Psychology

How to Change: The Science of Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be

How to Change: The Science of Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be

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  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-05-17 08:51:07
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Katy Milkman
  • ISBN：059308375X
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Summary

Award-winning Wharton Professor and Choiceology podcast host Katy Milkman has devoted her career to the study of behavior change。 In this ground-breaking book， Milkman reveals a proven path that can take you from where you are to where you want to be， with a foreword from psychologist Angela Duckworth， the best-selling author of Grit。

Set audacious goals。 Foster good habits。 Create social support。 You've surely heard this advice before。 If you've ever tried to change or encourage it -- to boost exercise or healthy eating， to prevent missed deadlines or kick-start savings -- then you know there are thousands of apps， books， and YouTube videos promising to help and offering sound guidance。 And yet， you're still not where you want to be。

This trailblazing book from award-winning behavioral scientist and Wharton Professor Katy Milkman explains why。 In a career devoted to uncovering what helps people change， Milkman has discovered a crucial thing many of us get wrong: our strategy。 Change， she's learned， comes most readily when you understand what's standing between you and success and tailor your solution to that roadblock。 If you want to work out more but find exercise difficult and boring， downloading a goal-setting app probably won't help。 But what if， instead， you transformed your workouts so they became a source of pleasure instead of a chore？ Turning an uphill battle into a downhill one is the key to success。

Drawing on Milkman's original research and the work of her dozens of world-renowned scientific collaborators， How to Change shares an innovative new approach that will help you change or encourage change in others。 Through case studies， engaging stories， and examples from cutting-edge research， this book illustrates how to identify and overcome the barriers that regularly stand in the way of change。 How to Change will teach you:

- Why timing can be everything when it comes to making a change
- How to turn temptation and inertia into assets that can help you conquer your goals
- That giving advice， even if it's about something you're struggling with， can help you achieve more

Whether you're a manager， coach， or teacher aiming to help others change for the better or are struggling to kick-start change yourself， How to Change offers an invaluable， science-based blueprint for achieving your goals， once and for all。

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Reviews

Elizabeth ，

As heard on The Indicator from Planet Money:https://www。npr。org/2021/05/13/996675。。。 As heard on The Indicator from Planet Money:https://www。npr。org/2021/05/13/996675。。。 。。。more

Chris Boutté ，

As someone who got sober in 2012 after multiple relapses， I know first-hand how difficult it is to change。 After getting sober and working at a treatment center， I realized that most people deal with the same issues when it comes to figuring out how to change even if they’re problem isn’t substance abuse。 For months， I’ve been waiting for this new book from Katy Milkman， and it was fantastic。 I read a ton of books about the science and psychology behind change and forming new habits， and it’s di As someone who got sober in 2012 after multiple relapses， I know first-hand how difficult it is to change。 After getting sober and working at a treatment center， I realized that most people deal with the same issues when it comes to figuring out how to change even if they’re problem isn’t substance abuse。 For months， I’ve been waiting for this new book from Katy Milkman， and it was fantastic。 I read a ton of books about the science and psychology behind change and forming new habits， and it’s difficult to find ones that are good for a broader audience。 Some have too much in-depth science that doesn’t appeal to the average reader， and other books have a ton of pseudoscience and are more in the self-help genre。 Katy Milkman did an amazing job using evidence-based research while also writing in a way so any reader can benefit from it。 In the book， Milkman focuses on specific challenges we all face and breaks them down into concise chapters。 She covers how to get started with change and break out of inertia as well as strategies for dealing with procrastination， forgetfulness， lack of confidence， and more。 One thing I love about the research Katy uses in this book is that she helps the reader become self-aware of innate tendencies we all have， but she shows you how you can use these tendencies to your benefit。 Whether you want to become a better parent， improve your work ethic， get in shape， or just change for the better， you should really check this book out。 。。。more

