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What it argues
Triggers is Marshall Goldsmith's examination of why behavioral change is so persistently difficult, even for intelligent, self-aware people who genuinely want to change. The central insight is that the environment triggers behavior constantly and mostly without our awareness — and that the gap between who we intend to be and who we actually are at any given moment is largely a function of environmental triggers acting on us before we can exercise deliberate choice.
Goldsmith identifies the categories of triggers: environmental cues that produce automatic behavioral responses, organizational pressures that compromise values under stress, interpersonal dynamics that bring out the worst in us, and our own beliefs about why change is unnecessary or impossible. He is particularly incisive on the self-beliefs that block change: "I have too much on my mind to change," "I won't be able to sustain the change," "I didn't create this problem," "The problem is not that bad."
What it gets right
- 1.
The environment triggers behavior constantly and mostly unconsciously. Lasting change requires designing your environment, not just forming intentions.
- 2.
The gap between who we want to be and who we are is largely a function of triggers acting on us before we've exercised conscious choice.
- 3.
The six beliefs that block change: I have too much on my mind, I won't be able to sustain it, I don't need to change, the problem isn't that bad, my colleagues need to change first, and I'll deal with it later.
What it covers
Who wrote it
Marshall Goldsmith is an executive coach and author who has been ranked among the world's most influential management thinkers. He holds a doctorate from UCLA Anderson School of Management and has coached more than 150 major CEOs and their management teams. His methodology centers on behavioral change through stakeholder engagement and consistent practice rather than insight or therapy. Triggers follows his breakthrough book What Got You Here Won't Get You There and extends the behavioral change framework to the environmental and psychological roots of leadership behavior.
