The Power of Habit, by Charles Duhigg

I know I'm late to the game reading The Power of Habit, by Charles Duhigg, which came out in 2012. I've read so many references to it that I finally broke down and got a copy out of the library. This is an easy and fun book to read; however, it reminds me of so many other books that I was a little disappointed.

The first section is about the habits of individuals. This was the most interesting part for me. I wanted to read about people and how we can break bad habits, instill good habits, or use our habits to improve ourselves. This section addresses these issues, but spends a little too much time on football anecdotes (how the Indianapolis Colts changed their habits on the field to be more successful and win more games).

The second section is about the habits of organizations. Duhigg tells anecdotes about Alcoa, Starbucks, and others to show how workplace habits can help companies succeed. This didn't work as well for me. By habits, Duhigg seems to mean policies and procedures. Basically, he's saying that if you change workplace policies and procedures, and provide better training to your employees, you will instill these as habits that will result in better outcomes. This section felt like many other popular management books that tell anecdotes about a few companies to illustrate some principles. It's entertaining, and even a little inspirational, but didn't really seem to be about habits, except in a very broad sense. The third section discusses the habits of societies, and focuses on the Civil Rights Movement and the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Again, the author is trying to say that we react to situations based on our habits (e.g., accepting poor treatment on the bus), and that if we change that habit, and encourage others to do so as well, we can make societal changes.

Overall, this is an entertaining and fast read, much like many other popular business books available. It will make you think and it is definitely inspiring. But framing all of these management approaches with the concept of "habits" is a bit of a stretch. I would have preferred a book that was focused more on the personal approach to breaking bad habits and instilling good ones, but that's not this book.

Charles Duhigg. The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business. New York: Random House, 2012. 371 pages. ISBN 9781400069286.