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Think Small
'Governments around the world are using behavioural insights to help people achieve their goals. This great new book shows how you can use the same tools in your own life. Go nudge yourself!'- Richard Thaler, winner of the 2017 Nobel Prize in Economics
A simple and accessible plan for success, based on seven scientifically tested steps that really work.
We’re often told to dream big, the sky’s the limit and that nothing is impossible. While it is undoubtedly good advice to set yourself goals that have the potential to make you and those around you healthier and happier, how to reach those goals is often less clear. From getting fit or securing a new job to becoming a better manager or parent, simply setting your mind to something will rarely get you where you want to be, and big plans can quickly become overwhelming – leaving us feeling as though we’ve failed.
Most of us set goals with very good intentions, so why do our best-laid plans so often go awry? When we’re so committed to making positive changes and fulfilling our ambition at the outset, is there a way of avoiding the common roadblocks that stand between our goals and us? Thankfully, the answer is yes – and it’s much easier to achieve than you might think.
Working inside the world’s first Nudge Unit, Owain Service and Rory Gallagher know the huge impact that small changes and clear plans, based on a scientific understanding of human behaviour, can have from an individual to an international level. For the first time, Think Small takes these successful approaches and translates them into an easy, simple framework that has the potential to make a big difference to all our lives.
A simple and accessible plan for success, based on seven scientifically tested steps that really work.
We’re often told to dream big, the sky’s the limit and that nothing is impossible. While it is undoubtedly good advice to set yourself goals that have the potential to make you and those around you healthier and happier, how to reach those goals is often less clear. From getting fit or securing a new job to becoming a better manager or parent, simply setting your mind to something will rarely get you where you want to be, and big plans can quickly become overwhelming – leaving us feeling as though we’ve failed.
Most of us set goals with very good intentions, so why do our best-laid plans so often go awry? When we’re so committed to making positive changes and fulfilling our ambition at the outset, is there a way of avoiding the common roadblocks that stand between our goals and us? Thankfully, the answer is yes – and it’s much easier to achieve than you might think.
Working inside the world’s first Nudge Unit, Owain Service and Rory Gallagher know the huge impact that small changes and clear plans, based on a scientific understanding of human behaviour, can have from an individual to an international level. For the first time, Think Small takes these successful approaches and translates them into an easy, simple framework that has the potential to make a big difference to all our lives.
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First published April 6, 2017
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July 25, 2017
Owain Service and Rory Gallagher work within the first ‘nudge unit’; the Behavioural Insights Team (BIT). This is a social purpose company, jointly owned by the UK Government; Nesta (the innovation charity); and its employees.
BIT started life inside 10 Downing Street as the world’s first government institution dedicated to the application of behavioural sciences. This book shows how the BIT learning can be used to help all of us achieve important goals in our personal and work lives.
You will most likely be using some ‘self-nudges’ in your everyday life already – whether it’s setting your watch a few minutes early to help you keep to time, getting colleagues to commit to specific tasks at work, hiding away the cookie jar, or using treats to reward your kids for good behaviour.
This book aims to help you do this more systematically, through evidence-based techniques that you can use to help yourself and those around you.
The key message is that to reach big, we need to Think Small. So it is not about reining in your ambitions. It is about adopting a mindset that focuses on getting the small – and often simple – details right that will set you on the path to achieving your goals.
At the heart of the book is a framework, focused around seven simple steps:
• Set: choose the right goal for you, set a specific target, and break your long-term objective down into manageable steps.
• Plan: create simple rules and an actionable plan which links to your daily routine.
• Commit: make a commitment, write it down, make it public and appoint a commitment referee.
• Reward: put something meaningful at stake and use small rewards to stoke motivation, but beware of backfire effects.
• Share: draw on the help of others, tap into your social networks or form a group with a shared goal.
• Feedback: know how you’re tracking against your goal and seek out specific, actionable feedback
• Stick: practice with focus, test different approaches and celebrate success.
This is not a checklist. You do not have to religiously apply each of the seven tools to every goal, but as David Halpern says in the foreword, together they provide the ‘behavioural scaffolding’ that will support you to succeed.
A short, useful book. One which forced me to reflect on just how well I’m managing my existing, massive To Do list.
BONUS
Below are some of my Kindle notes. These elaborate on the above points:
Break ‘stretch goals’ down into specific steps. Focusing on completing each of these steps helps to make sure you don’t feel that the ultimate goal was too distant. Think about what specifically you are going to do and when. Write down these and link them to daily routines
Ask yourself what goals you want to achieve. Focus on those that will make you or others happy. It’s not money per se that brings improvements in your well being. It’s what your income enables.
Goals which boost happiness are:
• strengthening your social relationships;
• getting healthy and active;
• learning something new;
• being more curious; and
• giving to others, for example volunteering.
Focus on a single goal and set a clear target and deadline. We have a limited budget of attention, which means we need to focus our efforts on a single goal. Setting lots of goals means you will think about which of these goals is most important, and by how much. This will result in each of them competing for your limited cognitive ‘bandwidth’.
Then set yourself a clear target and deadline for achieving the goal. This will enable you to know when you’ve achieved your goal. It will also allow you to see how you’re progressing relative to it. This is a vital component of feedback. Next break your goal down into manageable steps. It’s easier to reach your ultimate goal if you identify the small steps along the way to achieving it. Allocate each small step a repeated pocket of time. These then, over time, turns the plan into habits. This links to the message conveyed in The Power of Habits book. In summary: habits need a cue or a trigger. The second is that habits require a ‘routine’, the act that is performed. Third, and most important, the routine needs then to be repeated in a consistent context. It’s this repetition that starts to create an automatic link between the situation that you encounter and the behaviour you perform.
