Review Of Switch By Dan and Chip Heath

Well, I recently finished reading Switch by Dan and Chip Heath, and I absolutely enjoyed it.

The book focuses on the required elements to effectively making a change – in your individual or professional life or in your business or organization.

**Elephant, Rider, and Path**

The book investigates change via three metaphors: two for various facets of the personalities of folks affected by a change, along with one representing the environment surrounding that change.

Initially described in The Happiness Hypothesis by Jonathan Haidt, the 3 part metaphor utilised in Switch is both entertaining as well as insightful (I have not had a chance to read Haidt's book myself yet, but I've added it to my list!).

As impressed as I am by the effectiveness of the metaphor used in switch, I'll make an effort to keep it to the point - as I know I could go on for hours.

The condensed version is that a person's personality is comprised of two elements (Freud had a comparable theory). These two parts are described as an Elephant which has a Rider sitting on top of it's back. The Rider's charge is to do his best to control the Elephant and direct him in the right direction..

The challenge is that the Elephant from time to time desires to move in a direction that the Rider disagrees with, and in view of the fact that the Elephant is a lot bigger than the little Rider, there’s not a whole lot he can do about it – he can only tug on the reigns for so long until the Elephant wears him down and does whatever it desires.

Dan and Chip Heath explain our "Elephant" side as the portion of our psyche that is susceptible to emotional responses and reactions, in addition to our inclination to "go with the flow" and react without truly thinking things through first. Our Elephants don't over analyze or calculate - they react by moving in the easiest, most recognizable direction available.

The "weakness" of the Elephant is that it depends on emotions, habits, and instincts that don't always coincide with the changes we are trying to create. Often times the Elephant - which is actually ourselves - needs assistance being convinced to go with a less familiar choice.

The Rider comes into play when the path we need to take isn't something the Elephant is familiar with. It's the Rider's job to guide the Elephant in the right direction, even when the Elephant resists (meaning we struggle with the self-control or restraint to continue).

The Rider is the Elephant's opposite. While the Elephant depends on feelings and instinct, the Rider specializes in analysis and the "big picture".

The problem with the Rider is that he can spend too much time over-analyzing a change and then nothing happens (that familiar “spinning your wheels” feeling we’ve all felt when undertaking a new challenge).

The final component to Haidt and Heath's metaphor is the Path, used to describe the environment surrounding th changes we try to make in our lives. Things that effect the Path can include the attitudes of others, social norms, laws and systems - or any other factors that impact the changes we are making.

Seeing The Metaphor In Action

Applying the different components described above to a change in your life is described in the book as a three step process:

* Motivate the Elephant
* Direct the Rider
* Shape the Path

The book is broken into three sections based on these steps. Essentially, you need to get the Elephant moving, give the Rider a clear destination to travel in (preventing him from spinning his wheels) and shape the Path you’re traveling on to eliminate or avoid obstacles.

All three of these sections is further broken down into three smaller pieces, and the book is full of examples of all off the different components.

As you progress through the book, the authors share a multitude of stories surrounding various changes and how this model applies to their success. From individual problems like drug addiction to national issues like government spending, the changes in Switch are as varied as they are inspirational.

Why This Book Works So Well

Let’s be honest – the principles this book are based on aren’t the kind of thing that sounds thrilling to everyone. In spite of that fact, the authors did a very good job of making it an extremely entertaining book to read.

Switch is written in such a well organized way that the different sections are not only entertaining but compliment each other extremely well - each chapter being reinforced by those that came before it.

There are also plenty of humorous asides scattered throughout the book, so it keeps the text from becoming mundane.

For a book filled with so many different stories, the authors are really good about outlining the similarities that illustrate the message of the book.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that this book is loaded with moments that leave you thinking “Yup. I totally do that…”

All in all, this a great read for anyone who has a habit they don’t like, or something they think they need to improve in their life or their business (which I think covers pretty much all of us ;) )