It’s nice to think of ourselves as rational logical human beings, but it isn’t true. We make decisions based on emotion. Anything that you do regularly, you do because it either makes you feel good or will make you feel bad if you don’t do it. That simple.

So, how do you use this information to create changes in your behaviors? You focus on the emotional side of your habits. For example, if you’ve been eating too much ice cream, instead of concentrating on the grams of fat and calories, think about the feeling you get just as you put your foot down on the scale to weight yourself. Or think about what it feels like when you get on a roll with eating well and exercising. Obviously you’re going to continue using your logic, but make sure that you also get good at tapping into your emotions.