We are more likely to repeat a behavior when the experience is
satisfying. This is entirely logical. Feelings of pleasure—even minor ones
like washing your hands with soap that smells nice and lathers well—are
signals that tell the brain: “This feels good. Do this again, next time.”
Pleasure teaches your brain that a behavior is worth remembering and
repeating.
Take the story of chewing gum. Chewing gum had been sold
commercially throughout the 1800s, but it wasn’t
until Wrigley launched in
1891 that it became a worldwide habit. Early versions were made from
relatively bland resins—chewy, but not tasty. Wrigley revolutionized the
industry by adding flavors like Spearmint and Juicy Fruit, which made the
product flavorful and fun to use. Then they went a step further and began
pushing chewing gum as a pathway to a clean mouth. Advertisements told
readers to “Refresh Your Taste.”
Tasty flavors and the feeling of a fresh mouth
provided little bits of
immediate reinforcement and made the product satisfying to use.
Consumption skyrocketed, and Wrigley became the largest chewing gum
company in the world.
Toothpaste had a similar trajectory. Manufacturers enjoyed great success
when they added flavors like spearmint, peppermint, and cinnamon to their
products. These flavors don’t improve the effectiveness of toothpaste. They
simply create a “clean mouth” feel and make
the experience of brushing
your teeth more pleasurable. My wife actually stopped using Sensodyne
because she didn’t like the aftertaste. She switched to a brand with a
stronger mint flavor, which proved to be more satisfying.
Conversely, if an experience is not satisfying, we have little reason to
repeat it. In my research, I came across the
story of a woman who had a
narcissistic relative who drove her nuts. In an attempt to spend less time
with this egomaniac, she acted as dull and as boring as possible whenever
he was around. Within a few encounters,
he started avoiding
her because he
found her so uninteresting.
Stories like these are evidence of the Cardinal Rule of Behavior Change:
What is rewarded is repeated. What is punished is avoided. You learn what
to do in the future based on what you were rewarded for doing (or punished
for doing) in the past. Positive emotions cultivate habits.
Negative emotions
destroy them.
The first three laws of behavior change—
make it obvious, make it
attractive, and
make it easy—increase the odds that a behavior will be
performed
this time. The fourth law of behavior change—
make it satisfying
—increases the odds that a behavior will be repeated
next time. It completes
the habit loop.
But there is a trick. We are not looking for just any type of satisfaction.
We are looking for immediate satisfaction.
