Comments

Tom,

Reminds me of a reverse tactic you used to get yourself to ride your bike more often ... put it by the door. At least I think I remember you mentioning this...??

I have used that story with clients for years to call attention to the fact that we all get so busy sometimes (or most of the time)) that we forget the important stuff. So the best way to prevent that from happening is to put it in a place where you have to trip over it.

There's a good reason why candy is placed in easy to reach places at the grocery store checkout.

...

Posted by Jeff Pasquale at October 12, 2006 2:07 PM

"At Sprint's new HQ, for example, planners put the parking lot a quarter-mile from the office. (There is a van, but it is annoyingly infrequent.) The elevators in the low-rise building are irritatingly slow. The food court is as far away from the centers of frequent gathering as possible."

Maybe this, instead of the merger, is why executives are leaving Sprint.

Posted by DUST!N at October 12, 2006 2:51 PM

Ah, Dustin, a fine "gotcha."

Posted by tom peters at October 12, 2006 3:38 PM

Quips aside, this is very interesting to ponder. Yet, I think you'd agree this is not the total picture. Behavior modification is simply external training, not necessarily internal development.

I guess you could say behavior modification should be aligned with intrinsic motivation in order to enact true transformation.

Modification + Motivation = Transformation?

Posted by DUST!N at October 12, 2006 4:10 PM

I see 2 big problems with external behavior modifications like Sprint's:

(1) They're fine until someone gets sick. (I'm recovering from surgery, and not only can I not take my usual 1.5-mile lunchtime walk, but even hiking a quarter-mile to a parking lot is out of the question. If I worked for Sprint right now, I'd be complaining loudly about that "irritatingly slow" van!)

(2) Like banning soda machines in the schools, they may remove temptation -- but they don't help the individual to form the personal habit of dealing with it, and, to me, that's the crucial part (I agree with Dustin wholeheartedly about that!).

I lost over 40 lbs, 5 years ago, and have kept off most of it. The secret, to me, is more like the Buddhist concept of "mindfulness": if you stay AWARE of what and how much you're eating, you learn to keep it under control. (I still eat tortilla chips -- but I count out a specific quantity, rather than plunking the whole bag down by my elbow.)

Posted by Paula at October 12, 2006 4:28 PM

I've always been amazed at people who keep chocolate on their desk but never eat it themselves - now that's control!!! (that I don't have). I was just with a client at a distribution center who commented that the more distance there is between their people and their clients, the more challenging the relationship. This raised all sorts of questions for me...is there a basic human need that people have that face-to-face interaction satisfies that distance is not able to overcome? And, while technology connects us...it also disconnects us. When I worked for a very large, global company in a multi-level high rise, there were a lot of people I didn't know...and, even if I knew their name, I didn't necessarily know their face (why would I, I had email). This bothered me, so I started making it a point to walk to people's desks when I had a question or needed to pick something up (rather than using interoffice mail). I began using the telephone rather than email so at least there was a voice behind the message, not just text. It seemed to make a difference. My job became so much more satisfying when I forced myself to "get out" of the little world (cube slave) I lived in. It also seemed I had a lot more options for how to get work done when I became more connected to all that talent! "You do what? Really? We have people that do that sort of thing....I had no idea"

Posted by Darci at October 12, 2006 4:34 PM

Dear Tom:

You are right.

And here are some comments:

Basically what people do in life is take decisions and act.

However most people like the simple way to decide. And that is what first come to mind.

-Close chocolate = eat
-Far parking = walk
-Bad time organizing = fast food = eat = become fat

Most people is not used to live the hard way to decide. And that is analyse, THINK, decide and ACT.

It is the same problem that is happening with: health problems, bad managers and teams, etc., etc.

People just ACT, ACT, ACT! But they DON`T THINK.

Put the brain to work must be on our days First Priority.

With best regards

Juan Miguel

Posted by Juan Miguel Robles Vargas at October 12, 2006 6:59 PM

I lost 20 pounds over the course of a year and a half, and the technique was simple: be conscious of what I eat, without eating mindlessly, and see how long I can go without that disgusting feeling of being overly full. (And, of course, lots of exercise)

Eating can so easily become a reflexive, autonomic refueling process, as opposed to a conscious act. Funny thing is, it's possible to learn to enjoy food more while eating less, if you just pay attention to what you're eating while you're eating it.

