The Puppy Training Method

The Puppy(ˈpəpē) Training Method(ˈmeTHəd)

By Leo Babauta

The mind is like a little puppy. It responds to rewards, but needs to be trained a little at a time, until you get it doing what you want it to do consistently(kənˈsistəntlē).

Now, I’m not saying we can 100% control our minds. Just that we can apply some reinforcement(ˌrē-inˈfôrsmənt) methods to get it to adjust to whatever we’d like, over time.

So let’s look at this puppy training method, and how it can be applied to our minds:

Decide(dəˈsīd) what your target(ˈtärgit) is. If you want the puppy to do a behavior, you have to decide what that behavior is, exactly. The same with the mind: do you want it to focus, to stay in discomfort in social situations(ˌsiCHo͞oˈāSHən), to turn towards feelings, to be present(priˈzent,ˈprezənt) with bodily(ˈbädl-ē) sensations(senˈsāSHən) when you’re stressed, to be compassionate(kəmˈpaSHənət) when someone complains(kəmˈplān)? Pick one target at a time.

Define(dəˈfīn) a reward. What does you mind enjoy? If you like having a cup of tea, or watching TED talks on Youtube, or reading Zen(zen) Habits blog posts … pick one of those for your defined reward. Try to pick something relatively(ˈrelədivlē) healthy (don’t pick donuts(ˈdōˌnət)), that you can give yourself immediately after you do the behavior.

Train yourself in small doses(dōs). It’s unrealistic(ˌənˌrēəˈlistik) to expect your mind to stay focused all day long. It gets tired. Trying to be perfect all the time is a good way to set up failure(ˈfālyər).

Reward yourself when you hit the target. If you do 20 minutes of focused work, give yourself a small reward.

But for difficult targets, have intermediate(ˌintərˈmēdē-it) targets. If you want the puppy to do something complicated(ˈkämpləˌkātid), you have to figure out an intermediate target. For example, if you want him to go to a certain spot(spät), first reward him for going to the right room, then the right area(ˈe(ə)rēə) of the room, then the spot.

Don’t punish(ˈpəniSH) bad behavior. But don’t reward it either. If you give in and do the negative behavior you don’t want to do (smoke, for example), don’t give yourself the reward. But beating(ˈbētiNG) yourself up isn’t helpful either. It used to be a common practice(ˈpraktəs) to smack(smak) the dog with a newspaper, but trainers today believe that doesn’t work as well as positive reinforcement(ˌrē-inˈfôrsmənt).

Train one behavior at a time. Most people are tempted(tem(p)t) to try to train everything at once. That’s more of an advanced training, once you’ve trained individual(ˌindəˈvijəwəl) behaviors.

As you can see, this isn’t as simple as just flipping(ˈflipiNG) a switch. This kind of training can be messy(ˈmesē) — you’ll mess up, and it won’t be simple and clear. But if you stick(stik) with it, you’ll be amazed(əˈmāz) at what you can get your puppy of a mind to do.

https://zenhabits.net/training/