Switch

Last week I finally read Switch, by Chip & Dan Heath. (They also wrote Made To Stick, which is fantastic and the best book I’ve read on communicating.) Switch is about how change happens: If you want to change, if you want to help someone else change, if you want to bring change to an organization or church.

It’s not a book of opinions, but of research and case studies, and it’s fascinating. They break engineering change into three steps: (1) Direct the rider, (2) Motivate the elephant, and (3) Shape the path. The rider is our logical side that thinks long term, the elephant is our emotional side that wants instant gratification, the path is the context in which we live.

The idea of Switch is that to achieve change we need to convince the rider, the elephant, and help with the circumstances. And the book is full of practical ideas for how to do it.

If you want to change, or want to help people change, buy the book.