The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do, and How to Change

The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do, and How to Change is written by award-winning journalist Charles Duhigg. It explores the scientific study of habits.

Key details

• Author: Charles Duhigg
• Written by an award-winning journalist
• Focuses on the science of habits and how they work
• Looks at habit change in individuals and companies
• Includes examples involving Michael Phelps, Howard Schultz and Martin Luther King, Jr.

Synopsis

Charles Duhigg examines why some people and organisations struggle to change, even after years of effort, while others appear to remake themselves quickly. He draws on visits to laboratories where neuroscientists investigate how habits function and where they reside in the brain.

The book also considers how specific habits contributed to the success of figures including Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz and civil-rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. It argues that understanding how habits work is central to changing behaviour and shaping businesses, communities and lives.