A Few Notes From Switch

A few thoughts as I’ve been reading through Switch by Chip and Dan Heath. I haven’t finished the book yet, and I’ll post more as I go along.
Here are a few points I’ve found interesting so far…

• To change behavior you have to change the situation
• Often our heart and mind disagree and limit our ability or willingness to change.

• Direct the “rider”
• What looks like resistance is often a lack of clarity.
• Provide clear direction.
• Motivate the “elephant”
• What looks like laziness is often exhaustion.
• Self-Control or the gut-it-out, grit-through-it, will-it-into-reality is an exhaustible resource.
• You can force but only for a short while. Engage people’s emotional side.
• Shape the Path
• What looks like a “people problem” is often a situation problem.
• When you shape the path, you make change more likely not matter what is happening with the rider and/or the elephant.

In tough times, a rider will see problems. You must remain solution-focused.

• Solution Focused Problem Solving
• Q: If a miracle happened tonight and went problem went away, what is the first sign you would see to know it was gone?

• Q: When was the last time you saw a little bit of the miracle?

Too many options and ambiguity lead to decision paralysis.

• In a change situation, the hardest part is in the details – Script the critical moves.
• Clarity dissolves resistance.