long-term development of the habit.

Keep in mind, if Joe walks 4 miles, Joe still will receive only a single checkmark and does NOT receive 2 checkmarks. The idea here is to support the long-term development of the behavior to form a habit. In order to do that, it is consistency over a longer period of time vs. a short burst of activity that encourages and supports the development of the habit. Inequity in effort from one day to the next does little to support the long-term development of the habit as compared with consistency over time. Therefore, by keeping the daily tracking to a simple YES or NO (“1” or a “0“) and making the performance measurement binary you have a very clearly defined objective from day to day, which also makes for easier and more elegant tracking. (Further detail and explanation is in the book of course).

The next criteria in habit development is the Frequency per Week.

This is fairly straightforward, allowing the user to identify those days he believes he can and will perform the specified behavior. One of the helpful aspects of this system is it allows users to check off any desired behavior on a “non-target” day as well. For instance, if you selected; M, W, F as Target Days and on Wednesday you couldn’t perform the habit for whatever reason, the good news is you could make it up on Thursday.

*Important note* RE: habit development. You do NOT need to perform a behavior every day (successive days) in order to develop a habit. The key is consistency over time— not successive days.

REASSESS!

If there were such a thing as a “most important part” of habit development (for humans vs. rats) it MIGHT be the Reassessment component. This is your unique ability to be aware, to take inventory of existing behaviors and conscientiously direct your energy to forge new habits—to even increase the frequency or minimums thereby strengthening the habit over time.

By pursuing (planning and tracking) any behavior over time and then pressing PAUSE (at the end of four weeks) to assess your progress, you identify if it’s time to “raise the bar” (again frequency or minimums). Only The Habit Factor® offers customizable Tracking Periods allowing you to assess/reassess your progress (your actual behaviors vs. your ideal behaviors). This is how you improve any behavior’s HabitStrength™.

Example: If Joe is at or around 85% or better for each habit over the course of the first four weeks, Joe is then encouraged to raise the bar for the next four weeks — meaning, perhaps, the “Drink Water” habit might increase from 6 glasses to 7 glasses / 6x /week. Or, maybe 6 glasses 7x per week (instead of 6x/week). Again, raising the bar over the prior four-week period. Another example of this would be to walk 3 miles 3x / week (upping the ante from 2miles, 3x per week. It’s the critical component of the Tracking Period that allows the user to reassess and up the ante for the next tracking period.

With each successive Tracking Period*, the behavior’s HabitStrength™ continues to build until, ultimately, there is no more need to PLAN or TRACK as the intended behavior becomes a HABIT— hence, The Habit Factor.

CONCLUSION

As Joe strengthens these supportive behaviors by successively PLANNING and TRACKING (each 4 weeks), he notices that he’s beginning to realize his over-arching GOAL, and loses 35lbs!

More importantly, Joe develops the healthy and supportive habits, such as walking, drinking water, etc. All of these behaviors will help him to maintain his ideal weight. They will prevent the classic yo-yo dieting and weight gain issues most dieters experience. So, by focusing on developing the supportive habits, ultimately The Habit Factor takes over!

The Discipline Dilemma

goal, goals, habits, HabitStregth™, P.A.R.R. Methodology, PARR Methodology, SMART Goals

By: Martin Grunburg
Regarding matters of discipline…

Don’t buy into the hype. One of the great benefits of coaching and working with people is gaining more insight and understanding about self-imposed limitations, belief systems and more often than not, the main source of personal frustration is self-limiting language (self-talk).

Self-talk is so often responsible for the great divide among “achievers” and “non-achievers.” I’ve used this quote before but it applies here once again: “The beginning of wisdom is to call things by their correct name.” Chinese Proverb

Because so many people misunderstand HABIT they cannot even begin to apply it in the constructive manner it was intended. Similarly, because so many people misunderstand DISCIPLINE they are often left on the outside looking in—thinking/believing that they just don’t have what it takes to be “successful.”

The other day I was at a networking event and a Karate instructor was proclaiming the virtues of DISCIPLINE. In fact, he was handing out bracelets that were inscribed “I’m Disciplined.” He continued to talk about the concept and how he believed the difference between successful people and unsuccessful people was simply the BIG “D.” Now, if you’ve read The Habit Factor you know what I think about that. ; )

He went on and described discipline as (and I’m certainly familiar with this quote—it’s a good one): “The ability to do what you ought to do, when you ought to do it, whether you feel like it our not.” (I believe that is Ziglar original)

Anyhow, and unfortunately, that is NOT the real or even an accurate definition of the word as much as I like its descriptive nature.

Below are a couple of screen shots borrowed from Dictionary.com and Merriam-Webster.com. My hope is that once you read/review these definitions you may see the very real challenge they provide and how each might further hamper those who have already come to believe that they “aren’t disciplined” or “don’t have the discipline” to achieve their goals.

The practice of training people to obey rules or a code of behavior, using punishment to correct disobedience.

PUNISHMENT. OBEY. TRAINING. (sounds like a party, huh?)

I managed to make it to the end of Karate guy’s presentation and then, during the Q&A, I just couldn’t hold out any longer and chimed in, “The BIG ‘D’ as I’m sure you know is a scary word to many people, don’t you think? It’s a bit like telling someone who’s already insecure and unsure of themselves and their capabilities that they need to take ‘massive action’ to achieve their goals.” [As much as I love the message and the man behind it— I’m certain it scares a good majority of people. Yet, coaches around the world reiterate it.]

So, whether you are a coach or not, when it comes to discipline, here’s a simple idea: AVOID IT ENTIRELY!

Here’s why (try to fill in the blank). DISCIPLINE is really just a H __ __ __ __ (rhymes with rabbit)

That’s correct, HABIT.

And, just like any ingrained character trait, it becomes a habit. That is why one of the definitions of HABIT is character. So, by focusing on The Habit Factor process (i.e., NOT discipline or the need for discipline) and developing and improving any particular behavior’s HabitStrength™, discipline becomes a RESULT (as it should be) and a bi-product vs. a means to an end.

A lot easier and certainly more fun than punishment.

This is why, when I nudged Mr. Karate a little further to suggest that what we’re talking about is HABIT and really just BABY steps, he then concurred, “You know, there is this great quote, I can’t remember who said it, “Excellence is not a single act but a habit.”

To which I replied, “yes, Aristotle.” with a smile.

So, please know that it sounds a bit crazy at first for me to say to clients that they don’t need to worry about discipline. But, the reality is THEY/YOU don’t.

Now, as long as I have your attention, there is another way to crush/eliminate the need for discipline, and it starts with the letter “P.”

Let me pose a couple of scenarios for you first.
An 18-year-old young man gets up every morning at 7 a.m. to play the piano.
Question: Is he disciplined?

Now take that same young man and just switch the activity. Let’s consider he’s now playing Ninetendo, XBox or Wii.
Question: Is he disciplined? Or, is he a derelict? A bum or a drifter?

Is there a common thread?

Well, you won’t have to dig too deep to identify that the common thread is likely PASSION. Passion trumps discipline any and every day. Think about it: If you were passionate about running, and many people are, do they need to be disciplined? If you were passionate about eating good foods, would you need to be disciplined? If you were passionate about writing, would you need to be disciplined to write everyday or would you be excited to?

So, the way to circumvent the big “D” is either with passion or, with small, incremental steps to guide the development of habit. You choose.

This post (again) is too long so I’m pushing out Part III of habit development. Stay tuned and forget about discipline. Use the FREE tracking sheet from the link above that says “Templates”. Good Luck!

-mg