Raymundo ，

Kate Milkman es una de mis científicas del comportamiento preferidas。 Su investigación atiende problemas muy importantes y relevantes。 En este libro hace un resumen de sus investigaciones y de otras personas para que pueda ser entendido por el público en general。 Los primeros capítulos son los más relevantes que discute el efecto novedad y el problema de auto-control。 Muy valiosa su lectura。

Spela Trefalt ，

If you’re interested in how behavioral science can help you change for the better， read this book。 If you’re already perfect， read it so you can help others change without blowback。 Written in a conversational tone but based on solid science， this book is a gem！！ I listened to the audio book and， as I’ve learned over the years， for non-fiction， I really also want to have a paper copy。 Both are great！ I loved the organization of the book， the logical sequence of chapter topics， and the summary ta If you’re interested in how behavioral science can help you change for the better， read this book。 If you’re already perfect， read it so you can help others change without blowback。 Written in a conversational tone but based on solid science， this book is a gem！！ I listened to the audio book and， as I’ve learned over the years， for non-fiction， I really also want to have a paper copy。 Both are great！ I loved the organization of the book， the logical sequence of chapter topics， and the summary takeaways in each chapter。 So much to keep coming back to as I attempt changes for myself and others。 I highly recommend it！！ 。。。more

Venky ，

After wrestling unsuccessfully with innumerable resolutions – ranging from New Year pledges to audacious proclamations – to kick the habit of smoking， I finally decided to change tack。 My father’s 80th birthday would be the defining “fresh start effect。” As an indelible gift that would both warm the cockles of his heart， and improve my health， I resolved to go cold turkey beginning that momentous occasion。 At the time of this review， it has been a full three years since I last smoked a cigarette After wrestling unsuccessfully with innumerable resolutions – ranging from New Year pledges to audacious proclamations – to kick the habit of smoking， I finally decided to change tack。 My father’s 80th birthday would be the defining “fresh start effect。” As an indelible gift that would both warm the cockles of his heart， and improve my health， I resolved to go cold turkey beginning that momentous occasion。 At the time of this review， it has been a full three years since I last smoked a cigarette。 Katy Milkman， the American economist who is the James G。 Dinan Professor at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania， in her brilliant best seller， “How To Change”， sets out some compelling and thought provoking insights for ushering in lasting and positive change in our living。 Replete with empirical research findings and corroborated outcomes， “How To Change” is an indispensable guide to anyone looking for that elusive change in her personal life or professional career。Milkman sets the context for her book with a thrilling story revolving around legendary tennis player Andre Agassi and his revolutionary coach Brad Gilbert。 Gilbert brought in an engineer’s approach to embellish the quality of Agassi’s play。 “An engineer can’t design a successful structure without first carefully accounting for the forces of opposition （say， wind resistance or gravity）。 So engineers always attempt to solve problems by first identifying the obstacles to success。” Gilbert thus steered Agassi’s focus from trying to slam winners off every shot to maintaining a focus on his opponent’s shortcomings。 This tweak resulted in an incredible transformation in the game of Agassi and led to his being acknowledged as one of the greatest of his generation。Milkman， incidentally an engineer herself， employs the same philosophy to demonstrate how we all can make simple adjustments to our routines so as to get the best outcomes from our efforts。 For example， Milkman’s research indicated that building “moments engine” – a concept that identifies when the company’s employees are likely to be open to change （say， after a promotion or a move to a new office）， provides a much needed ‘nudge’ for instigating positive initiatives that would spur the employees into action， such as getting them to save more or receive their flu vaccines。As exemplified in one of the greatest psychological experiment involving little kids and marshmallows， Austrian born American psychologist， Walter Mischel demonstrated that impulsivity or present bias – a tendency to favour immediate gratification over long term rewards can be detrimental to positive change。 Milkman offers a novel and fun filled method to avoid falling into the trap of such instant temptation。 Her solution – ‘temptation bundling’。 One can allow oneself to indulge in one’s guilty pleasures， but only when one is pursuing a virtuous or valuable activity that one usually tends to procrastinate。 