The Little Book of Big Change

The No-Willpower Approach to Breaking Any Habit

New Harbinger, 2016

15 min read

10 take-aways

Audio & text

What's inside?

Breaking bad habits is good for the soul.

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Editorial Rating

Qualities

Innovative
Applicable
Eye Opening

Recommendation

Social psychologist Amy Johnson offers a fresh take on controlling bad habits. Rather than encourage people with negative habits and addictions to view themselves as sick and telling them to fight against their habits with willpower, Johnson teaches them simply to be mindful of their urges and forget willpower altogether. Writing in a candid, accessible voice, Johnson combines spiritual psychology, personal anecdotes and neuroscience research to offer an alternative framework for anyone who wants to overcome a bad habit. Her ideas and techniques can help those who are battling addictions or bad habits to look at their urges with fresh eyes. She encourages them to tune in to their inner wisdom and change their perspective on their habits. While never giving medical advice, getAbstract recommends Johnson’s supportive manual to anyone looking for alternative suggestions about how to live a healthy, happy life – free of negative habits.

Summary

Bad Habits Indicate Mental Wellness

Contrary to popular belief, bad habits and addictive behaviors are not symptoms of illnesses. People engage in bad habits when they seek to alleviate pain and return to their natural state of mental well-being. Thus, addictions and habits actually indicate how mentally healthy you are. Most people are fundamentally healthy and calm on a deep, spiritual level, but their negative thoughts cause them to believe otherwise.

You suffer when you give in to urges and addictions, but you are still making the best choices you know how to make for yourself. Gaining insight into these urges will help you make healthier choices in a way that feels effortless and natural. People often give their negative urges too much power. They regard their habits as a reflection of who they are as human beings. But, habits are not a part of your identity. They are responses to misguided thoughts that pass through your mind. Your habit “may dominate your thoughts, emotions and behaviors, but your habit says nothing at all about your basic nature – that part of you that is always there and always true, underneath your surface thoughts, emotions and behaviors...

About the Author

Life coach and social psychologist Amy Johnson also wrote Being Human: Essays on Thoughtmares, Bouncing Back, and Your True Nature. She has been featured on Oprah.com.

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C. P. 8 years ago

I like the concept of looking at the core-self in order to separate the fundamental self from the mind-created habits that helps to take a "pause" that can break the chain of reactions. #30DaysOfSummaries
J. W. 8 years ago

#30DaysOfSummaries Seems easier said than done. The points are positive, and hope it helps in our daily life.
D. H. 8 years ago

Some good insights for me .The most striking one was practising mindfulness as way to overcome bad habits.

Amy Johnson (PhD)