Identify obstacles to achieving these goals through so-called ‘if-then. These take the form ‘If I encounter situation X, then I will do Y’. These if-then plans are ready-made ways of helping you to think of how, when and where you will take the required action.
Make a commitment, writing down his commitment and displaying it publicly.
Appoint a commitment referee. A referee will help you stay true to your core goal. The ideal person is someone you trust but who will not be afraid to mete out penalties if you fail.
Put something meaningful at stake. Link achieving your ultimate goal to a significant reward. Then make it binding and enforceable. Use small rewards to build good habits. Motivate yourself or others by using smaller incentives linked to specific steps. Remember that buying ‘experiences’ rather than physical products, extending social relationships, and giving time and money to others are all more likely to improve your well-being than physical products. Humans care much more about losing something than they do about gaining something of an equivalent size. We ascribe most value to things we already possess.
Introduce some form of competition. ‘Gamifying’ your goal in this way through rewards and competition.
Ask for help. You are more likely to achieve your goal if you get someone to help you. We’re much more likely to achieve goals if we work with other people. This might be as part of a team, working together towards a shared common goal. Or it might be drawing on the collective wisdom of the group to help us make better decisions.
BIT started life inside 10 Downing Street as the world’s first government institution dedicated to the application of behavioural sciences. This book shows how the BIT learning can be used to help all of us achieve important goals in our personal and work lives.
You will most likely be using some ‘self-nudges’ in your everyday life already – whether it’s setting your watch a few minutes early to help you keep to time, getting colleagues to commit to specific tasks at work, hiding away the cookie jar, or using treats to reward your kids for good behaviour.
This book aims to help you do this more systematically, through evidence-based techniques that you can use to help yourself and those around you.
The key message is that to reach big, we need to Think Small. So it is not about reining in your ambitions. It is about adopting a mindset that focuses on getting the small – and often simple – details right that will set you on the path to achieving your goals.
At the heart of the book is a framework, focused around seven simple steps:
• Set: choose the right goal for you, set a specific target, and break your long-term objective down into manageable steps.
• Plan: create simple rules and an actionable plan which links to your daily routine.
• Commit: make a commitment, write it down, make it public and appoint a commitment referee.
• Reward: put something meaningful at stake and use small rewards to stoke motivation, but beware of backfire effects.
• Share: draw on the help of others, tap into your social networks or form a group with a shared goal.
• Feedback: know how you’re tracking against your goal and seek out specific, actionable feedback
• Stick: practice with focus, test different approaches and celebrate success.
This is not a checklist. You do not have to religiously apply each of the seven tools to every goal, but as David Halpern says in the foreword, together they provide the ‘behavioural scaffolding’ that will support you to succeed.
A short, useful book. One which forced me to reflect on just how well I’m managing my existing, massive To Do list.
BONUS
Below are some of my Kindle notes. These elaborate on the above points:
Break ‘stretch goals’ down into specific steps. Focusing on completing each of these steps helps to make sure you don’t feel that the ultimate goal was too distant. Think about what specifically you are going to do and when. Write down these and link them to daily routines
Ask yourself what goals you want to achieve. Focus on those that will make you or others happy. It’s not money per se that brings improvements in your well being. It’s what your income enables.
Goals which boost happiness are:
• strengthening your social relationships;
• getting healthy and active;
• learning something new;
• being more curious; and
• giving to others, for example volunteering.
Focus on a single goal and set a clear target and deadline. We have a limited budget of attention, which means we need to focus our efforts on a single goal. Setting lots of goals means you will think about which of these goals is most important, and by how much. This will result in each of them competing for your limited cognitive ‘bandwidth’.
Then set yourself a clear target and deadline for achieving the goal. This will enable you to know when you’ve achieved your goal. It will also allow you to see how you’re progressing relative to it. This is a vital component of feedback. Next break your goal down into manageable steps. It’s easier to reach your ultimate goal if you identify the small steps along the way to achieving it. Allocate each small step a repeated pocket of time. These then, over time, turns the plan into habits. This links to the message conveyed in The Power of Habits book. In summary: habits need a cue or a trigger. The second is that habits require a ‘routine’, the act that is performed. Third, and most important, the routine needs then to be repeated in a consistent context. It’s this repetition that starts to create an automatic link between the situation that you encounter and the behaviour you perform.
Identify obstacles to achieving these goals through so-called ‘if-then. These take the form ‘If I encounter situation X, then I will do Y’. These if-then plans are ready-made ways of helping you to think of how, when and where you will take the required action.
Make a commitment, writing down his commitment and displaying it publicly.
Appoint a commitment referee. A referee will help you stay true to your core goal. The ideal person is someone you trust but who will not be afraid to mete out penalties if you fail.
Put something meaningful at stake. Link achieving your ultimate goal to a significant reward. Then make it binding and enforceable. Use small rewards to build good habits. Motivate yourself or others by using smaller incentives linked to specific steps. Remember that buying ‘experiences’ rather than physical products, extending social relationships, and giving time and money to others are all more likely to improve your well-being than physical products. Humans care much more about losing something than they do about gaining something of an equivalent size. We ascribe most value to things we already possess.
Introduce some form of competition. ‘Gamifying’ your goal in this way through rewards and competition.
Ask for help. You are more likely to achieve your goal if you get someone to help you. We’re much more likely to achieve goals if we work with other people. This might be as part of a team, working together towards a shared common goal. Or it might be drawing on the collective wisdom of the group to help us make better decisions.
July 25, 2017
This book has an interesting genealogy: Owain Service and Rory Gallagher are two key members of the Behavioural Insights Team or “Nudge Unit” grown out of the Prime Minister’s office in London and now with offices in Manchester, New York, Singapore and Sydney. According to their website, the BIT has been working since 2010 with the objective of:
• making public services more cost-effective and easier for citizens to use;
• improving outcomes by introducing a more realistic model of human behaviour to policy; and wherever possible,
• enabling people to make ‘better choices for themselves’.
