GOOD HABITS, BAD HABITS by
Professor of Psychology and Business at the University of Southern California, Wendy
Wood is all about “The Science of Making Positive Changes That Stick.” Wood
divides her work into three parts (How We Really Are, The Three Bases of Habit
Formation, and Special Cases, Big Opportunities and the World Around Us). She
writes in an accessible manner, opening with an anecdote about a cousin trying
to lose weight, and then explains some of the obstacles to success, including
the idea that “we act out of habit [approximately forty percent of the time] without
having to make a decision to do so.” The
second part of Wood’s text, which deals with context, repetition and reward, is
really quite informative. For example, Wood discusses the decline in smoking in
America, noting that knowledge of the dangers and willpower (desire to quit)
were often not enough until regulations and environment (e.g., limited
advertising, fewer vending machines and more non-smoking areas) became prevalent.
However, I think I like best her short “useful story” at the book’s end which
is titled “How to Stop Looking at your Phone So Often” – it provides a
wonderful application of her ideas and was recently highlighted in The Los Angeles Times’ review of
this book. Wood also includes extensive notes, a lengthy bibliography and an index,
all of which may interest our Psych student researchers. GOOD HABITS, BAD HABITS received
a starred review from Publishers Weekly
and was named one of “10 books to read in October” by The Washington Post.
EMBRACE YOUR WEIRD by professional
actress Felicia Day was actually recommended recently by another member of the
Library staff. In this “part guided journal, part workbook” Day encourages her readers
to “Face Your Fears and Unleash Creativity.”
Early on, she encourages readers to write “I am the greatest thing since
Swiss cheese” over and over and to REALLY believe it. She encourages her readers to let go of
self-consciousness by keeping the process of working through the book private –
and offers a quick exercise about adjectives and dancing to explain why. I
think that Psych classes and advisories will find this book amusing and quirky,
but also perceptive and helpful. There could be some really great prompts for
journaling and introspection. Potentially, Creative Writers classes could also
have fun and learn to “loosen-up” with this text. Day writes humorously and yet
offers some serious suggestions to unlock our weird, creative voices, “combining
the inventory we already have in our brains in new and interesting ways.” There
is an entire chapter called Playtime! And another labeled Quests; as Day says, “What
do you have to lose?”
