The trouble of changing old habits, versus the ease of switching favorite brands

“Someone please show me one 50-year-old who drives the same car, drinks the same beverages, wears the same clothes, or eats the same food he did at 18. I mean, besides my brother-in-law.” Bob Hoffman, Advertising and Marketing author [ 1 ]

On top of taking a shot at his brother-in-law,

Bob succeeds at something else with his statement.

He sheds light on one truth about Human nature:

As,

over their lifetime,

a majority of people change the type of foods they eat,

the brands of spirits,

wine,

or beers they drink most often,

the type of music they say they love most “these days”,

the maker they buy a car from,

the type of clothes,

or brand of shoes they feel “most comfortable in”,

and the type of work they “wish they’d do,

if they had the education or the skills for it”,

among other things.

All without much effort and whining.

When you ask friends,

colleagues or loved-ones how they came about with making the same kind of changes in their own life,

the answers often go back and forth between:

“Oh, it came naturally”,

“This is where I was at, in my life, then”,

or “I had enough of doing/eating/drinking/reading ___. So I started ___ instead.”

Yet…

When it comes to “changing habits we still haven’t got tired of”,

or “bored of”,

or “haven’t worn out”…

sort of speak…

the whining comes in truck loads.

And the efforts we think we’ll have to make “to succeed at changing them” seem “just too much”.

“Change is hard” is what you hear most often,

then.

But,

if you look at how they tend to behave,

people don’t change habits “because the new thing is easier to do” than holding to what they’re used to.

For example,

Truck drivers don’t use an electronic logbook because it’s easier than using a paper one.

Big eaters don’t go on a diet cause “eating less” is easier than “eating as much as usual”.

Pro soccer players don’t train 5 times a week,

on average,

because it’s easier than going for a short workout before a game.

No. No.

Those who succeed at picking up,

or adopting a new habit do so because,

they find there’s a greater benefit to pull from “the habit they’re going for”

than the one “they’re leaving behind”.

And they act the same with their favorite brands.

Woman, to a friend: “Didn’t you swear, once, that you’d only wear Buffalo jeans? Cause you liked how they made your butt look?”

Friend, laughing: “I did, yeah. (…) But ever since my sister made me put these Lululemon yoga pants on, I changed. They just make me feel better, you know…”

The challenge,

then…

when in need to change a habit that has done its time…

isn’t to go for the first “new habit” you come across,

or the one that has the most buzz around it.

It’s to look for the habit that offers the benefit that matches “what you seek” best.

– – References – – – –

[ 1 ] adcontrarian.blogspot.com/2007/08/aiming-low.html