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Good Habits, Bad Habits

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For the new year, we’re sharing our conversation with psychologist Wendy Wood, who told us that changing habits and keeping goals isn’t about willpower — it’s about tapping into our unconscious selves.

As a researcher, Wood studies the science of habits, where she has learned that most of what we do we do without giving it much thought – our behavior falls into our predictable patterns that we set over the course of our lives. But when a new year hits and we decide to make some life changes, most of us try to muscle our way through them. And that, said Wood, is why we often fail. We’ll talk with Wood this Friday at 11 a.m. about why pure willpower isn’t enough, and how our minds are the key to making positive changes in our lives. (Repeat)

Dr. Wendy Wood is the Provost Professor of Psychology and Business at the University of California and the author of Good Habits, Bad Habits: The Science of Making Positive Changes That Stick. [IndieBound| Amazon | Bookshop]

Doug Fabrizio has been reporting for KUER News since 1987, and became News Director in 1993. In 2001, he became host and executive producer of KUER's RadioWest, a one hour conversation/call-in show on KUER 90.1 in Salt Lake City. He has gained a reputation for his thoughtful style. He has interviewed everyone from Isabel Allende to the Dalai Lama, and from Madeleine Albright to Desmond Tutu. His interview skills landed him a spot as a guest host of the national NPR program, "Talk of the Nation." He has won numerous awards for his reporting and for his work with RadioWest and KUED's Utah NOW from such organizations as the Society of Professional Journalists, the Utah Broadcasters Association, the Public Radio News Directors Association and the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.