Switch

How to Change Things When Change Is Hard

By: Dan Heath, Chip Heath

Narrated by: Charles Kahlenberg

Why is it so hard to make lasting changes in our companies, in our communities, and in our own lives?

The primary obstacle is a conflict that's built into our brains, say Chip and Dan Heath, authors of the critically acclaimed best seller Made to Stick.

Psychologists have discovered that our minds are ruled by two different systems - the rational mind and the emotional mind - that compete for control. The rational mind wants a great beach body; the emotional mind wants that Oreo cookie. The rational mind wants to change something at work; the emotional mind loves the comfort of the existing routine. This tension can doom a change effort - but if it is overcome, change can come quickly.

In Switch, the Heaths show how everyday people - employees and managers, parents and nurses - have united both minds and, as a result, achieved dramatic results:

• The lowly medical interns who managed to defeat an entrenched, decades-old medical practice that was endangering patients
• The home-organizing guru who developed a simple technique for overcoming the dread of housekeeping
• The manager who transformed a lackadaisical customer-support team into service zealots by removing a standard tool of customer service

In a compelling, story-driven narrative, the Heaths bring together decades of counterintuitive research in psychology, sociology, and other fields to shed new light on how we can effect transformative change

Switch shows that successful changes follow a pattern, a pattern you can use to make the changes that matter to you, whether your interest is in changing the world or changing your waistline.

©2010 Chip Heath (P)2010 Random House

Pretty good book about a fascinating subject

I enjoyed Chip and Dan Heath's earlier book, "Made to Stick", so when the president of my company recommended this book on his blog I decided to give it a shot.

The subject matter is fascinating - what makes people change? How do we change our habits, routines, and personalities? Changing is quite possibly the hardest thing a person can do, and this book talks about how that is done.

The reason I didn't *love* this book is that it discusses ways to change in really anecdotal ways, some of the stories illustrate their point well, others only marginally so.

This is certainly not a "how to" book, though you can gather some ideas about how to apply the things they talk about, if you take a few minutes to ponder it.

I was expecting, or hoping, for more "how to" out of this book, but instead got a lot more "stories of change".

Voice and overlay distracting, good book

I'm about 1/2 way through this listen right now, and although the material is quite interesting, as others have said, it's really hard to get past the voice. The narrator's voice is so low and monotonous that you find it hard to stay focused on listening. It is also annoying that it doesn't flow and you can tell where edits were made. This one should be re-recorded. Giving 4 stars for the book, -1 for the narrator.

Simplicity in the Face of Complexity

The latest statistic on organizational change efforts states that 80% of all change efforts fail. In this book, the authors offer a framework for approaching change that is both comprehensive and simple at the same time. That’s not to say that it’s easy – just simple – and its simplicity is what gives hope that organizations (and individuals, for that matter) might just be able to start improving that statistic. The authors describe three aspects of change – emotional, rational, and environmental – using the metaphor of the elephant (emotion), the rider (reason), and the path (the environment). The main thesis throughout the book is that all three must be addressed and integrated in order for change to be successful. The authors weave in elements of Appreciative Inquiry (bright spots), visioning (destination postcards), and systems thinking (tweak the environment), to name a few, and offer many ideas for how to improve your chances that the change you seek will be sustainable.

Easy to read, fast learning concept

Loved the examples, I got it, change is much easier if you appeal to both the elephant and the rider. Toward the end I could guess the outcome. Is that because it was repetitive or did I learn something, I’m going with the latter. Read or listen, the humor breaks the repetition.

Just Switch

An interesting book on CHANGE, how, why it happens or fails
A collection of examples and approaches to it

will give it a spin

Great structure for implementing change

The Heath brothers once again provide a great distillation of complex and integrated challenges into a discrete and implementable structure. Change management, both for organizations and personal, is hard and their discussions in this book provide an extremely comprehensive analysis from many perspectives. Having read many leadership and psychology books before, I felt this absolutely added to my arsenal of techniques for managing change in my own life as well as from a business sense.

Masters of Information and Craft

Where does Switch rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This book is on my A list. At least once a day I suggest a client read it.

What did you like best about this story?

The metaphor makes understanding principles automatic -- which is what the book is about: brilliant.

What does Charles Kahlenberg bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

His pacing and inflection add interest without suggesting emphasis or importance.

What did you learn from Switch that you would use in your daily life?

Use more emotional reasons and fewer logistics to validate change communication.

Any additional comments?

Really enjoyed Made To Stick. Eager for their next book.

A Must

My business team and I listened on a drive from California to Utah
The first audio book we've finished on one of these many drives
We started brainstorming an action plan while we were learning

pretty darn good

This book has great content,good examples but an overly dramatic performance. very much worth the listen.

Awesome Book/Loved the Narration

I really liked this book...My only complaint is that my own mind is unable to soak up the whole book in one listening. Just too much to absorb.

I'm puzzled by the complaints of the narrator/reader. I thought he did in excellent job (in both this book and Made to Stick).

Thanks again.