Strategic Doing

Chapter 11NUDGE, CONNECT, AND PROMOTE TO REINFORCE NEW HABITS (SKILL 10)

If you've ever tried to establish a new habit, you know that it can be a considerable challenge. It might be losing weight, kicking a smoking habit, starting an exercise routine, cleaning up clutter in your house, or changing your morning routine so your kids get to school without everyone tearing their hair out.

You start with optimism and a burst of energy – it seems so simple! But gyms are full in January and empty by March for a reason – it is hard to make a habit “stick.” There's no lack of suggestions that might help – do it for at least 21 days, pair up with someone for support, do things in small increments rather than thinking change has to happen all at once, modify your environment so you're not triggered in the same way… and on and on. You might need to do one or all of these things to be successful.

We said in Chapter 1 that “doing differently” when it comes to collaborative networks needed to become a way of life, a set of new habits. These habits – the ways in which you use the skills we've described in this book – are no different than the resolutions we make in January. They seem simple, and in fact they are. But, simple is not the same thing as easy. You need to find ways to make the habits stick to be successful over the long term. There are three specific kinds of activities that will make these new habits of collaboration more likely to be permanent. These activities are also habits ...