Atomic Habits

We have now journeyed about halfway through our study of Atomic Habits. We have examined the significance of habits, how they form, and how you can leverage habit triggers to your benefit.

It's now time to delve into the aspect of habit formation that involves rewards.

In 1954, neuroscientists James Olds and Peter Milner conducted an experiment to investigate the neuroscience of desire. They used electrodes to inhibit the release of the neurotransmitter dopamine in certain rats. The outcomes were quite startling; these laboratory rats essentially lost the desire to live. Without dopamine, they had no inclination to eat, drink, reproduce, or engage in any other activities. Within just a few days, they all perished from dehydration.

This unsettling narrative conveys a critical point: dopamine plays a vital role in motivation. When we engage in activities that are beneficial for our survival—such as eating, drinking, or engaging in sexual activity—dopamine is released, and we experience a sense of pleasure. This pleasurable sensation motivates us to repeat these beneficial actions.

So far, this is quite straightforward. But how does this relate to the process of building habits?

Interestingly, we don't necessarily have to partake in the pleasurable activity to experience the release of dopamine. The mere expectation of engaging in a pleasurable activity is sufficient to trigger the release of dopamine. In the brain's reward system, the anticipation of something desirable is equivalent to actually obtaining it!

We can capitalize on this phenomenon. When developing a new habit, if we make it something we eagerly anticipate, we are more likely to consistently follow through and actually engage in it.

Here, I would like to present the idea of temptation bundling. Temptation bundling involves combining an activity that you consider important but unappealing with an activity that you are naturally inclined towards. This is how you can utilize dopamine to your advantage when establishing a new habit.

Consider the example of Ronan Byrne, an engineering student from Ireland. Ronan understood that he should exercise more, but he found little enjoyment in working out. However, he did enjoy watching Netflix. Therefore, Ronan modified an exercise bike. He connected the bike to his laptop and programmed it so that Netflix would only run if he was cycling at a specific speed. By linking exercise with a behavior he naturally enjoyed, he transformed a disagreeable activity into a pleasurable one.

You don't need to create a complex Netflix/exercise bike setup to apply this concept in your own life. There are simpler methods to achieve this. For instance, if you need to exercise but also want to catch up on the latest celebrity gossip, you could commit to only reading magazines while at the gym. Or if you want to watch sports but need to make sales calls, you could promise yourself a half-hour of ESPN after you've spoken to your tenth prospect.

Simply find a way to make those unappealing yet important tasks enjoyable, and you'll be riding a wave of dopamine while simultaneously creating positive habits.