MoxieCast 030: Succeed at Habit Change, with Dr. Heather McKee
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
“I’m giving up caffeine,” you say, all gung-ho and fist pumps.
Then 4pm strikes and you’ve got an axe in your head, or so it feels.
You’re standing at the coffee bar, eyes like spirographs, remembering your promise to give up your afternoon espresso with two sugars.
“Tomorrow. I promise I’ll start tomorrow…”
And if it’s not coffee, maybe it’s starting the gym, or cutting the insidious habit of checking your phone 500 times a day.
Why is it so darn hard to change a habit, even if we feel it’ll serve us?
Today’s guest is Dr. Heather McKee, behaviour change psychologist and habit coach.
Forget willpower, she says. Skill power’s where it’s at.
Some show highlights include:
- Understanding the “Why” of your aspired habit (game-changer!)
- How habits are formed – and why knowing this matters
- Identifying the cues and rewards associated with the behaviours you’re trying to change
- Starting a “Temptation Tracker”
- Willpower is like the battery on your mobile phone – it wears down throughout the day. Don’t rely on it!
- The importance of enjoyment in the habit-creation process
Join us!
Links and Resources:
Bite Sized Habits Podcast
Review MoxieCast on iTunes
Quotes by Heather McKee:
“When you focus all of your attention on those outcome-based goals, you start to obsess over that number. When those goals become too difficult, you kind of veer off track.”
“Intrinsically motivated goals – they’re the things that matter to you most.”
“One of the things we have to think about habit change is it’s not about kind of shaming ourselves into change or using change as a punishment or trying to fix ourselves.”