Think Small is Service and Gallagher’s attempt to build on the last of these objectives. Drawing together all of their learning about how people think and what helps them succeed, Think Small is a manual for how to effectively set and achieve goals.
What I found particularly useful about the book is the way it filled in the small details between the more familiar building blocks of decision making and project planning. To use an example from my work as a teacher, research in education makes it clear that “feedback” is at the fulcrum of learning but we are sometimes unclear what we mean by feedback or how best to use it. Service and Gallagher offer a clear articulation of some underlying behavioural principles and a plethora of examples to help illustrate these principles. There is a lot in this book which is immediately transferrable to my classroom.
Whilst I really enjoyed and appreciated the book, I have one major reservation - to be fair it is a reservation about behavioural science in general as much as this book in particular. I was reminded as I read of a comment by Professor Frank Knopfelmacher who lectured at Melbourne University when I was an undergraduate. Knopfelmacher had some fame for his work in Social Psychology and perhaps even greater infamy for his political views and his lecturing style. He began his introductory lecture by asking students to raise their hands if they had studied the history of religion. There were a couple of half-hearted hands raised, but the vast majority of us remained still.
“Well,” he said, “there’s really no point in any of you being here. You can’t learn anything about social psychology if you don't know something about the history of religion.”
His point was that human actions always happen in contexts and that whilst the behavioural sciences are important and useful for describing human action, we risk significant blunders if we don’t also have an eye to the historical and cultural narratives in which those actions are embedded.
At times Service and Gallagher seemed to me to be uncritically entangled within a protestant work ethic that assumed a set of values which might warrant exploration. Their version of “the good life” seemed based on what made the people in their studies “feel good” and that alone seemed to justify their views of how we should plan to act.
I think Service and Gallagher might reasonably respond to my criticism by saying that they are behavioural scientists, not ethicists, and that their role in a democracy is to empower others to achieve their goals - whatever those goals may be. My response is that we all have a responsibility to see the world more widely and to inform ourselves as best we can with a broad understanding of what is right and wrong. There is a wide range of ethical assumptions embedded in Service and Gallagher's advice and we and they are unconsciously encumbered by what is not articulated.
As a Czech Jew who fought alongside the British against the Nazis and lost all his family to the Holocaust, Knopfelmacher knew better than most how important it is to be asking not just how to act efficiently, but also what do my actions mean within a wider understanding of the world.
I think the observation I am making is particularly salient at the present time as leaders such as Trump are dismantling the bureaucracies that have provided a stabilising cultural continuity to many western democracies. In the foreword to Think Small, David Halpern, Chief Executive of the Behavioural Insights Team, tells us that the soft motto of the team is: “Shunning the bureaucratic levers of the past and finding intelligent ways to encourage, support and enable people to make better choices for themselves.”
We should encourage, support and enable people to make better choices for themselves by all means, but let’s also work to understand our cultural history and improve our bureaucratic levers rather than simply shunning them.
• making public services more cost-effective and easier for citizens to use;
• improving outcomes by introducing a more realistic model of human behaviour to policy; and wherever possible,
• enabling people to make ‘better choices for themselves’.
Think Small is Service and Gallagher’s attempt to build on the last of these objectives. Drawing together all of their learning about how people think and what helps them succeed, Think Small is a manual for how to effectively set and achieve goals.
What I found particularly useful about the book is the way it filled in the small details between the more familiar building blocks of decision making and project planning. To use an example from my work as a teacher, research in education makes it clear that “feedback” is at the fulcrum of learning but we are sometimes unclear what we mean by feedback or how best to use it. Service and Gallagher offer a clear articulation of some underlying behavioural principles and a plethora of examples to help illustrate these principles. There is a lot in this book which is immediately transferrable to my classroom.
Whilst I really enjoyed and appreciated the book, I have one major reservation - to be fair it is a reservation about behavioural science in general as much as this book in particular. I was reminded as I read of a comment by Professor Frank Knopfelmacher who lectured at Melbourne University when I was an undergraduate. Knopfelmacher had some fame for his work in Social Psychology and perhaps even greater infamy for his political views and his lecturing style. He began his introductory lecture by asking students to raise their hands if they had studied the history of religion. There were a couple of half-hearted hands raised, but the vast majority of us remained still.
“Well,” he said, “there’s really no point in any of you being here. You can’t learn anything about social psychology if you don't know something about the history of religion.”
His point was that human actions always happen in contexts and that whilst the behavioural sciences are important and useful for describing human action, we risk significant blunders if we don’t also have an eye to the historical and cultural narratives in which those actions are embedded.
At times Service and Gallagher seemed to me to be uncritically entangled within a protestant work ethic that assumed a set of values which might warrant exploration. Their version of “the good life” seemed based on what made the people in their studies “feel good” and that alone seemed to justify their views of how we should plan to act.
I think Service and Gallagher might reasonably respond to my criticism by saying that they are behavioural scientists, not ethicists, and that their role in a democracy is to empower others to achieve their goals - whatever those goals may be. My response is that we all have a responsibility to see the world more widely and to inform ourselves as best we can with a broad understanding of what is right and wrong. There is a wide range of ethical assumptions embedded in Service and Gallagher's advice and we and they are unconsciously encumbered by what is not articulated.
As a Czech Jew who fought alongside the British against the Nazis and lost all his family to the Holocaust, Knopfelmacher knew better than most how important it is to be asking not just how to act efficiently, but also what do my actions mean within a wider understanding of the world.