For example， listening to your favourite audio book only while on the treadmill or binge watching Netflix only while doing the laundry。 Temptation building can also be combined with “gamification” a tactic employed by companies in transforming something that is not a game feel more engaged and less repetitious by adding game like features， such as symbolic rewards。 For example， a badge of ‘featured reviewer’ and ‘auto approved’ reviewer on the Net Galley website spurs readers to post more and more reviews thereby helping emerging authors as well。One of my favourite chapters in the book is the one on procrastination。 An inveterate procrastinator， I always put off till next week what can be done today。 Milkman tackles this pernicious attribute of procrastination by offering a few practical and easily implementable tools。 Inspired by the works of behavioural and other economists such as Robert Strotz， Thomas Schelling and Richard Thaler， Milkman urges us to “anticipate temptation and create constraints”。 These constraints termed “commitment devices” break the cycle of procrastination。 Creating a “locked” savings bank account （an account where no withdrawal is permissible until a certain level of savings is achieved） or putting money on the line that one is forced to forfeit after every infraction （for example， every cigarette smoked after taking a pledge to quit smoking will result in the depositing of a pre agreed sum of money towards a charity， preferably one which the voter does not subscribe to）， will spur an individual towards tightening the strings in so far resolutions are concerned。 Taking “soft pledges” also act as a psychological boost in Preventing procrastination as the one taking the pledge and making it public would not want to be seen as one who does not honour his own words。Two of the most important revelations gleaned by me in a personal capacity after reading Milkman’s engrossing book， have been those relating to laziness and the power of advice。 A very power example illustrates the potential for ‘harnessing’ our inherent default setting of laziness to foster positive outcomes。 “During a routine system upgrade， an IT consultant working on the software that Penn Medicine physicians used to send prescriptions to pharmacies made a small change to the user interface: he added a new checkbox to the system。 From then on， unless a physician checked that box， whatever drug they prescribed would be sent to the pharmacy as a generic。 Since doctors， like the rest of us， tend to be a little lazy， they only rarely checked the box: just 2 percent of the time。 As a result， Penn’s generic prescription rate shot up to 98 percent。” Penn Medicine which was once notorious for prescribing branded medicines 75 percent of the time thereby contributing to ballooning costs and insurer angst， with just a single tweak became the most avowed prescriber of generic medication。Similarly， asking a person who is going through tough times to ‘render’ advice to another who might be going through a similar adverse phase improves decision making skills immensely。 “This idea—that giving advice can be more important to your success than receiving it—was echoed by the legendary drummer Mike Mangini when he appeared on my podcast in 2019。 He talked about how he developed the confidence he needed to rise to stardom。 Now the lead drummer for world-famous heavy metal band Dream Theater， Mike took a path to the top that was anything but straight。 He spent the 1980s as a software engineer， practicing incessantly on the drums at night and on the weekends， daydreaming of a big career in music with little hope of achieving his goal。 Then something changed。 When other drummers in a shared practice space unexpectedly began knocking on Mike’s door and asking him to give them lessons， their requests gave Mike a newfound confidence。 If so many people thought he had a special talent， maybe he did。 Mike quit his day job and devoted himself full time to drumming。 Today， he’s one of the best-known drummers in the business。 He attributes his success， in no small part， to being asked to give other people advice。”“How To Change” is an extremely engrossing book that spurs its readers to action。 What sets it apart from other books of its genre is the element of simplicity， practicality and most critically， implementable potentiality。 I am sure innumerable lives would be transformed for the good， as a result of a serious reading of this book。 “Change” is imminent！ 。。。more

John Moser ，

As someone who reads way too many self-development books， this one stands out。 Dr。 Milkman’s entertaining and educational writing （and reading） style were a breeze while still providing incredibly useful information。 I look forward to the many more books she is sure to write！ I am especially excited to implement some of the “fresh start” and coupling tools she suggests for starting a new habit。