I read an article about a University of Illinois researcher who gave different people different size bowls of food, all full. People with small bowls finished everything, people with medium bowls finished everything, and people with large bowls finished everything. Who decides how much we should eat, the manufacturers of bowls or ourselves?

Posted by Steve Yastrow at October 12, 2006 8:44 PM

It's about the small things, really. Making notes, keeping lists, following a routine...
I always fancied my ability as a writer but for all my life never really got around to writing anything, outside of my work. But recently I decided to do a blog post every day, and that forced me into writing. (I am nowhere near a good writer yet, but at least I write). Is this a valid example, Tom?

Posted by Geetha Krishnan at October 13, 2006 6:37 AM

Dustin: There is a furious and important debate surrounding your comment. While I believe in intrinsic motivation (see my books!) I lean toward "radical behaviorism"; namely, behavior shapes attitudes more than the reverse. I'd love to be "in charge," and not like one of Skinner's rats. But it is important to ask myself whether I'm "driven" in my work by a higher purpose (not meaning religious), or do I keep doing it because of the applause and the paychecks? Does the applause make me like being a "guru"?? Much more needs to be said.

Darci:As an old McKinsey guy, I can assure you that one of our most powerful "tricks" was working about four days a week on Client location, even when the work was straight research we could have done "at home."

Posted by tom peters at October 13, 2006 6:39 AM

Diets and mindless eating......and purely by coincidence, the headline of yesterday's stock market surge was "fast foods lead the way" with McDonald's, Yum Brands (does anyone recall Tom's photos of KFC fried chicken and gravey slathered mashed potatoes?), Wendy's, et al posting higher--in some cases much higher--than anticipated profits. Mindless eating = good business? Mindless eating = decreased health? Decreased health = good business?

Ed

Posted by Ed Di Gangi at October 13, 2006 6:46 AM

Ed -

Nah, It's just a dead food bounce!
Compare McD's charts to Whole Foods.

Posted by Jimi at October 13, 2006 7:31 AM

"... lot of evidence accumulating on the topic of obesity that touts such wee changes ..."

... that is it TP & fans - our cavepeople body LOVES to STORE FAT [esp. if native American] - it must be tricked at every opportunity - learn 50 tricks!

I use 9" max plates & small bowls for example. The FERRARI body is just a matter of learning how to get one - once there you never go back.

Posted by sean at October 13, 2006 8:20 AM

Re: radical behaviorism

best online viagra store Tom, while I tend to agree with you on the behavior-vs.-intrinsic-motivation issue, I think there's an additional nuance (which I touched on in my comment). Behavior shapes attitudes; but if the behavior is something you CHOSE, vs. something imposed on you from outside, the shaping will be likelier to last.

Take 3 boys in high school P.E. class. One exercises only because it's required; the second started out that way, but got hooked on the exercise for its own sake; the third wants to exercise and welcomes the opportunity to do so in class. Of these 3, who is likelier to form the habit of exercising regularly? Yet all 3 of them are exhibiting the same behavior in class.

Posted by Paula at October 13, 2006 3:02 PM

> The self-manipulation of the most trivial ones can
> lead to perhaps a 200 calorie a week
> reduction—which adds up to a delightful 10 to 20
> pounds a year.

At 3500 calories per pound, I think a 200 calorie a week reduction would typically translate to only 3 pounds of weight lost a year.

viagra cheap australia 200 calories a day would translate to 21 pounds a year.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/weight-loss/HQ01625
(note section 3)

Posted by Reid Wilson at October 13, 2006 4:05 PM

Day. Sorry.

Posted by tom peters at October 14, 2006 8:14 AM

I can see how we are all, to a degree, products of our environments. With that understanding, it makes sense to adjust the environment in order to improve the "product." To a degree.

Furthermore, it begs us to pay attention to the environment in which we place our customers.

-------
Read your books? I have done some of that, but the blog tells me oh so much more.

Thanks.

Posted by DUST!N at October 16, 2006 2:27 PM

Parking garages used to be peppered with speed bumps to keep folks from driving at Mach 2. Today there are no speed bumps in most such places. Why?

The answer is the paint that now covers the floor in many parking garages. I adheres to tires and so your tires squeal going around a corner, even if it's only at 15 MPH or so. Result: you hear the squeal and slow down.

Posted by Wally Bock at October 19, 2006 9:27 AM