'How to Change' is a behavioral economist's guide to habit formation

Do you struggle to keep your New Year’s resolutions? Scientists say you might just be thinking about them wrong. Instead of making resolutions, try setting intentions. In this article, we’ll explain what the difference is, and how to make that shift.

A new year offers a clean slate and a chance for a new direction. But it can be difficult to embrace change. This article offers advice from four top authors on how to face your fears, choose a path, and take action.

Everyone wants to find true happiness in their lives, but many of us believe that happiness can only come from experiencing huge changes—such as a trip around the world or a lottery jackpot. But, as it turns out, you can change everything...without changing much at all.

In The Happiness Project, Gretchen Rubin explains how resolving to make the smallest of changes in your everyday life—using the “good” dishes, remembering friends’ birthdays, or singing in the morning—can translate into more vivid memories, stronger relationships, and a deeper sense of happiness and gratitude in your life.

Positive behavior change is one of the most persistent challenges of personal growth—and in How to Change, Katy Milkman draws from the latest research and presents a powerful strategy for creating lasting change. She argues that real behavior change comes from a deliberate, scientific understanding of how human nature gets in our way and how we can leverage it to our advantage.

Milkman, an economist and professor at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, explains how to tailor solutions to your specific challenges, subvert common human failings, and cement lasting change. In this guide, we’ll detail her evidence-based approach to behavioral change and discuss her “playbook” for overcoming human foibles ranging from a lack of self-confidence to forgetfulness and procrastination. In commentary, we’ll look at adjacent perspectives on behavioral change from books such as Atomic Habits, Nudge, Awaken the Giant Within, and Hooked.

In a world obsessed with quick fixes and life hacks, social psychologist Roy F. Baumeister and science journalist John Tierney’s Willpower discusses our most underutilized mental resource. The authors explain that willpower functions much like a muscle: It can be strengthened through exercise, it fatigues with overuse, and it needs proper nourishment to perform at its best.

This guide will begin by discussing what willpower is and how it works. We’ll then go over some exercises you can use to strengthen your willpower. We’ll conclude by exploring ways to create healthy and positive pressure to keep yourself on track when your willpower is running low.

Our commentary will further explain the science behind Baumeister and Tierney’s principles, including which of their assertions don’t yet have a strong scientific consensus. We’ll also compare and contrast their ideas about willpower with other productivity guides such as Limitless. Finally, we’ll provide tips to help you make the most of your willpower.

Do you struggle to keep your New Year’s resolutions? Scientists say you might just be thinking about them wrong. Instead of making resolutions, try setting intentions. In this article, we’ll explain what the difference is, and how to make that shift.

Jack Canfield struck gold as a co-author of the best-selling Chicken Soup for the Soul book series, but it took years for him to achieve success. In The Success Principles, he details 67 principles to help anyone achieve their goals and dreams, based on his study and interviews with hundreds of successful people. The basic formula for success is to identify what you want, know that you deserve to have it, and use the book’s principles to get you there.

The book's Principles include taking responsibility for your life, setting goals and visualizing success, facing your fears, forgiving others so you can move forward, asking for and graciously receiving feedback, and appreciating your successes.

Positive behavior change is one of the most persistent challenges of personal growth—and in How to Change, Katy Milkman draws from the latest research and presents a powerful strategy for creating lasting change. She argues that real behavior change comes from a deliberate, scientific understanding of how human nature gets in our way and how we can leverage it to our advantage.

Milkman, an economist and professor at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, explains how to tailor solutions to your specific challenges, subvert common human failings, and cement lasting change. In this guide, we’ll detail her evidence-based approach to behavioral change and discuss her “playbook” for overcoming human foibles ranging from a lack of self-confidence to forgetfulness and procrastination. In commentary, we’ll look at adjacent perspectives on behavioral change from books such as Atomic Habits, Nudge, Awaken the Giant Within, and Hooked.

Is there something you’ve dreamed of doing, but never have? Are you waiting for the right motivation to move you toward your goal? If so, then you’re going about it all wrong. In The Motivation Myth, Jeff Haden argues that you shouldn’t wait for motivation to start you down the road to success. Instead, you make your own motivation by creating a plan, breaking it into achievable steps, celebrating every win, and persevering through disappointments. Motivation isn’t a push—it’s momentum that you generate yourself.

In this guide, we’ll explain Haden’s approach to kickstarting your path to success and creating a cycle of positive reinforcement that builds motivation as you go along. We’ll compare Haden’s suggestions with those of other productivity experts with practical tips on managing time, avoiding distraction, and maintaining mental focus. We’ll also explore what wellness experts say about chasing ambition versus finding contentment in everyday life.