Ali ，

"Who is this Katy Milkman， and how can a milkman be named Katy？ Shouldn't it be milkperson？" These were my addled late-night thoughts while first seeing a Very Interesting Person's tweet recommending 'How to Change'。 Now， of the 180 or so nonfiction books I read every year， I pre-order only around ten。 These are usually books that I just *know* are going to be great， like David Eagleman's [[ASIN:B07XJKJ8JW Livewired: The Inside Story of the Ever-Changing Brain]] or Adam Grant's [[ASIN:B08H177WQP "Who is this Katy Milkman， and how can a milkman be named Katy？ Shouldn't it be milkperson？" These were my addled late-night thoughts while first seeing a Very Interesting Person's tweet recommending 'How to Change'。 Now， of the 180 or so nonfiction books I read every year， I pre-order only around ten。 These are usually books that I just *know* are going to be great， like David Eagleman's [[ASIN:B07XJKJ8JW Livewired: The Inside Story of the Ever-Changing Brain]] or Adam Grant's [[ASIN:B08H177WQP Think Again]]。 （Or books by friends who would disown me if I didn't buy their little brainchild。） But this recommendation had the credibility of a certain MacArthur fellow behind it （Hi Angie！）。 Also， as a self-proclaimed behavioral change therapist and Happiness Engineer， it's not like I had a choice — change *is* my beat。 So I gritted my teeth and bought it sight unseen， author unknown， hoping for the best。 And you know what？ Turns out this book *is* the best！ Some reasons why I dig 'How to Change':• This is a supremely well-structured book。 Eight chapters: Getting Started; Impulsivity; Procrastination; Forgetfulness; Laziness; Confidence; Conformity; and a Conclusion。 Clear subheadings， illustrated by vivid stories and examples。 This is obviously the product of a very organized mind， so it totally makes sense that Prof Milkman trained as an engineer。 I particularly appreciate the succinct "Chapter Takeaways" summarizing the key ideas of each chapter。• The combination of Milkman's deft storytelling and fluent prose made this a fast and compelling read。 On my Kindle at 10pm， done by one！ • This book has about as much fat as an Olympic sprinter。 Lean and pithy， it delivers its literally life-changing payload in about 200 pages， avoiding the tendency of some books to add heft without substance。So what's the book about？ So glad you asked。 Here's the deal: behavior change is hard， and no technique works 100% of the time。 This book is about how science can help you stack the deck in your favor when change is probabilistic in nature。 Some examples: • "Fresh starts" help a lot。 Pick a milestone date with a clear before and after， like Jan 1 or your birthday， to make change more likely to stick。 Sure， 80% of New Year's Resolutions fail， but that 20% success rate is still higher than any other time you could pick。• Like cherry-flavored cough syrup， injecting some fun into work makes it go down easier。 "Temptation bundling" adds a pleasant activity to an otherwise onerous one。 Who knew that my technique of pairing a great audiobook to make boring runs happen was scientifically validated！ • Control procrastination by restricting your choices via a "commitment device" — e。g。 self-imposed deadlines or cash commitments。• In the same way that cheering someone else up is the best way to boost your mood， mentoring someone else is the best way to achieve more。• If forgetting is one of the main reasons why we don't change， then the gold standard antidote is "cue-based planning": "These plans link a plan of action with a cue and take the form 'When X happens， I’ll do Y。' Cues can be anything that triggers your memory， from a specific time or location to an object you expect to encounter。" Make an "implementation intention" for the how， where and when you'll do stuff， and stuff miraculously gets done。The book also addresses the subtleties of how otherwise effective techniques can sometimes backfire。 For example， if you had a fresh start imposed on you when you were already doing well， you're likely to backslide instead of progress。 Rigid habits （e。g。 meditating every day at the same time） work well， but can also go to zero when disrupted; flexible habits are more robust。 And being amongst a high-achieving peer group can motivate us， but if they're too far ahead of us with nobody in the middle zone， we tend to give up。 This is particularly important in countries with a gutted middle-class and widening inequality gap; those left behind are likely to fall into despair。Leonardo da Vinci once said， "Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication。" Katy Milkman has taken a huge pile of data and scrunched it down to its easily digestible essence， providing that ultimate sophistication of simplicity。 This immediately useful collection of science-based methods for change should be a reference for all students， teachers， coaches， high achievers， or anyone who has ever struggled as they strive to thrive as a human。 Get it to grow even faster。-- Ali Binazir， M。D。， M。Phil。， Happiness Engineer and author of The Tao of Dating: The Smart Woman's Guide to Being Absolutely Irresistible， the highest-rated dating book on Amazon， and Should I Go to Medical School？: An Irreverent Guide to the Pros and Cons of a Career in Medicine 。。。more

