What triggers are influencing your behavior? Start by getting aware.

Triggers are low-hanging fruits when it comes to behavior design.

A trigger also called a cue or prompt is a call to action.

Something that nudges us to do a behavior.

No behavior happens without a trigger.

If your phone is on silent you won’t pick up the call.

Triggers can be of various kinds:

• Internal triggers are any feeling or emotion that remind you to do something. Like hunger, thirst, boredom, or anxiety.

• External triggers or Context prompts are anything in your environment that remind you. Like a sticky note, your cat mewing, or phone notification.

• Triggers can be natural or designed. Your phone is a prolific source of designed prompts nudging your behavior through the day.

• Dr. BJ Fogg, Stanford Professor & Behavior Scientist also describes the Action prompt, a behavior you already do that can remind you to do a new habit you want to cultivate.

Triggers are ubiquitous.

Most of them go unnoticed by your conscious mind, yet they drive you into various kinds of behavior.

This is exactly why you need to exercise some control over your trigger landscape.

And that starts with starting to get aware of the triggers you are exposed to every day.

Are they natural triggers? or designed? Internal or external?

What is your resulting behavior? Is that a desired or unwanted behavior?

Then you are ready to start managing your triggers.

Remove the triggers that lead to unwanted behavior. Maintain the ones which lead you to the behavior you want.