[Lee Yongbeom's Psychology of Happiness] The Highway of Mental Laziness... Let's Let Go of Familiarity

<24> Habits Dominate Life

Novelist Lee Yong-beom.

◆Why It Is Difficult to Change Habits= Habits are the result of the neural system that processes stimuli becoming automated. If walking were not automated, the brain would have to calculate information such as the angle of the ground and the location of obstacles every time the foot moves. Since the brain does not have the capacity for that, it tries to automate all actions. This saves energy that would otherwise be excessively consumed by other organs, allowing it to be used for more complex tasks. When it comes to energy, the brain is an extreme miser. Therefore, we rely on habits for most of our actions.

The brain contains powerful habit circuits. The existence of these circuits was discovered in the early 1980s by a research team led by British neuroscientist Anthony Dickinson. Rats adapted to an environment where pressing a lever delivered food habitually pressed the lever even when unpleasant food was dispensed. Brain analysis of the rats showed that the prefrontal cortex was activated when trying new behaviors.

However, as the behavior was repeated, the striatum, sensorimotor cortex, and midbrain became activated, while the prefrontal cortex remained silent. This means that conscious focus occurs when trying something new, but as it becomes habitual, it relies on the unconscious. The process of handing over control to the unconscious is exactly what habit formation is. Once dominated by the unconscious, it becomes difficult to change behavior.

The habit circuit is like a highway inside the brain. Information experienced repeatedly heads straight to the highway. The brain is structured similarly to a complex bundle of wires. The nerve fibers in the brain become wrapped in a substance called myelin the more they are used. This is similar to insulating wires. When myelin wraps the nerve fibers, the flow of information becomes about 100 times faster.

Moreover, when the same stimulus is processed repeatedly, the myelin layers can thicken up to 50 layers. Becoming an expert in a field means that the nerve fibers along a specific pathway are wrapped in layers of myelin. Myelin gradually increases until around age 50, after which the gaps between layers widen and it begins to decrease.

The process of habit formation.

◆Willpower Alone Is Not Enough= In 2017, a research team at Duke University in the United States identified the brain neurons that play a decisive role in habit formation. Even people with strong willpower cannot control these neurons. Willpower has clear limitations. Which is more enjoyable: exercising hard while eating only vegetables and chicken breast, or sitting in a comfortable chair eating greasy delivery food while playing computer games?

Willpower is powerless in the face of immediate pleasure. Furthermore, willpower consumes a lot of energy, so it cannot be summoned at will anytime. It is difficult to change habits by will or determination alone.

Long ago, a research team led by psychologist Roy Baumeister at Florida State University concluded that willpower uses glucose as an energy source. Just as muscles become fatigued after prolonged use, willpower also depletes like glucose when used continuously. The important point is that, just as muscles can be strengthened, the mind’s muscles can also be strengthened. Habits are a form of memory. Changing a habit means changing memory. This also means physically changing the brain. Changing a habit is like creating new neural connections and then insulating them.

New attempts are often not only bothersome but also inherently difficult. To change a habit, one must struggle hard against existing habits while repeatedly training new behaviors. This involves pain. Therefore, many people hesitate to try new things.

In the winter of 2014, the London Underground union went on a 48-hour strike. A research team analyzed passengers’ travel routes before and after the strike. After the strike ended, most passengers returned to using the subway. Only 5% chose new routes. These passengers shortened their average commute time from 32 minutes to 6 minutes and 40 seconds. Yet 95% of people could not abandon their old habits.

The power of habit is much stronger than willpower. To change one’s lifestyle, the only way is to reduce the frequency of old habits through repetition of new behaviors. If new attempts are not enjoyable, old habits cannot be overcome. To create new habits, one must start with very easy, almost embarrassingly small actions, quickly automate them through repetition, and have sufficient rewards that make the process enjoyable.

The white fatty layer 'myelin' that surrounds the brain cell neurons.

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◆Replacing with Good Habits= To summarize psychologists’ opinions in one sentence: ‘Habits do not disappear but can be replaced by other habits!’ The earlier one tries, the higher the chance of changing habits. The only way to change habits is repetition of new behaviors. Repetition is the key to learning.

Training to create new habits is like making the brain’s neural system your ally. Making it your ally means supporting the new behavior to gain the upper hand when fighting against existing habits. Winning the first battle gives you the strength to resist bad habits. Therefore, one success in fighting and winning against existing habits is important.

Everyone probably has at least one ‘core habit.’ Smoking, gambling, and drinking fall into this category. Core habits trigger chain reactions with other behaviors and greatly influence life. For example, smoking affects sleep, meals, leisure, work, and relationships. Quitting smoking alone changes many things automatically.

However, setting excessively high goals and rushing in increases the chance of failure. Start with small things you can do right now and make sure to succeed. After habituating to small actions that do not require willpower, gradually increase speed and goals.

First, eliminate the ‘cues’ that trigger bad habits. If you have a habit of snacking despite being overweight, remove snacks from visible places.

Brian Wansink, a consumer behavior expert and former professor at Cornell University, conducted an experiment with working women. In one group’s office, chocolates were placed in transparent containers. In another group’s office, chocolates were placed in opaque containers. The experiment showed that people exposed to transparent containers consumed 71% more chocolate.

To a person holding a hammer, everything looks like a nail; to a person holding a fishing rod, everything looks like a fish. To make their desires disappear, you have to put away the hammer and fishing rod. Once the cues that trigger bad habits are removed, cues that trigger good habits must be sent. For example, placing easily accessible fruit where chocolates used to be. It is even better if encouraging and supportive messages for new attempts are posted where they can be seen.

Habits dominate my life. The way to dominate my life by my own power is to change habits.

Novelist

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