The Subtle Power of your Environment Influencing Your Habits (Habit Series 4/7)

February 16, 2022 Regina Zafonte

Your surroundings may be impacting your habits more than you think and more than you want, so when you start controlling your setting, you can begin to have progress on the long-awaited changes in your life.

Executive Coach Marshall Goldsmith said, “Most of us go through life unaware of how our environment shapes our behavior.” When you have a conflict between the situation (having cookies in your kitchen in an accessible spot) and your willpower (choosing not to eat them), the environment overpowers your will every time. Those cookies have no chance, especially if they are chocolate chip walnut from Levain’s, the #1 bakery in NYC. If they are hidden, you will likely not eat them. Better yet, if they are not even in the house, you will not be tempted. Physical and visual distance impacts your choices. If you replace the sweets with fruit and keep them reachable, you will more likely grab that. To eat healthier, stock your fridge with excellent options. The key to changing your habits is organizing your environment in a way that makes it easy and sets you up for success.

The power of the environment is further illustrated in Richard Thaler’s Nudge, he talks about the concept of choice architecture which is the process of organizing information on a page or arranging the items in a physical environment in such a way that influences decisions. Anne Thorndike, a Physician at a Boston hospital designed a 6-month study to alter the cafeteria’s choice architecture. Fridges next to cashiers only had soda so store managers added water and placed baskets of water next to food stations around the room. Over the next 3 months, soda sales dropped by 11.4%, and water sales increased by 25.8%. The presence of water changed people’s behavior.

Your social situation also plays a role. Jim Rohn said we become the combined average of the people we hang around the most. Those people dominate the types of things we talk about and the activities that we do. If we spend time with friends who enjoy going to bars, we can be more tempted to overdrink. If we spend time with avid readers, we are more likely to be influenced in that direction by reading or talking about books. When we hang out with people where the norm is to have good habits, we will make better decisions with our time and set ourselves up for success.

As French philosopher, Michel de Montaigne wrote - “The customs and practices of life in society sweep us along.” Friends and family provide an invisible peer pressure force that pulls us in that direction. Do you work at an office where staying until 5 is standard because people value family and personal development time? You will be less likely to overwork and violate that shared expectation. Join a group where your desired behavior is the norm. I did when I connected to a philosophy group a few years ago where I met so many people who were just as jazzed about personal development as I am. It felt fantastic to nerd out openly on topics that I would not have the opportunity to share with my other friend groups. Successful businesswoman Kathy Ireland said there are two types of people – anchors and engines, anchors weigh you down while engines believe in you, support you, and propel you forward. Who are the anchors and engines in your life?

Professor Edwards Deming noted, “A bad system will beat a good person every time.” Many of us become successful or not depending on the world around us and how we relate to it. If somebody returns from rehab and is plugged into the same environment with the same triggers and social influences, they are likely to find change difficult. Instead, habits are easy when they fit into your life, and the environment allows for it. So, what environmental cues are steering your behavior either in the direction of beneficial change or throwing you off track? Make a list of your environmental triggers that are either helping or hurting you to raise your awareness so you can take deliberate action.

Your physical and social environments may be having a much bigger impact on your choices than you initially thought. If you want to have a healthy lifestyle, allow your physical environment to reflect your intentions. If you are going to focus on growth and development, surround yourself with people who share your values. Be intentional about your choices for the best habits to take root.

Quote of the day: “The key to behavioral change is to pass behavioral control to the environment.” -Author Paul Gibbons

Q: How can you set your physical and social environment up that would optimize your success? Comment and share below, we would love to hear from you!

[The next blog in this series 5/7 will focus on the importance of small steps towards habit change]

As a leadership development and executive coach, I work with people to cultivate habits that serve them, contact me to explore this topic further.

Do you know how your environment impacts your decisions?

