Implementation Intentions

The Promise

Stop relying on willpower in the moment. Pre-decide the exact when-where-how of an action, and the action runs itself when its trigger fires.

How It Works

• Specify the cue concretely. Not "when I have time" but "when I sit down at my desk after dropping the kids at school." Felt states are unreliable triggers; situational ones are not.
• Specify the behavior concretely. Not "I will do some writing" but "I will open the chapter file and write for 25 minutes."
• Bind the two with if-then language. If [cue], then I will [behavior]. Add a recovery clause for missed triggers.

In Practice

Goals written as if-then plans complete at significantly higher rates than goals stated only as outcomes. Here is why it works: the decision is made once, in advance. When the trigger fires, the behavior runs without deliberation required.