I think the observation I am making is particularly salient at the present time as leaders such as Trump are dismantling the bureaucracies that have provided a stabilising cultural continuity to many western democracies. In the foreword to Think Small, David Halpern, Chief Executive of the Behavioural Insights Team, tells us that the soft motto of the team is: “Shunning the bureaucratic levers of the past and finding intelligent ways to encourage, support and enable people to make better choices for themselves.”
We should encourage, support and enable people to make better choices for themselves by all means, but let’s also work to understand our cultural history and improve our bureaucratic levers rather than simply shunning them.
July 13, 2018
Lots of people have amazingly ambitious, long-term goals. But few make them happen. That’s where small thinking comes into play. One must connect the goals to the realities of daily life. To achieve big, you will need to think small.
A really great book.
A really great book.
March 19, 2018
Not a whole lot of new insights for me, but this is already somewhat an area of expertise. Very comprehensive and useful though!
March 6, 2019
It is a good book to have in your library. There are millions of blogs on the internet that talk about improving productivity through thorough planning. But, this book just gives you what you want to really read, the harsh truth of how one can lose oneself by setting up ambitious goals. A detailed illustration of how small steps can lead to grand success was engaging and made me finish the book in about 2 days. A must read if you are looking for a way to come out of the endless loop of planning big. Plan small, one step at a time and only then one can achieve big. Four stars because the authors could have talked a bit more about planning related to school life and work life.
October 2, 2017
Fantastic. Very practical advice.
October 23, 2021
Easy read that provides you with approaches to help you achieve bigger goals. Think Small takes these successful approaches and translates them into an easy framework or 'check list' that has the potential to make a bigger impact in our daily routines.
July 14, 2017
quite an interesting book, though it does suffer a bit from that good old psychological fallacy, it does seem to hypothesize that when a particular outcome is reached that was the aim of the actor. It cannot divorce outcome from intention. But, apart from that it was a well argued work, although they (the authors) did make the erroneous assumption that people would say it is just "common sense" for a start there is no such thing as "common sense", and it makes no difference if people follow the think small method because they thought of it or whether they had to read about it in order to act in that way.
August 13, 2019
(The English review is placed beneath Russian one)
Книга призвана вооружить читателя стратегией, которая позволит ему осуществить крупные изменения в его жизни, т.е. как с помощью небольших изменений можно совершить существенные трансформации.
Книга по существу, 2 в 1. Это одновременно и книга жанра «самопомощь» и одновременно поп non-fiction по социальной психологии. Т.е. книга построена по схеме «теория – практика» или «самопомощь – социальная психология».
Итак, сначала идёт вводная часть, где говориться о том, что может сделать человека счастливым (трата денег, но трата на других, а не на себя). И далее идёт, как я понял, объяснение позитивного стиля жизни (самообразование, занятие спортом и так далее). Честно сказать, я не совсем понял, почему авторы решили первую главу посвятить именно этому вопросу, т.к. он, как мне показалось, немного не согласуется со всей остальной книгой (несмотря на то, что я согласен с этими идеями). Ну, предположим, это что-то типа введения по созданию правильного фона или образа жизни, с целью проведения масштабных изменений.
Далее книга предлагает создать план и к этому плану прилагается 5 пунктов с 5 подпунктами. Они, как раз те маленькие шаги, что должны привести к заветной цели.
Итак, план (который должен быть простым и ясным). Далее – цели (такие же простые и ясные). Сфокусироваться сначала только на одной цели (как пишут авторы, что эффективней: откладывать деньги на что-то одно или сразу на 5 или даже больше целей? Ответ: на что-то одно). Далее, определив цель, мы разделяем её на несколько частей, каждую из которой выполнить гораздо проще (не «бросить пить навсегда», а «не пить дома алкоголь»). Далее, дать точные даты и данные: когда, как и где? Как пишут авторы, заявления типа «похудеть, начиная со следующего года», остаются невыполненными именно из-за отсутствия чёткой позиции. Когда точно? Как это будет происходить? Где именно? И после того, как мы строго зафиксировали ответы на эти вопросы, всё это нужно, во-первых, записать на бумаге, а во-вторых, придать гласности (это нас отсылает к экспериментам, когда заявления, сделанные публично, намного чаще превращались в реальность, т.к. человеку намного труднее придать их из-за действующего социального давления). Ну, и так далее в таком же духе. Как мне показалось, и методики и примеры, довольно интересные и убедительные.
Следующим идёт, как я понял, то, что будет помогать осуществлению этого плана. Т.е. тут авторы книги знакомят нас с довольно известными экспериментами и темами из социальной психологии, которые будут как бы ассистировать нашему плану. Среди них, например, превратить план, если это возможно, в привычку. Найти те награды, а так же санкции в случаи нарушения плана, которые позволят человеку держаться намеченной цели (таким примером может служить штраф в виде ношения атрибутики враждебного вам футбольного клуба или выполнения нечто такого, чего бы вам совсем не хотелось делать). Тут авторы отсылают нас к исследованию, в котором учёные выяснили, что люди намного большее внимание уделяют вопросам потерять что-то ценное, нежели приобрести что-то ценное. Чтобы эти правила работали, пишут авторы, необходимо найти и договориться с человеком, который будет исполнять роль судьи, т.е. контролировать выполнения плана и в случаи нарушения – выдавать предписания.