The Magic of Right-Brain/Left-Brain Thinking In Teams

April 18, 2019 Regina Zafonte

In Daniel Pink’s bestseller, “A Whole New Mind,” he argues that although the work world has favored the left-brain thinkers (logical, mathematically-minded, number-crunchers), the right-brain thinkers (empathic, creative, pattern-recognizers, and meaning makers) are making a resurgence. In fact, all evidence suggests that the future is going to belong to those workers who can leverage the power of both.

The theory that the different halves of the human brain govern different skills and personality traits traces as far back as the 1800s when scientists discovered that an injury to one side of the brain resulted in a loss of specific abilities. The concept gained further ground in the 1960s based on Nobel-Prize-winning "split-brain" work by neuropsychologist Robert Sperry. However, Neuroscientist Lian McGilchrist argues that this may be an oversimplification. He explains that it is really not about what they do (left being logical and right being creative), but more about how they do the same things differently. The right focuses on the big picture and the left focuses on details – making them both equally vital. In essence, if we fail to hone in on the details, it becomes impossible to accomplish simple tasks, and if we cannot see the big picture, we lose all sense of direction.

Candidates whose abilities represent a marriage of the two hemispheres are highly sought after by employers. In effect, combining softer skills such as teamwork, collaboration, and empathy with the so-called harder skills like technical ability, in-depth knowledge, and specific industry experience. Some companies that consistently land on the “Best Workplace” list such as Google and Facebook design their interviews to ask questions which assess both a technical and cultural fit. Spotify is known for creative drills to find left-brain/right-brain candidates, rather than just excellent techies.

Here Are Some Ways A Company Can Leverage Both To Get The Best Results:

1. Know Your Style. Are you somebody who prefers creativity over analysis, seeing the big picture over small parts within, is more conceptional over practical, more intuitive over methodical? There are various kinds of assessments such as StrengthsFinder that can glean essential data so you can utilize your gifts to your potential.

2. Create Mixed Teams. It could be quite effective to combine somebody who enjoys accruing data, analyzing it, and strategizing with a teammate who can put that information into a story and paint a vision of the world that motivates people to get behind the idea. For example, marketing is often regarded as a right-brain activity, the domain of creatives and artistic types. But without attention to data and analytics, there is a risk that your marketing campaign will be largely ineffective. Conversely, all data and analysis lead to a mundane campaign and a lackluster customer experience. It is important to pay attention to people’s different wiring because when you pair people that think too much alike, they can not only get in each other’s way but produce mono thinking.

3. Create More Integrated Departmental Opportunities. Director of Small Business Development, Tammy Marquez-Oldham offers this idea - you can divide your marketing development process into two phases, one for creative activities, such as brainstorming, building content, and creating visuals, and the other for analysis, tracking, reporting, and market segmentation. If you use separate teams for each process, ensure that they are communicating and coordinating with each other.

4. Encourage “Teach and Learns.” Informal conversations to help better package your ideas can serve as a medium for healthy exchanges. For example, the creative thinker and visionary with grandiose ideas could benefit from questions from the left-minded teammates about small steps and details to puncture the paralysis of possibilities. Likewise, the detail-oriented and analytical thinker could consider more on the side of messaging, branding, and the fine art of storytelling.

Being aware of what you bring to the table and finding ways to add what you lack is a proven method on how to get the best of both worlds in your business and personal life.

Quote of the day: “May you find inspiration in the big picture, but may you find love in the details - Adrienne Maloof

Q: Are you mainly a big picture or a detail-oriented thinker, or both? How can you take a more balanced approach for the next time you are developing your ideas? Comment and share below, we would love to hear from you!

The best thinkers utilize both sides or form teams that do

The Power of Saying No

February 18, 2019 Regina Zafonte

We exist in a world that is constantly on overdrive. The plethora of communication devices and apps at our disposal means that our services or input are always in demand. So, learning how to say no may be the most valuable response we can arm ourselves with today.

