Designing for Behavior Change, 2nd Edition

Chapter 1. Deciding and Taking Action

On the day I got married, I was lying on the bathroom floor of the church because my back hurt to move. I’d been out of commission and in bed for almost three weeks, but now my family and my wife-to-be, Alexia, were waiting for me in the aisles. My best man Paul had to pull me up from the floor and get me out there to say my vows. My back had seized up weeks before because I hadn’t been getting enough exercise.

Now I was born skinny, but that hides the fact that I’ve had musculoskeletal problems all my life—lower back problems, pinched nerves in my hands and neck, and so forth. I’ve seen many doctors over the years, and they’ve all said about the same thing: you’ll be OK, if you just exercise regularly.

So I’ve long known about the importance of exercise; I don’t have a problem with motivation. There’s nothing more motivating or scarier than almost canceling your own wedding. I’ve certainly intended to exercise. But, like many other people who struggle with this, I haven’t done as much as I should.

For me, and for many others, there’s a gap between our sincere intention to act and what actually happens. There’s something more going on in our heads and in our lives than a simple cost–benefit analysis about what we should do. Even though the benefits clearly outweigh the costs, we struggle. To change this pattern—to help ourselves and others take action when needed—we must first understand how our minds are wired.

In my research and that of ...