В заключении хотелось бы упомянуть один важный вопрос, вопрос «изменение контекста, среды, атмосферы». Так авторы пишут о ситуации, когда обнаружилось, что армия США во время военной кампании во Вьетнаме, страдала от наркотической зависимости, т.е. оказалось, что в армии огромное количество наркоманов, которые вот-вот хлынут обратно в США. Когда же через некоторое время после их приезда провели ещё один тест на наркотики, оказалось, что количество наркоманов радикально сократилось с двухзначной цифры до нескольких процентов. Как оказалось, виной всему - изменения обстановки, среды, которая раньше окружала солдат. Далее, и это уже из другой книги, мы можем вспомнить многочисленные истории, когда люди после долгого воздержания от алкоголя срывались, лишь только потому, что возвращались в прежние районы, т.е. в те места, с которыми существует прочная связь. Так что перво-наперво, необходимо изменить то, что вас окружает, сменить обстановку, окружения и только после этого приступать к созданию плана и далее по списку, который можно обнаружить на последних страницах данной книги.
The book is intended to equip the reader with a strategy that will allow him to make major changes in his life, i.e., how to make significant changes with the help of small changes.
The book is in essence, 2 in 1. It is both a book of the genre "self-help" and simultaneously a pop non-fiction on social psychology. That is, the book is built on the scheme "theory - practice" or "self-help - social psychology".
So, first, there is an introductory part, where it is said about what can make a person happy (spending money, but spending on others, not on oneself). And then, as I understand it, there goes an explanation of a positive lifestyle (self-education, sports, etc.). To be honest, I did not quite understand why the authors decided to dedicate the first chapter to this very issue, as it seemed to me that it slightly contradicts the rest of the book (despite the fact that I agree with these ideas). Well, suppose it's something like an introduction to creating the right background or way of life, in order to make a big change.
Then the book proposes to create a plan and to this plan is attached 5 paragraphs with 5 subparagraphs. These are the small steps that should lead to the cherished goal.
So, the plan (which should be simple and clear). Next, the goals (simple and clear). Focus on only one goal at first (as the authors write, what is more effective: to save money for one goal or for 5 or more goals at once? Answer: for one thing). Then, having defined a goal, we divide it into several parts, each of which is much easier to accomplish (not "quit drinking forever", but "not drinking alcohol at home"). Next, give exact dates and data: when, how and where? As the authors write, statements such as "to lose weight at the beginning of next year" remain unfulfilled precisely because of the lack of a clear position. When exactly? How will this happen? Where exactly? And after we have strictly recorded the answers to these questions, all of them should, firstly, be written down on paper, and secondly, made publicly (this refers us to experiments when statements made publicly, much more often turned into reality, because it is much harder for a person to refuse to implement them because of social pressure). Well, and so on and so forth. As it seemed to me, the methods and examples are quite interesting and convincing.
The next step is what will help to implement this plan. That is, the authors of this book introduce us to quite well-known experiments and topics from social psychology, which will assist our plan. Among them, for example, is to turn the plan, if possible, into a habit. Find the rewards and sanctions in case of a breach of the plan that will allow the person to hold on to the intended goal (such example may be a fine in the form of wearing the attributes of a hostile football club or doing something that you would not want to do). Here the authors refer us to a study in which scientists have found that people are much more concerned with losing something of value than buying something of value. In order for these rules to work, the authors write, it is necessary to find and agree with the person who will act as a referee, i.e. to monitor the implementation of the plan and in case of violation - to give injunctions.
In conclusion, I would like to mention one important question - the question of "changing context, environment, atmosphere". So the authors write about the situation when it was discovered that the U.S. Army during the military campaign in Vietnam, suffered from drug addiction, i.e., it turned out that the army has a huge number of drug addicts who are about to rush back to the U.S. When, some time after their arrival, another drug test was carried out, it turned out that the number of drug addicts had been drastically reduced from a two-digit figure to a few percent. As it turned out, everything was to blame for the change in the environment that had surrounded the soldiers in the past. Next and this is from another book, we can remember numerous stories when people, after a long period of abstinence from alcohol, broke down, just because they were returning to their old neighborhoods, i.e. to places with which there was a strong connection. So the first thing you need to do is to change your surroundings, change your environment, and only after that, start creating a plan and follow the list that can be found on the last pages of this book.
Книга призвана вооружить читателя стратегией, которая позволит ему осуществить крупные изменения в его жизни, т.е. как с помощью небольших изменений можно совершить существенные трансформации.
Книга по существу, 2 в 1. Это одновременно и книга жанра «самопомощь» и одновременно поп non-fiction по социальной психологии. Т.е. книга построена по схеме «теория – практика» или «самопомощь – социальная психология».
Итак, сначала идёт вводная часть, где говориться о том, что может сделать человека счастливым (трата денег, но трата на других, а не на себя). И далее идёт, как я понял, объяснение позитивного стиля жизни (самообразование, занятие спортом и так далее). Честно сказать, я не совсем понял, почему авторы решили первую главу посвятить именно этому вопросу, т.к. он, как мне показалось, немного не согласуется со всей остальной книгой (несмотря на то, что я согласен с этими идеями). Ну, предположим, это что-то типа введения по созданию правильного фона или образа жизни, с целью проведения масштабных изменений.
Далее книга предлагает создать план и к этому плану прилагается 5 пунктов с 5 подпунктами. Они, как раз те маленькие шаги, что должны привести к заветной цели.
Итак, план (который должен быть простым и ясным). Далее – цели (такие же простые и ясные). Сфокусироваться сначала только на одной цели (как пишут авторы, что эффективней: откладывать деньги на что-то одно или сразу на 5 или даже больше целей? Ответ: на что-то одно). Далее, определив цель, мы разделяем её на несколько частей, каждую из которой выполнить гораздо проще (не «бросить пить навсегда», а «не пить дома алкоголь»). Далее, дать точные даты и данные: когда, как и где? Как пишут авторы, заявления типа «похудеть, начиная со следующего года», остаются невыполненными именно из-за отсутствия чёткой позиции. Когда точно? Как это будет происходить? Где именно? И после того, как мы строго зафиксировали ответы на эти вопросы, всё это нужно, во-первых, записать на бумаге, а во-вторых, придать гласности (это нас отсылает к экспериментам, когда заявления, сделанные публично, намного чаще превращались в реальность, т.к. человеку намного труднее придать их из-за действующего социального давления). Ну, и так далее в таком же духе. Как мне показалось, и методики и примеры, довольно интересные и убедительные.
