Why You Can't Stick to Habits (The Science-Backed Solution That Actually Works)
Soufiane Amimi - 05/10/2025 - 12 min read
Now, how are these habits actually made?
Habits are built from 4 key components that work together in a proven framework: Cue → Craving → Routine → Reward. These steps are what your brain goes through every time it performs a habit.
Let's break down each step:
1. Cue: The Trigger
The cue is what makes the habit start—it's the trigger that kicks everything off. Think about how a notification from your phone makes you automatically reach for it without even thinking. That notification is the cue, and your brain has learned to associate it with the reward of entertainment or connection.
There are five common types of cues that trigger our habits:
- Location: A particular place triggers the behavior. Walking into your kitchen and seeing cookies on the counter automatically triggers the urge to eat them.
- Time: A specific time signals the habit. That 3 PM craving for coffee or a snack happens like clockwork.
- Emotional state: Feelings like stress or boredom act as powerful cues. When you're stressed, you might automatically reach for comfort food or start online shopping.
- Other people: Social situations trigger habits. Being around friends who smoke might trigger your own smoking habit, even if you weren't thinking about it.
- Preceding action: One action leads directly to the next. Making your morning coffee becomes the cue to check your phone or meditate.
This is why you shouldn't study in bed if possible—your bed is a powerful cue for sleeping, not focus. Always make your environment work for the habits you want, not against them.
2. Craving: The Motivation
Here's something crucial to understand: you don't actually crave the habit itself—you crave the change in state it delivers. You don't crave smoking a cigarette; you crave the feeling of relief it provides. You're not motivated by brushing your teeth, but by the feeling of a clean mouth. You don't want to turn on the TV; you want to be entertained.
Every craving is linked to a desire to change how you feel inside. When the cue appears, your brain remembers the reward and gives you a hit of dopamine to motivate the behavior.
3. Routine: The Action
The routine is the behavior itself—the actual thing you do in response to the cue. It could be brushing your teeth, running for 30 minutes, smoking, scrolling social media, or any other action. This is what the whole process is building toward, whether it's good or bad for you.
4. Reward: The Payoff
The reward is the positive outcome you get after completing the routine. It's what gives your brain a reason to remember and repeat the behavior. Rewards can be internal (feeling accomplished, satisfied, or relieved) or external (treats, breaks, praise from others).
Here's the crucial part: If a behavior is insufficient in any of the four stages, it will not become a habit. Eliminate the cue and your habit will never start. Reduce the craving and you won't experience enough motivation to act. Make the behavior difficult and you won't be able to do it. And if the reward fails to satisfy your desire, then you'll have no reason to do it again in the future. Without the first three steps, a behavior will not occur. Without all four, a behavior will not be repeated.
| PROBLEM PHASE | SOLUTION PHASE | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Cue | 2. Craving | 3. Response | 4. Reward |
| Your phone buzzes with a new text message. | You want to learn the contents of the message. | You grab your phone and read the text. | You satisfy your craving to read the message. Grabbing your phone becomes associated with your phone buzzing. |
| You are answering emails. | You begin to feel stressed and overwhelmed by work. You want to feel in control. | You bite your nails. | You satisfy your craving to reduce stress. Biting your nails becomes associated with answering email. |
| You wake up. | You want to feel alert. | You drink a cup of coffee. | You satisfy your craving to feel alert. Drinking coffee becomes associated with waking up. |
| You smell a doughnut shop as you walk down the street near your office. | You begin to crave a doughnut. | You buy a doughnut and eat it. | You satisfy your craving to eat a doughnut. Buying a doughnut becomes associated with walking down the street near your office. |
| You hit a stumbling block on a project at work. | You feel stuck and want to relieve your frustration. | You pull out your phone and check social media. | You satisfy your craving to feel relieved. Checking social media becomes associated with feeling stalled at work. |
| You walk into a dark room. | You want to be able to see. | You flip the light switch. | You satisfy your craving to see. Turning on the light switch becomes associated with being in a dark room. |
Here's how it all connects: It starts with the cue, which triggers a craving for the reward you remember getting before. That craving motivates you to perform the routine. When you complete the routine and get the reward, it creates a belief in your brain that this pattern is worth remembering. So next time the same cue appears, your brain recalls that belief and automatically triggers the craving again, leading you through the routine toward the expected reward.
By the time we become adults, we rarely notice the habits that are running our lives. Most of us never give a second thought to the fact that we tie the same shoe first each morning, or unplug the toaster after each use, or always change into comfortable clothes after getting home from work. After decades of mental programming, we automatically slip into these patterns of thinking and acting.
This is how habits become automatic—and why they're so powerful when you learn to design them intentionally.