My last two pieces on changing behavior through consumer empowerment addressed: (1) Hooking consumers with targeting and tailoring, and (2) Teaching empowerment building strategies (Honor people’s preferences; Educate with trusted content; Activate through evidence-based behavior change programs; Connect them to their community).

Truth be told, that was the easy part. The hard, “rocket science,” part is sustaining change.

We are all creatures of habit, most of which are formed in childhood. When Aunt Rhonda gave you a lollipop after you did well on your third-grade spelling test, you learned that food was a reward. When you saw your dad light up a cigarette after a fight with your mom, you learned that smoking was a stress management technique. When you went to the doctor for “a visit” and ended up with a vaccination, you learned that doctors are powerful people who can cause pain.

Now, we want you to forget all that. Become an empowered consumer. Inhale deep cleansing breaths, not nicotine, when you’re under stress. Prepare for your doctor visits, and challenge unnecessary treatment recommendations.

These are noble goals. And, fortunately, many people see the value of these changes to their health. So, again and again, well-intentioned people commit to turning over a new leaf. It’s a great start.

Then, life happens. People get sick. Relationships struggle. Money runs short, and tempers run shorter. These stressors make it difficult to sustain change. Under pressure, we fall back into old habits.

Effective behavior change programs are designed with these realities in mind. These are “don’t release” programs that continue to offer support and coaching over time. What separates the “quick-fix” (high-relapse) programs from ones that effectively support long-term, healthy lifestyles? The effective programs will:

• Set expectations up front. Tell people to expect setbacks and to plan in advance how to navigate them. Bad days happen. But a bad day doesn’t have to become an abandoned plan.
• Coach people to reframe slip-ups as learning opportunities. A person trying to lose weight may be frustrated by overeating at a party. But what lesson was learned? Eat a healthy snack before going so you aren’t as hungry when you show up? Turn down the next invitation like this because it was the wrong mix of people for you?
• Keep the motivation engines revving. Motivation triggers new action. Motivators can be internal, like the desire to feel better, sleep better, or be a role model to others. Motivators can be external, too, such as financial incentives from an employer or relationship pressure from a doctor or spouse. To reinforce the new action, motivation must continue. Actions, done consistently over time, will eventually become habits. But until that tipping point happens, people need fuel for their motivational fire and to keep the brain’s reward center engaged.

These techniques—along with goal setting, social support, and offering novel and more difficult tasks over time—help people develop new, sustainable habits.

Old habits may die hard. But lasting change is possible. And, with the right stuff, it can taste way better than lollipops and cigarettes.