Следующим идёт, как я понял, то, что будет помогать осуществлению этого плана. Т.е. тут авторы книги знакомят нас с довольно известными экспериментами и темами из социальной психологии, которые будут как бы ассистировать нашему плану. Среди них, например, превратить план, если это возможно, в привычку. Найти те награды, а так же санкции в случаи нарушения плана, которые позволят человеку держаться намеченной цели (таким примером может служить штраф в виде ношения атрибутики враждебного вам футбольного клуба или выполнения нечто такого, чего бы вам совсем не хотелось делать). Тут авторы отсылают нас к исследованию, в котором учёные выяснили, что люди намного большее внимание уделяют вопросам потерять что-то ценное, нежели приобрести что-то ценное. Чтобы эти правила работали, пишут авторы, необходимо найти и договориться с человеком, который будет исполнять роль судьи, т.е. контролировать выполнения плана и в случаи нарушения – выдавать предписания.
В заключении хотелось бы упомянуть один важный вопрос, вопрос «изменение контекста, среды, атмосферы». Так авторы пишут о ситуации, когда обнаружилось, что армия США во время военной кампании во Вьетнаме, страдала от наркотической зависимости, т.е. оказалось, что в армии огромное количество наркоманов, которые вот-вот хлынут обратно в США. Когда же через некоторое время после их приезда провели ещё один тест на наркотики, оказалось, что количество наркоманов радикально сократилось с двухзначной цифры до нескольких процентов. Как оказалось, виной всему - изменения обстановки, среды, которая раньше окружала солдат. Далее, и это уже из другой книги, мы можем вспомнить многочисленные истории, когда люди после долгого воздержания от алкоголя срывались, лишь только потому, что возвращались в прежние районы, т.е. в те места, с которыми существует прочная связь. Так что перво-наперво, необходимо изменить то, что вас окружает, сменить обстановку, окружения и только после этого приступать к созданию плана и далее по списку, который можно обнаружить на последних страницах данной книги.
The book is intended to equip the reader with a strategy that will allow him to make major changes in his life, i.e., how to make significant changes with the help of small changes.
The book is in essence, 2 in 1. It is both a book of the genre "self-help" and simultaneously a pop non-fiction on social psychology. That is, the book is built on the scheme "theory - practice" or "self-help - social psychology".
So, first, there is an introductory part, where it is said about what can make a person happy (spending money, but spending on others, not on oneself). And then, as I understand it, there goes an explanation of a positive lifestyle (self-education, sports, etc.). To be honest, I did not quite understand why the authors decided to dedicate the first chapter to this very issue, as it seemed to me that it slightly contradicts the rest of the book (despite the fact that I agree with these ideas). Well, suppose it's something like an introduction to creating the right background or way of life, in order to make a big change.
Then the book proposes to create a plan and to this plan is attached 5 paragraphs with 5 subparagraphs. These are the small steps that should lead to the cherished goal.
So, the plan (which should be simple and clear). Next, the goals (simple and clear). Focus on only one goal at first (as the authors write, what is more effective: to save money for one goal or for 5 or more goals at once? Answer: for one thing). Then, having defined a goal, we divide it into several parts, each of which is much easier to accomplish (not "quit drinking forever", but "not drinking alcohol at home"). Next, give exact dates and data: when, how and where? As the authors write, statements such as "to lose weight at the beginning of next year" remain unfulfilled precisely because of the lack of a clear position. When exactly? How will this happen? Where exactly? And after we have strictly recorded the answers to these questions, all of them should, firstly, be written down on paper, and secondly, made publicly (this refers us to experiments when statements made publicly, much more often turned into reality, because it is much harder for a person to refuse to implement them because of social pressure). Well, and so on and so forth. As it seemed to me, the methods and examples are quite interesting and convincing.
The next step is what will help to implement this plan. That is, the authors of this book introduce us to quite well-known experiments and topics from social psychology, which will assist our plan. Among them, for example, is to turn the plan, if possible, into a habit. Find the rewards and sanctions in case of a breach of the plan that will allow the person to hold on to the intended goal (such example may be a fine in the form of wearing the attributes of a hostile football club or doing something that you would not want to do). Here the authors refer us to a study in which scientists have found that people are much more concerned with losing something of value than buying something of value. In order for these rules to work, the authors write, it is necessary to find and agree with the person who will act as a referee, i.e. to monitor the implementation of the plan and in case of violation - to give injunctions.
In conclusion, I would like to mention one important question - the question of "changing context, environment, atmosphere". So the authors write about the situation when it was discovered that the U.S. Army during the military campaign in Vietnam, suffered from drug addiction, i.e., it turned out that the army has a huge number of drug addicts who are about to rush back to the U.S. When, some time after their arrival, another drug test was carried out, it turned out that the number of drug addicts had been drastically reduced from a two-digit figure to a few percent. As it turned out, everything was to blame for the change in the environment that had surrounded the soldiers in the past. Next and this is from another book, we can remember numerous stories when people, after a long period of abstinence from alcohol, broke down, just because they were returning to their old neighborhoods, i.e. to places with which there was a strong connection. So the first thing you need to do is to change your surroundings, change your environment, and only after that, start creating a plan and follow the list that can be found on the last pages of this book.
