There are 15 ways behavior can change. If you want someone to perform a familiar behavior for the long term, you are seeking a Blue Path Behavior.
To achieve a Blue Path Behavior, three elements must come together at once. You must Trigger the behavior when the person is both Motivated and Able to perform it. This combination must happen over and over, as the habit gets created or strengthened.
- Trigger: A prompt must tell a person to “do this behavior now.” Triggers can take many forms, ranging from links in email (click here) to internal signals from our body, like a grumbling stomach (eat now).
- Motivation: A person must have sufficient Motivation when the Trigger occurs. Three core motivators exist: Sensation (pleasure/pain), Anticipation (hope/fear), and Belonging (acceptance/rejection).
- Ability: The person must have the Ability to perform the behavior when the Trigger occurs.
As Blue Path Behaviors are created, people do not require reassurance (enhancing motivation) or step-by-step instructions (increasing ability). Instead, the challenge is on timing: One must find a way to deliver a Trigger at a moment when the person is already Motivated and Able.