Stanford behaviour change expert, BJ Fogg, on how he decides which habits to form in his own life and how he makes them stick.

My guest today is BJ Fogg. BJ is an experimental psychologist who founded and directs the Behavior Design Lab at Stanford University. If you have ever read anything about habit change, you will know that BJ is the founding father of this area. He is renowned for creating breakthrough methods for changing human behavior and has recently put them all together in a brilliant book called, “Tiny Habits.”

I have followed BJ’s work for many years and he has a knack for making complex psychology on the topic of behaviour change really simple and practical. In my chat with BJ, we start by talking about habit change, and then get into some of BJ’s productivity habits and hacks, and we also talk about his approach to making his teaching at Stanford and also outside of it as engaging as possible. If you have ever tried to change your behaviour, I think you will get a lot out of this chat.

We cover:
  • How to form new habits
  • How to make a habit stick
  • The myth that it takes 21 days to form a new habit
  • The role emotion plays in habit formation
  • How BJ decides which habits to change in his own life
  • How BJ prioritises what to work on each day
  • How BJ prioritises his emails
  • What BJ’s working environment looks like
  • Why BJ doesn’t travel with a laptop
  • How BJ designs engaging learning experiences for his students
  • Why BJ bans technology from his classrooms at Standford
  • The importance of vulnerability in effective teaching.

Connect with BJ Fogg: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Tiny Habits

Get his new book on Amazon: Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything