Our Approach
Overview
Interdisciplinary Roots
Our approach is built upon a unique synthesis of behavioral science, design, and cinematic storytelling. By merging these distinct disciplines, we create a methodology that is as analytically rigorous as it is emotionally resonant.
The Art of Storytelling
Carly’s background in filmmaking and documentary production brings a vital narrative dimension to our work. With a career dedicated to exploring complex themes of sustainability, she mastered the ability to translate abstract global challenges into compelling, human stories. Her experience at TeaLeaves demonstrated that visual storytelling is not merely an aesthetic choice, but a powerful tool for influence—one that can bypass traditional barriers to reach the heart of an audience and inspire genuine movement.
The Science of Interaction
Karel’s foundations in cognitive science, clinical psychology, and human-computer interaction provide a deep understanding of the mechanics of human thought and digital engagement. This academic rigor was forged into practical leadership during his tenure as a senior design executive at IBM. His work co-founding global initiatives, such as the Covid-19 Design Challenge, proved that professional design thinking can be mobilized at scale to solve urgent, real-world problems by empowering talented individuals to apply their skills toward the greater good.
Core Principles
The whole organization follows eight core principles that our founders developed and shared at the kickoff meeting.
Foundational Books
The books shown here influenced the approach we take at Habits for a Better World in a variety of ways from how we deal with expertise to what we assume humans are like, to various evidence-based practices for inspiring behavior change and techniques for forming habits out of behavior change. The books shown here influenced the approach we take at Habits for a Better World in a variety of ways from how we deal with expertise to what we assume humans are like, to various evidence-based practices for inspiring behavior change and techniques for forming habits out of behavior change.
Three books stand out regarding their outsized influence.
Moral Ambition
Rutger Bregman’s book “Moral Ambition” came out after we started our project but it so effectively captures the why so many people volunteered to join our organization. It was their moral ambition to use their skills to create a better world. Bregman encourages people to leave their jobs and dedicate themselves to making a better world. However, we believe that people can stay in their jobs tofeed their wallets and work with us to feed their souls and make a difference in the world.
Design for a Better World
Don Norman’s “Design for a Better World” was written while he and Karel led an initiative called the Future of Design Education. In this book, Don shifts his focus from designing objects to the wicked problems facing global society. He argues that human behavior is both the cause of these problems but also key to fixing them. He makes the case for designers to stop just being “makers of things” and start being “facilitators of change”. HBW designers follow the approach shared in Don’s book and he and Karel’s initiative.
Atomic Habits
James Clear’s seminal book reinforced key elements of Karel and Carly’s early principles like rejecting an all-or-none approach to a more gradual one.
Our Habits Challenge Launch Workflow
Based on the foundational generative research and taking inspiration from various books described above, our cross functional teams has formulated effective workflow to successfully launch Habits Challenge.
1) Our content team mines the synthesized findings from our initial generative research teams for the evidence-based most desired behaviors to promote and the blockers to unblock and the mis- and dis-information to counter. They then use effective communication science to create copy for social media campaigns and science-based habit development practices to provide to the Community Hub moderators.
2) After having created a full set of Branding Guidelines, for a particular Habits Challenge, our Branding Team selects the key colors from the full color palette and a visual that aligns with the theme of the challenge together with the social media templates.
Our social media team then picks up the copy from the content team and the brandling elements from the Branding Team and the designers creatively craft campaigns including posts, reels, carousels, etc.
3) Our website team then updates the home page announcing the next Habits Challenge, adds some social media content to visualize what the challenge is about, and includes other evidence-based content regarding it.
4) Our AI Team finds evidence-based data from reputable sources, synthesizes it, and puts it into optimal machine readable form that can be used by our AI assistant to answer user inquires. They also then have a battery of tests, including Red Teaming, to ensure the injected knowledge source is accurate, unbiased, and safe.
5) Community Hub is where most of the action actually happens during a Habits Challenge. Habits Challenge participants sign into our Community Hub—which is like our own social media space—where moderators make suggestions to participants regarding sub-challenges to try, often giving a few alternatives to consider. The base prompts are provided by our Content Team.
6) Finally, Our Growth and Insights Team that focuses on acquiring participants and tracking their experience to us; a UX Research and Impact Team that carries out surveys, studies, and assesses impact through ecologically valid measures and metrics; a Project Management Team that keeps everything on track; and finally we have an In-Person Activation Team that designs and puts on events.