In my book Indistractable, I spend time discussing the concept of precommitments as means of behavior change. One useful precommitment is the “price pact” -- a precommitment that involves putting money on the line to motivate us. Consider a study where smokers wishing to quit were placed into 3 random groups. The first group was given traditional smoking cessation treatments such as informational materials on the benefits of quitting and nicotine patches. Next, the “reward group”, was told they’d be given $800 at the end of the study if they managed to stop smoking for 6 months. The last group, the “deposit group”, was required to make a precommitment deposit of $150, and if they didn’t smoke during the study, they’d get their deposit back and an additional $650 -- totaling out to $800. The results? The “deposit group” members were nearly 9 times more likely to quit than those in the first group and 3 times more likely to quit than those in the reward group. This became the most successful smoking cessation trial ever conducted. If making a “price pact” helped people stop using a highly addictive substance like nicotine, it can also help people become Indistractable. Understanding these quirks of human psychology helps us design the lives we want. #Indistractable …see more