Designed for Human Success: work with the brain you have, not with the one you think you've got.

You don’t really know what’s helpful until it helps you.
And a lot of what we think should help…doesn’t.
Here are 3 quick stories where the “obvious fix” wasn’t the fix.

1) Better Eating (without more willpower)

We assume the solution is more nutrition facts, more reminders, more motivation. But the most powerful lever isn’t in your head - it’s in your kitchen.

Research shows: when plates, packages, and serving bowls are bigger, people eat more. Shrink them and your intake drops - no pep talk, willpower, or complex strategy required. That’s not opinion; it’s one of the most robust findings in food behavior research.

It turns out, how you stock your fridge, changing what's most available is a lot better strategy than deciding to "be different".

Try this today: next supermarket run, restock your fridge so the first thing you see is the food you want to reach for (cut fruit, washed greens, protein you actually cook). Put “sometimes foods” out of sight or in much smaller containers. Smaller plates help too. Don't work harder - make the right thing easy.

2) Choosing People (your “zip-code effect”)

We like to believe our choices are purely our own. Free will. Hustle. Discipline. Yet the data shows our environment - specifically our people - quietly shapes a huge share of our health and behavior, career choices, and even what you wear or where you go on vacation.

Research shows: in city after city, your neighborhood predicts health outcomes better than your genes. And within that context, income and local norms correlate with how long we live and how we live.

Practical move: map your “default influences.” Who do you eat with, work next to, swap messages with before bed? Add one person whose default is the habit you want (the walker, the reader, the builder, the exerciser, the high achiever). Change who you sit with on purpose. Follow social media accounts that model the behavior you seek, not just the outcomes you envy.

3) Motivation at Work (progress, not perks)

We think motivation to do better work comes from money, perks, the fancy office. They matter, but the real engine of your best work is the felt sense of making progress on meaningful work

Research shows: When people can see forward motion, engagement and performance climb; when they can’t, they disengage no matter the perks. That’s what Teresa Amabile and Steven Kramer found analyzing 12,000 work-day diary entries across 7 companies. And other researchers confirm - when we see no progress, we don't try.

Make it visible: end the day with a “Progress Note” - document 3 small wins. Ship work in smaller chunks so progress is easier to notice. Leaders: instrument progress like your KPIs depends on it - because they kind of do! Don’t guess; show people their work is adding up.

The bottom line: stop fighting your brain. Align what you need to do with how humans really work - intentional environments, smarter social defaults, and visible progress. Start with one tiny architectural change this week:

  • Kitchen: make the first reach the right reach; use smaller plates.

  • People: upgrade one default influencer on the habit you want.

  • Work: install a daily progress check that you can see.

Over to you dear reader, what do you want to change? If it's a struggle, are you sure you are working with the brain you have? Or the one you think you've got?