According to the study from the authors of the New York Times bestseller, Influencer: The Power to Change Anything (McGraw-Hill, 2007), those who use four or more influence strategies to change bad habits are four times more likely to succeed.

The survey of more than 1000 Americans also revealed that the reason most people give up on changing their bad behaviors is because their approach usually consists of only one “magic bullet” solution—a trend proven by the $23 billion Americans spend annually on diet pills (The Diet Drug Report, 2007).

Joseph Grenny, co-author of Influencer, says despite decades of failure, the good news is that most people are just an idea or two away from overcoming their most resistant habits.

“Forget diet pills and quick-fix solutions,” says Grenny. “The key to real change is to guarantee success by leveraging as many strategies of influence as you can.”

Grenny’s new book Influencer teaches that there are six possible influence strategies or sources that determine how we behave. And if people learn to leverage these sources, change becomes inevitable.

The Six Sources of Influence:

1. Personal Motivation – overcome your own reluctance and resistance

2. Personal Ability – learn how to master the necessary skills for success

3. Social Motivation – enlist help from leaders or other opinion-leaders

4. Social Ability – leverage teamwork

5. Structural Motivation – reward your early successes

6. Structural Ability – surround yourself with a supportive physical environment

For example, one respondent demonstrated how after decades of struggling to lose weight she increased her physical activity and changed her life when she marshaled multiple sources of influence.

“I was inactive for many years. After a serious health condition almost took my life, I knew I had to change my ways. I changed everything about my life to make exercise a very high priority. I started working part time instead of full time. I made time to exercise before work. I changed my diet by bringing my lunch to work. I ‘put my house on a diet’ and made an agreement with my family to keep bad food out. I engaged my husband in the effort by him agreeing to watch the kids while I worked out. Since I changed the influences in my life, I have not only lost the weight but also kept it off.”