TMD: The 3 R’s of Habit Building
Jay Greenstein
Warrior Healthcare and Technology Entrepreneur Driving Improved Outcomes for Patients and Income for Providers.
What’s up Kaizenovators, Happy Tuesday Two Minute Drill. Today’s topic of conversation is the 3 R’s. The 3 R’s relate to building sustainable habits. I’ve been studying habit change and behavior change for quite some time now. As healthcare providers, we are in the business of behavior change. I wanted to share some revelations and ways to make it easy for you to remember how to build really strong habits.
Remind, Reduce Friction, Reward,
Most of you know I have two dogs. One of my dog’s name is Deputy. He’s my first dog, my first love. I love both my dogs, but he’s definitely my favorite. He has to be my favorite since he’s my first one. Anyway, he got an eye infection, and I needed to remember to give him drops.
How did I remember to give him drops when I can’t even remember my middle name half the time? Because I am so ADD and always busy. How do I make sure that I build a habit of giving him his eye drops? Well, the first thing I do is figure out a way to remind myself to give him the drops.
So, what do I do? I stick the drops right on the table about three feet from where his dog bed is. That’s the first thing. The first R is for Remind.
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The second thing I do is reduce the friction, meaning the drops are on a table only three feet from Deputy. If I put the drops upstairs in my bathroom, it would be a long way to go to give him these drops. I figured out a way to make it simple for me to get the drops, reduce the friction, and put them in his eyes. The second R is for Reduce.
The third R is the reward. Now, rewards are different for everybody, but rewards do change behavior. With Deputy, my reward is not having to wipe his goopy eyes all the time, but also making sure that he’s happy and healthy. Intrinsically, that’s my reward. The third R is for Reward.
When it comes to your business or even your life, find ways for you and your team to set reminders, reduce friction—especially in processes—and lastly, provide rewards to get the results you’re looking for.
So, the three R’s: remind, reduce, and reward. That’s this week’s Two Minute Drill. You guys have a great week.
I’ll talk to y’all next week.