HOW TO AUTOMATE A HABIT AND NEVER THINK ABOUT IT AGAIN John Henry Patterson was born in Dayton, Ohio, in 1844. He spent his
childhood doing chores on the family farm and working shifts at his father’s
sawmill. After attending college at Dartmouth, Patterson returned to Ohio
and opened a small supply store for coal miners.
It seemed like a good opportunity. The store faced little competition and
enjoyed a steady stream of customers, but still struggled to make money.
That was when Patterson discovered his employees were stealing from him.
In the mid-1800s, employee theft was a common problem. Receipts were
kept in an open drawer and could easily be altered or discarded. There were
no video cameras to review behavior and no software to track transactions.
Unless you were willing to hover over your employees every minute of the
day, or to manage all transactions yourself, it was difficult to prevent theft.
As Patterson mulled over his predicament, he came across an
advertisement for a new invention called Ritty’s Incorruptible Cashier.
Designed by fellow Dayton resident James Ritty, it was the first cash
register. The machine automatically locked the cash and receipts inside after
each transaction. Patterson bought two for fifty dollars each.
Employee theft at his store vanished overnight. In the next six months,
Patterson’s business went from losing money to making $5,000 in profit—
the equivalent of more than $100,000 today.
Patterson was so impressed with the machine that he changed
businesses. He bought the rights to Ritty’s invention and opened the
National Cash Register Company. Ten years later, National Cash Register
had over one thousand employees and was on its way to becoming one of
the most successful businesses of its time.
The best way to break a bad habit is to make it impractical to do.
Increase the friction until you don’t even have the option to act. The
brilliance of the cash register was that it automated ethical behavior by
making stealing practically impossible. Rather than trying to change the
employees, it made the preferred behavior automatic.
Some actions—like installing a cash register—pay off again and again.
These onetime choices require a little bit of effort up front but create
increasing value over time. I’m fascinated by the idea that a single choice
can deliver returns again and again, and I surveyed my readers on their
favorite onetime actions that lead to better long-term habits. The table on
the following page shares some of the most popular answers.
I’d wager that if the average person were to simply do half of the
onetime actions on this list—even if they didn’t give another thought to
their habits—most would find themselves living a better life a year from
now. These onetime actions are a straightforward way to employ the 3rd
Law of Behavior Change. They make it easier to sleep well, eat healthy, be
productive, save money, and generally live better.