May 10, 2017
By Thinking small, you can reach big, This book provides you with a framework, that looks like common sense, to set you goal and steps how to reach it. Many of us have amazingly ambitious, long-term goals. But few of them make them happen. And that's where "Small Thinking" comes into play.
It is not enough to have a distant dream, to succeed you need to connect that dream to the realities of daily life. If you want to turbo boost your team's performance at work, or turn around a failing school (=big goals) it's unlikely you will achieve these goals without identifying the series of small steps you need to get there
Think Small can be seen as common sense, however, the trouble with trouble sense is that we often fail to apply it and when we do, we do rarely in a consistent or disciplined way. The book gives many examples of situations where we do understand the common sense and not apply it :)
Also, the book explains that Small doesn't mean easy, it requires focus, dedication and effort. Over time, this will start to pay off.
A must read, personally te beginning was ok but then I had a Wow moment in the later chapters and I implemented the framework instantly, and I managed to see results instantly! I can't find a reason not to read this book.
It is not enough to have a distant dream, to succeed you need to connect that dream to the realities of daily life. If you want to turbo boost your team's performance at work, or turn around a failing school (=big goals) it's unlikely you will achieve these goals without identifying the series of small steps you need to get there
Think Small can be seen as common sense, however, the trouble with trouble sense is that we often fail to apply it and when we do, we do rarely in a consistent or disciplined way. The book gives many examples of situations where we do understand the common sense and not apply it :)
Also, the book explains that Small doesn't mean easy, it requires focus, dedication and effort. Over time, this will start to pay off.
A must read, personally te beginning was ok but then I had a Wow moment in the later chapters and I implemented the framework instantly, and I managed to see results instantly! I can't find a reason not to read this book.
April 5, 2022
Many of us have big ambitions. We dream of starting a business or learning a new language, of losing weight or running a marathon – but, when dreams come banging up against reality, the going can get tough.
No matter how driven we are, there will always be roadblocks on the path to success. It can be hard to stay motivated, to break bad habits, to find an effective routine. Sheer determination doesn’t always cut it.
Luckily, these blinks explain how behavioral science can help you overcome common obstacles. They’ll guide you through a seven-point framework that’ll lead you, one small step at a time, to the achievement of major goals.
If you’re aiming for big things, you’ll find it easier to succeed if you get the small details right. Behavioral science teaches us many things about how humans think and act, from our desire to meet other people’s expectations to the way we develop habits. Understanding and embracing this will help you take small steps that make a big difference – like setting clear rules that are easy to follow, making your commitments public and creating incentives that really work.
No matter how driven we are, there will always be roadblocks on the path to success. It can be hard to stay motivated, to break bad habits, to find an effective routine. Sheer determination doesn’t always cut it.
Luckily, these blinks explain how behavioral science can help you overcome common obstacles. They’ll guide you through a seven-point framework that’ll lead you, one small step at a time, to the achievement of major goals.
If you’re aiming for big things, you’ll find it easier to succeed if you get the small details right. Behavioral science teaches us many things about how humans think and act, from our desire to meet other people’s expectations to the way we develop habits. Understanding and embracing this will help you take small steps that make a big difference – like setting clear rules that are easy to follow, making your commitments public and creating incentives that really work.
August 16, 2018
I'm in a 3.5 mood today apparently. Baby steps. Take them and you will get to where you want to go as long as you are pointed in the right direction. The benefit of books like this is they get you to focus on what you need to do now to where you want to be later or remember cause and effect.
One interesting idea that came from this is how our loss aversion dictates so much of our baby steps. We will take a million baby steps to avoid loss, when if you'd taken the loss the trip could have been traversed in a couple of hundred and you would have had much more time and energy to create new value far beyond the loss you avoided. Ok, that isn't interesting, that is classic loss aversion. What I found interesting was trying to think of ways to reframe loss aversion for myself. I'm not even sure if that came from the book, but the reminder to not let loss aversion control was probably worth the read.
One interesting idea that came from this is how our loss aversion dictates so much of our baby steps. We will take a million baby steps to avoid loss, when if you'd taken the loss the trip could have been traversed in a couple of hundred and you would have had much more time and energy to create new value far beyond the loss you avoided. Ok, that isn't interesting, that is classic loss aversion. What I found interesting was trying to think of ways to reframe loss aversion for myself. I'm not even sure if that came from the book, but the reminder to not let loss aversion control was probably worth the read.
December 2, 2020
Loved this book. Practical tips and backed with a lot of research which just makes all those "common sense" advice more credible. One of my favorite lessons from this book is that we should set goals that that we're not only genuinely interested in but will improve our well-being. I realized I've been setting goals just for the sake of having goals and they don't even really matter to me.
Second lesson is the importance of keeping things simple as much as possible. We often set big and unrealistic goals and one of the reason we quit is when it's hard to see our progress. I think it's kind of a cheat trick to Think Small.
If we want to see results right away, then we break down goals into tiny, easy to do tasks that we can scratch off our list easily so we feel much more accomplished. That way, we would feel more motivated to continue.
Second lesson is the importance of keeping things simple as much as possible. We often set big and unrealistic goals and one of the reason we quit is when it's hard to see our progress. I think it's kind of a cheat trick to Think Small.
If we want to see results right away, then we break down goals into tiny, easy to do tasks that we can scratch off our list easily so we feel much more accomplished. That way, we would feel more motivated to continue.
October 7, 2019
I had heard about these things from other sources back in the days. But today after reading this book, it refreshed my memory! The book presented in very structured, yet easy to read. Many nuggets of wisdom come from their experiments or other’s. One is the understanding of fast & slow system of the brain. Basically we should use the slow first to ‘train’ our brain then let it use the ‘fast’ once we’re getting used to it.
