Want Real, Lasting Change? It’s Time to Try a Different Approach. | Eric Zimmer
Good Life Project
Jonathan Fields / Acast
4.5 • 3.4K Ratings
🗓️ 23 March 2026
⏱️ 48 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Stop blaming willpower and start building the skill of making change stick for good. Pretty much every person wants to change something, about themselves, their lives, or situation. But, so few ever succeed at creating change, let alone sustaining it.
In this conversation, we explore why real transformation is a learnable process rather than a test of grit. We look at the emotional hurdles that stop us and how to navigate the "alphabet" of success.
Our guest today is Eric Zimmer, the host of the award-winning podcast The One You Feed and author of the new book, How a Little Becomes a Lot: The Art of Small Changes for a More Meaningful Life. Eric has spent decades studying behavior change, transforming his own life from addiction to becoming a leading voice in personal growth.
Together, we explore:
- The Three-Part Direction Rule: A specific strategy that ensures your small efforts actually accumulate into big results over time.
- The Still Point Method: A practical tool to interrupt negative thought patterns before they ruin your day.
- The Truth About Value Clashes: Why your inner conflict between security and freedom is the secret culprit behind your procrastination.
- Neutral Thinking: A critical mindset shift that allows you to bypass the emotional drama that usually makes you quit.
- The 90 Percent Rule: Why most of the change process happens before you ever take a single action.
If you are tired of the cycle of starting and stopping, it is time to change your approach. Play this episode to learn the practical, science-backed steps to finally becoming the person you want to be.
You can find Eric at: Website | Instagram | Episode Transcript
Next week, we're sharing our conversation with Arthur Brooks about The Meaning of Your Life and practical, science-backed ways to find purpose and discover your deepest calling.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Okay, so if you ask a hundred people if there's something meaningful that they really want to |
| 0:04.6 | change about their lives, almost every single one will say yes. But if you ask those same people |
| 0:10.8 | how many actually have tried and succeeded, the numbers get pretty discouraging pretty quickly. |
| 0:16.9 | We tend to think that if we can't stick to a new routine, it's because we're lazy or unmotivated or just not wired for success. |
| 0:24.0 | But my guest today, and old friend, Eric Zimmer, has a much kinder or more practical take. |
| 0:29.9 | He argues that change is not a personality trait. |
| 0:32.9 | It's a skill. |
| 0:33.9 | And like any skill, it's something you can get better at with the right tools and practice. |
| 0:39.4 | Eric is the host of the One You Feed podcast and the author of the new book, How a Little |
| 0:43.7 | becomes a lot. He's someone who has walked the path from the depths of addiction to helping |
| 0:49.6 | thousands of people navigate their own transformations. And today we're breaking down a three-part framework for consistent progress |
| 0:56.6 | and talking about a simple way to catch those self-sabotaging thoughts |
| 1:00.9 | before they actually take over. |
| 1:03.6 | We even get into why your values might be fighting each other and how to fix that. |
| 1:08.2 | So excited to share this conversation with you. |
| 1:10.3 | I'm Donovan Fields, and this |
| 1:12.4 | is Good Life Project. |
| 1:17.8 | Eric Zimmer, you and I have been rolling together as colleagues, as friends, for years now, |
| 1:25.3 | and we have had so many conversations on the mic, off the mic a lot more, |
| 1:29.7 | about this thing called change. |
| 1:34.3 | You know, most people genuinely want to change something, something in their lives, |
| 1:42.2 | whether it's a relationship, their well-being, their mental health, their work, you name it, there's something in there. |
... |
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