Change Anything (Part III) by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, David Maxfield, Ron McMillian, and Al Switzler
“Invert the economy”
When the authors talk about “inverting the economy”, they are referring to the fact that changing something is difficult because when we do things (even things that we want to change) we take the path of least resistance, we do the thing that is easiest for us, by inverting the economy we make the old habit either more difficult or having a negative consequence and the new behavior easier to do and have a reward attached to it.
If we use the example of loosing weight, we make it inconvenient (more difficult) to eat poorly by not having unhealthy food in our home and on the other hand by stocking our refrigerator with fruit and vegetables that are cut into bit size pieces (making good eating easier for us to do).
Though this approach has advantages, the problem with this approach is that it does not take into account, unconscious motivations, or secondary gains. In our example of eating maybe we don’t feel taken care of and we experience eating certain foods as being emotionally nourishing or we have issues with sexual intimacy and being heavy may help us to be unattractive and thereby not having to deal with being close to someone sexually.
“Change Anything” is a great self help book. It has some limitations, but it is certainly a great starting point with lot’s of strategies and techniques to help someone who is serious about changing their life. There is also a web site called “Changeanything.com” with more information and support for folks who want to improve their lives.