The effectiveness of the word no comes from its ability to instantly free up time that can be put toward the things that really matter to us. This, in turn, offers further clarity about our purpose, at which time the once daunting act of saying no suddenly begins to feel very natural because it creates the space to fill our moments with value.

In the book, Essentialism, Greg McKeown describes how distinguished Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi once reached out to Management pioneer Peter Drucker and several other innovative individuals requesting an interview for his book based on creativity. Drucker responded by saying that he appreciated the offer but would have to disappoint him. He wrote, “One of the secrets of my productivity is to have a big waste paper basket to take care of all invitations such as yours.” A chief reason why Drucker was able to turn down such an enticing offer was because he was passionately driven by his own work.

While we may not all possess the same natural directness as Drucker in rejecting others, here are a few suggestions to offer a no when you are still searching for the right words:

1. Thank the person for thinking of you and simply let them know that you do not have the bandwidth right now. When you remember the things you are currently working on that excite you, it becomes easier to say no because you will not have to shortchange the activities that arrest your attention. Here is another way to phrase your no: “I want to do a great job, but my other commitments I have may preclude me from delivering the quality of work in which I can be proud.”

2. Pause. If you are unsure what to say, you might want to try pausing for three seconds after the request. You do not have to respond at the moment; you can say, “let me check my calendar and get back to you” or “I want to take a careful look at what is currently on my plate right now before I let you know, would that be ok or how does that sound?” Sometimes letting the thought marinate for a little will provide you with even more clarity and just the right words for the appropriate response.

3. Reprioritize. If it is just a case of being overbooked, you can let your boss know that you are happy to make this a priority, but ask which other projects should you deprioritize, postpone, or even abandon to pay attention to the new project. Which resources need to be diverted to this new assignment? You could also ask, “if you could not do the whole project, but just a part, which piece would you want me to do?” “Are their parts of this project that are more important than other parts?” These sorting questions can yield great clarity for both sides and possibly curtail the scope of the project to its most essential.

4. Postpone. If it is a request for a coffee catch-up meeting from a loose connection, you could let the person know that you would love to get together, but you would have to wait until after your project is completed. They can send a message to reconnect in the next season. If a window of time opens up after your project is done and the person is persistent in reaching out again, perhaps they can catch you in a yes-type-of-mood.

5. Set automatic message. You can set up your automated email away message and let others know you are in monk mode until you finish working on your project which already has enormous demands on your time.

6. Be brief. If somebody is trying to schedule a specific time with you and you cannot make it, no need to overshare and give your reasoning. Instead of saying, “I can’t make the meeting because of x, y, z., you can say, I cannot make it at this time, but how about these times…?” The justifications dilute the importance of your time; focus on what you can do rather than not what you cannot do.

7. Delay send. When you receive a message, instead of responding instantly, even though you may want to cross it off your list, you can draft the message, but delay the delivery for a couple of days for nonurgent emails so you establish the expectation of having adequate time to respond. Another way to set email expectations is to put at the bottom of your signature that you will be checking emails during these two windows (9-10 and 4-5) so they know when to roughly receive a return message. Of course this depends on the nature of your job.

8. Share the work. If your teammate is suggesting yet another change to the project, you can tell them to make the revisions and you would be happy to review it so it is a collaborative effort and the ownership is split.

While saying no can have a potential short-term impact on your relationships, it will yield greater respect in the long run because you will be known as a disciplined person aiming to achieve big things. Chinese writer Lin Yutang said it best when he said, “The wisdom of life exists in the elimination of nonessentials.” It is only when you permit yourself to stop trying to do it all, that you can make your highest contribution to what matters.

Thought of the day: “Innovation is saying "no" to 1,000 things.” -Steve Jobs

Q: What is something you can start saying no to immediately so you can dedicate resources to a passion project?? Comment below, we would love to hear from you.

As a Leadership Development & Executive Coach, I partner with others to have difficult conversations, say no, and create boundaries so you can take a proactive approach for greater fulfillment, contact me to learn more.