Quotes from Chip Heath

surprise can warp our perceptions of time, and why most people's most memorable experiences are clustered in their teens and twenties.

When the researchers compared whether process or analysis was more important in producing good decisions—those that increased revenues, profits, and market share—they found that "process mattered more than analysis—by a factor of six." Often a good process led to better analysis—for instance, by ferreting out faulty logic.

developers understand what's being asked of them but resent being forced to change their beautiful code for the dummies in their audience.

Our struggles with e-mail are a bit pathetic, but the larger topic is worth considering: Is it possible to design an environment in which undesired behaviors—whether yours or your colleagues'—are made not only harder but impossible? As it turns out, lots of people actually make their living contemplating how to wipe out the wrong kinds of behaviors.

But they were devout Catholics, and they had tremendous faith in their marriage. She said that every night, after a tough day, they'd put their hands together in bed so that their rings touched, and they'd repeat their wedding vows to each other.

They think if something is simple enough to be put in a checklist, a monkey can do it. Well, if that's true, grab a pilot's checklist and try your luck with a 747.

People find it more motivating to be partly finished with a longer journey than to be at the starting gate of a shorter one.

Many people have discovered that, when it comes to changing their own behavior, environmental tweaks beat self-control every time.

avoid useless accuracy, and to dodge the Curse of Knowledge, is to use analogies.

What's least commonsensical is that pits can sometimes be flipped into peaks.

If we want more moments of connection, we need to be more responsive to others.

If a message can't be used to make predictions or decisions, it is without value, no matter how accurate or comprehensive it is.

the pop-psychology literature is full of gurus urging you to visualize success. It turns out that a positive mental attitude isn't quite enough to get the job done. Maybe financial gurus shouldn't be telling us to imagine that we're filthy rich; instead, they should be telling us to replay the steps that led to our being poor.

Transitions should be marked, milestones commemorated, and pits filled.

To change behavior, you've got to direct the Rider, motivate the Elephant, and shape the Path. If you can do all three at once, dramatic change can happen even if you don't have lots of power or resources behind you.

acting with responsiveness to others can create tighter bonds:

To spark moments of connection for groups, we must create shared meaning. That can be accomplished by three strategies: (1) creating a synchronized moment; (2) inviting shared struggle; and (3) connecting to meaning.

punch line: The most basic way to make people care is to form an association between something they don't yet care about and something they do care about.

We all have defining moments in our lives—meaningful experiences that stand out in our memory. Many of them owe a great deal to chance: A lucky encounter with someone who becomes the love of your life. A new teacher who spots a talent you didn't know you had. A sudden loss that upends the certainties of your life.

A million seconds is 12 days. A billion is 1,000 times greater than 1,000,000. A billion seconds is 32 years.

Simple ideas: short sentences (compact) drawn from long experience

We want what we might call a destination postcard—a vivid picture from the near-term future that shows what could be possible. That

In 2016, the $148 million allocated to the National Endowment for the Arts accounted for .004% of the federal budget expenditures ($3.9 trillion). Suppose we eliminated it in response to criticism? Trying to balance the budget by eliminating the NEA would be like editing a 90,000-word novel by eliminating 4 words.

The style is not important. What's important is authenticity: being personal not programmatic. And frequency: closer to weekly than yearly. And of course what's most important is the message: "I saw what you did and I appreciate it.