Comments on: On Changing Behavior

By: Jess Lundie

Jess Lundie — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 06:15:41 +0000

I took a seed saving class through the Oly Co-Op and it was fantastic too! We have such an amazing community resource there. I <3 them.

By: Nabil @ 50 års present

Nabil @ 50 års present — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 14:48:47 +0000

I took a cooking class by The Olympia Food Co-Op and I must say that I’m amazed. Definitely something to check out if you’re even the slightest interested in cooking healthy food.
Nabil @ 50 års present recently posted..Hej världen!

By: Jess

Jess — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 18:10:26 +0000

Yes! Absolutely. First though, you need to figure out what you mean by “healthy.” My personal “healthy” is minimal processed foods, pasture-raised animal products, healthy oils and fats, lots of veggies, minimal grains (and then soaked or fermented). Clearly, for me, a typical low-fat health food cookbook is going to have very little to offer.

The biggest mistake I see people make is going to the store and buying a lot of raw ingredients for food they wouldn’t normally eat even if someone else was cooking it.

Personally, I would pick one thing at a time that you LIKE to eat and want to add. Learn to cook that and be prepared for the fact that the first one or two times, it is going to taste imperfect but edible. Then pick another thing and learn that.

What kind of food do you guys like to eat? And what is “healthy”? Let me know and I can help more with books/sites.

The Olympia Food Co-Op is offering some great cooking classes this summer: http://www.olympiafood.coop/classes/

By: Rose Terlaje

Rose Terlaje — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 11:01:42 +0000

I really need to change the default settings in my household. The snack are easy, buy fruit instead of cookies. However, I have one huge problem….I can’t cook. It’s totally my fault, I hate cooking so I never tried to learn. I am almost convinced that even if I did learn how to cook, it would be the extremely fattening and unhealthy southern food that I grew up on. I have bought cookbooks for healthy cooking and when I take it home and open it up it seems to be in a different language. I go out and buy all of these veggies and intend on making an actual dinner out of them and end up staring at them for a good thirty minutes before pulling the frozen pizza out of my freezer. Do u know of any good websites, books, or even classes offered around here that could teach me how to cook healthy?

By: Behavior & Cheez-Its | Openly Balanced

Behavior & Cheez-Its | Openly Balanced — Wed, 25 May 2011 01:23:14 +0000

[...] changing your defaults to change behavior, there is a lot of power in simply becoming aware of how your responding to reinforcement cycles [...]

By: Jess

Jess — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 06:56:32 +0000

I like this one. My store gives a 5 cent credit for every bag you bring, but that is not nearly as effective as charging for bags. I was glad to see Washington DC adopt the policy, and it would be great to see more businesses move that way independent of government regulation.

By: Janet in Toronto

Janet in Toronto — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 23:32:52 +0000

Retail stores in my city were recently required to charge 5 cents for a bag. So now, the default is “no bag” (unless you pay). The change in behaviour at grocery stores is amazing…people who bring their own cloth bags/bins far outnumber plastic bag users. All to save 5 cents per bag.

By: Carnival of the Green #212 « Save the Environment

Carnival of the Green #212 « Save the Environment — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 17:37:47 +0000

[...] Jess suggests: Don’t drag them kicking and screaming to greenness. Studies indicate that one of the most effective ways to change behavior is to change the default [...]

By: Jess

Jess — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 19:44:36 +0000

Thank you! I, too, am the I’ll get around to it type (is anyone not? possibly my husband…weird). I think that if we make it easier on ourselves to make balanced choices, we will see really positive changes in our lives and in the world. I would imagine there is probably a lovely zen saying somewhere that encapsulates this concept.

By: Jess

Jess — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 19:18:26 +0000

Hi Shaunta – I’m so glad you liked the site!

I had never thought about gluten and portability, but it definitely is true. And what a perfect example of how changing defaults changed the behavior. Plus I bet it was a lot easier than trying to convince the teenagers that junk food is bad!

By: Jamie

Jamie — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 19:08:46 +0000

You make a really good point, Jess. I have always been the “I’ll get around to it” person – especially with the 401k. When I got laid off of my last job I lost out on THOUSANDS of dollars! *kicking myself*

Though I always tell you that you are much more ‘big picture’ than I am I’m going to defiintely think about this one. The previous comment made about moving the junk food was a really good idea.

Great way to communicate the point ;P

By: Shaunta Alburger

Shaunta Alburger — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 02:03:18 +0000

Hi I followed your repsonse to my response on Sharon Astyk’s site about Seattle here. What a great site, I’m excited to read more.

One default that we’ve changed is having food with gluten put up and away, because I can’t eat it. Even crumbs make me sick. So it’s not kept in the kitchen at all. I’ve noticed my husband and teenagers are far more likely to grab fruit or even sit down with a bowl of soup instead of grabbing cookies or a pbj. It’s amazing how portable gluten makes food. I never thougth of that until I couldn’t eat it anymore.