Second, mindfulness that is connecting to your own body improve your well being. Smell the air & listen to the sound! Learning new things did the same thing too. To not failed with your own commitment, make your commitments in advance. And many more....
I totally recommended this book.
Second, mindfulness that is connecting to your own body improve your well being. Smell the air & listen to the sound! Learning new things did the same thing too. To not failed with your own commitment, make your commitments in advance. And many more....
I totally recommended this book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 9, 2024
It's a decent book, with a lot of cited (though sometimes seeming anecdotal) evidence to support itself. Learned a few good little tricks to help motivate myself to reach some personal goals. My only complaint is that it's a little long considering the concepts are either already pretty well known or aren't too complicated to set up and master. And sometimes it can get a bit repetitive. That being said, if you need a little bit of a boost reaching your goals, I recommend this book to help you figure out a path for yourself.
June 21, 2018
If you’re aiming for big things, you’ll find it easier to succeed if you get the small details right. Behavioral science teaches us many things about how humans think and act, from our desire to meet other people’s expectations to the way we develop habits. Understanding and embracing this will help you take small steps that make a big difference – like setting clear rules that are easy to follow, making your commitments public and creating incentives that really work.
October 24, 2019
Good book. Compounding your efforts in the smallest way by setting daily goals to help you achieve your big goal was my main takeaway. This book sets out clear example of what will help you progress. Keeping in mind that happiness will not be given to you from reaching the goal alone but rather if you follow simple steps you will receive greater feelings of satisfaction. Keep your guiding rules simple and you will be in a great position to stay the course.
March 5, 2020
Many of the studies cited with huge treatment effects will likely not replicate. That's ok -- they're still relevant and useful for guiding behavior, but results of one-off studies should be emphasized as being suggestive rather than unbiased estimates of the true impacts.
I'm a big fan of BIT, and although I was familiar with much of the research cited in this book, I still found it useful and enjoyable.
I'm a big fan of BIT, and although I was familiar with much of the research cited in this book, I still found it useful and enjoyable.
October 3, 2023
While none of the tips and information was new to me, the authors stated that was the case and the way they put the information together was so readable and practical. I thought it pulled together a lot of bits and pieces I’d read in other places into one cohesive strategy. I particularly liked the appendices with the summary of the tips and examples on how to use them. I will definitely be using that as the template for my own goal plans
January 11, 2018
This book pivots the nudge theory so that you can use it on yourself. If you are familiar with the theory, there is nothing new other than bits and bobs of tips to adopt and make changes. I find that a good 60-70% of the book is the reiteration of nudge case studies and other concepts in fast/slow thinking, etc.
BUT if you don't know anything about the nudge, do read it.
BUT if you don't know anything about the nudge, do read it.
March 15, 2018
A very insightful and interesting book, breaking down seven steps to achieving big goals. Although it could be argued that these steps are just common sense (the authors also acknowledge this) it was still an extremely useful book. I found the studies and examples fascinating and will dip in and out of this again.
November 22, 2018
There are better books on this subject
This is a very basic, low-level take on goal setting. There’s also way too much desperate name dropping due to the author’s connection with David Cameron’s time at Number 10. There are better books out there on this topic. Give this one a miss.
This is a very basic, low-level take on goal setting. There’s also way too much desperate name dropping due to the author’s connection with David Cameron’s time at Number 10. There are better books out there on this topic. Give this one a miss.
June 24, 2020
An interesting read
It seems every popular psychology book that I read revolves around Kahneman and Tversky. In fairness Service and Gallagher rely perhaps a little less on these two authors than many of the other writers do, but to what extent does this mean that they have less to say?
It seems every popular psychology book that I read revolves around Kahneman and Tversky. In fairness Service and Gallagher rely perhaps a little less on these two authors than many of the other writers do, but to what extent does this mean that they have less to say?
August 3, 2020
It's Big enough to be considered
Small steps can lead to big successes or atleast to meet objectives we have failed to achieve.
If you know Microsoft Project you don't need this book. I am kidding.
On the other hand it will help you to handle your software projects better.
Of course, our lives will get better. Good luck
Small steps can lead to big successes or atleast to meet objectives we have failed to achieve.
If you know Microsoft Project you don't need this book. I am kidding.
On the other hand it will help you to handle your software projects better.
Of course, our lives will get better. Good luck
March 20, 2021
Fascinating insights - a lot of this may seem like common sense but we don’t always use our common sense; I remember the behavioural unify being set up but it’s success speaks for itself. Lessons are applicable in all areas of our lives and the easy to follow steps are very clearly explained. Highly recommend
June 29, 2021
A fairly useful guide on how to set and achieve goals by breaking the task done into smaller chunks and measuring progress. A bit of repetition which may have been emphasising a point, or might have been a little padding. Nothing much new here if you have read similar books, but if this is your first foray into this kind of book then its a reasonable place to start.
August 26, 2017
An excellent insight into the psychological elements of goals, habits and achievement. Have not had the chance to implement yet but will absolutely keep close to review when looking to optimise my learning.
June 20, 2018
Excellent summary
A quick read that does an excellent job of informing the reader of the ways that insights into behavioural economics can improve productivity. Very similar to Angela Duckworth's Grit.
A quick read that does an excellent job of informing the reader of the ways that insights into behavioural economics can improve productivity. Very similar to Angela Duckworth's Grit.
January 13, 2019
Simple and effective
This book has helped me put ideas into action for myself and my team. These steps are able to be put into place quickly and with very little cost. Let's hope they work for us all too x
This book has helped me put ideas into action for myself and my team. These steps are able to be put into place quickly and with very little cost. Let's hope they work for us all too x
March 24, 2019
This was an interesting and thought-provoking read. It was written well, and the findings presented were backed up by many different studies which seemed to add a credibility to the book that I liked.
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