Georgia ，

I listened to this as an audiobook with the vision of making some valuable life changes。 The blurb talked about setting goals and using strategy， which it did， to some extent but the contents of the tin wasn't quite measuring up to the label。Perhaps I had high expectations， I was looking for a range of techniques to apply to everyday life and what I got was a lot of anecdotes and case studies on how specific techniques were used to effect change and the consequences of certain individuals not st I listened to this as an audiobook with the vision of making some valuable life changes。 The blurb talked about setting goals and using strategy， which it did， to some extent but the contents of the tin wasn't quite measuring up to the label。Perhaps I had high expectations， I was looking for a range of techniques to apply to everyday life and what I got was a lot of anecdotes and case studies on how specific techniques were used to effect change and the consequences of certain individuals not sticking to their goals。 The book was heavy on the science behind why some people change and others are less successful but， I， as a layman， wasn't given enough to go out and plot my own strategy。 If the methods presented in the book didn't work with my style， then it was a case of tough luck。I found the narration really slow and dull and had to speed it up in order to stay away and remain somewhat focused。I think this book is suited to someone who is studying psychology， counselling or something to that effect as they would benefit more from the research。 I am going to award this book an average of 3/5 stars as the narration made me switch off several times and the heightened expectations were due to the misdirection of the promotional text。 The author could perhaps have spent a bit more effort in giving the text a more conversational approach。 。。。more

Kate Henderson ，

**Listened via audio book**What have I just listened to？ this book didn't fit with the description。 I'm just not sure what this book was trying to convey。 It is marketed as more of a self-help/behaviour/psychology type of book。 But it was quite heavy on the science and the medical side。 I listened to this all the way through， and when it finished I just felt i needed to re-listen as I had retained very little info。I didn't enjoy this listening/reading experience - the narrator was fine， but just **Listened via audio book**What have I just listened to？ this book didn't fit with the description。 I'm just not sure what this book was trying to convey。 It is marketed as more of a self-help/behaviour/psychology type of book。 But it was quite heavy on the science and the medical side。 I listened to this all the way through， and when it finished I just felt i needed to re-listen as I had retained very little info。I didn't enjoy this listening/reading experience - the narrator was fine， but just felt a bit all over the place in relation to the the main theme/objective of the book。Not for me！ 。。。more

Dolly ，

Want to change a bad habit？ Eager to jumpstart a good one？ Trying to tackle something hard？ Ready for a change？ Need a nudge in the right direction？ I have the book for you: "How to Change: The Science of Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be" by Katy Milkman。 Katy's research on the science of habits is life-changing and her book makes it fun， interesting， and easily understandable。 Want to change a bad habit？ Eager to jumpstart a good one？ Trying to tackle something hard？ Ready for a change？ Need a nudge in the right direction？ I have the book for you: "How to Change: The Science of Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be" by Katy Milkman。 Katy's research on the science of habits is life-changing and her book makes it fun， interesting， and easily understandable。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=How to Change: The Science of Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=How to Change: The Science of Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,How to Change: The Science of Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0