When it comes to change that sticks, willpower is overrated. So are tactics and techniques. In fact, most of our efforts fail, not due to lack of determination, but something more simpler, but also more insidious.
Marshall Goldsmith, one of the world's most respected executive coaches, spent decades studying why smart, determined people still fail at change. His finding? The culprit isn't usually lack of effort or knowledge.
Instead, it's our default notions about change. In his classic Triggers, Goldsmith calls these belief triggers. These are simple, reasonable-sounding assumptions that sound like common sense.
"Once I understand something, I'll do it." "This time will be different." "I have the willpower to resist temptation."
It's precisely their sound logic that makes them dangerous. Like invisible malware running in the background, they silently determine our fate long before we begin.
In this edition, I examine the 15 triggers Goldsmith identifies and the link to systems thinking.
Why call them “belief triggers”?
"Belief" because it feels true. These aren't delusional thoughts but mental defaults. They sound reasonable, even wise, shaping how we interpret effort, success, feedback, and setbacks.
"Triggers" because they set off predictable reactions. When we try to change something, these beliefs start firing:
- Rationalizations (“Just this once…”)
- Miscalibrated optimism (“This time will be different…”)
- False closure (“I already know this”)
Our seemingly innocuous assumptions preload failure into the system, setting the conditions for it.
What follows are the most common belief triggers. The headings are beliefs followed by what it triggers (within brackets).
1. If I understand, I’ll do [confusion]
Confuses intellectual grasp with actual change in behavior.
We assume that knowing is enough. That once we grasp an idea logically and intellectually, it will translate into action. But that’s not how behavior change works.
Understanding something is like reading about swimming. It gives us the illusion of competence, but doesn’t prepare us for the water. Real learning requires trying, stumbling, and adjusting. Until we’ve enacted something in real conditions, we haven’t actually learned it. Just named it.
As obvious as it is in swimming (physical reality), when it comes to behavior change (mental reality), we forget about this basic fact.
This belief also shuts down learning. We think "I already know this" and stop listening. A more useful lens is: "Have I implemented this consistently, under real-world conditions, long enough for it to become second nature?"
2. I have willpower and won’t give in to temptation [overconfidence]
Overestimates consistency under duress.
We make plans when we feel motivated. But execution happens later, when we're busy, distracted, and depleted. That's where most plans fall apart.
This belief assumes a steady reservoir of willpower. But research consistently shows that self-control fluctuates. When we hit decision fatigue, our practiced behavior takes over, not our promises.
Design beats discipline. High performers don’t rely on grit alone. They create external structures, friction-reducing routines, and environments that make the right behavior easier and the wrong one harder.
3. Today is a special day [inconsistency]
Grants self-permission to break the rules
“Just this once” starts most derailments. When we give ourselves a pass due to stress, celebration, crisis, or simply a deviation from routine, we reinforce a deeper pattern of inconsistency.
The problem isn’t an exception or two. It’s the accumulation of exceptions that starts to define the new norm.
Consistency dies by a thousand cuts. When every day gets rationalized as “special,” we become someone who can’t trust themselves to follow through.
4. At least I’m better than... [immunity]
Justifies stagnation by downward comparison
When we don’t meet our own standards, we look for others worse off and use them as a yardstick. If we’re doing better than them, maybe we’re not doing so badly after all.
It’s a subtle form of self-protection. But downward comparison is a trap. It prevents growth by shifting the focus away from personal benchmarks onto relative mediocrity. Over time, it lowers our standards.
Meaningful progress has to be anchored in who we're becoming, not who we're outperforming.
5. I shouldn’t need help and structure [exceptionalism]
Romanticizes self-reliance at the expense of effectiveness.
This belief is common among high achievers. It’s the idea that if something is worth doing, you should be able to do it, unaided. That needing structure means you’re weak and accountability is for amateurs.
But if the pros surround themselves with coaches, systems, and constraints, why wouldn’t we?
External structure doesn’t mean you’re broken. It means we’re optimizing for reality. In that sense, humility is the key to change, not heroics.
6. I won’t get tired and my enthusiasm won’t fade [depletion]
Fails to account for the inevitability of depletion
We plan from a place of energy. But change happens in the trenches when we're exhausted, unmotivated, and pulled in multiple directions.
The assumption is that motivation will remain stable, which it won’t. When it dips (as it inevitably will), we abandon our efforts if our plans are built on the expectation of perfect enthusiasm.
Design with energy variability in mind. Flexibility, fallback modes, and pacing aren’t a lack of ambition but good engineering.
7. I have all the time in the world [procrastination]
Delays action with a false sense of abundance.
This is subtle. We don’t say “I’ll never do this.” Instead, it is, “Just not now.”
But later is a moving target. The perfect time never arrives. We tell ourselves that a future version of us, a less busy and more focused one, will handle it. But that future self never shows up.
When everything is optional, nothing sticks. Change requires urgency, not the frenzied kind but of sustained focus.
8. I won’t get distracted and nothing unexpected will occur [unrealistic expectations]
Plans as if life will cooperate.
We act as if the path ahead will be smooth, the environment predictable, and our attention intact. But life doesn't run on our calendar.
Goldsmith calls this the "high probability of low-probability events." Any one particular disruption may be unlikely, but some kind of disruption is highly probable.
If you plan for perfect conditions, you’ll fail under real ones. The ability to bend keeps us from breaking.
9. An epiphany will suddenly change my life [magical thinking]
→ Waits for lightning instead of building a fire
We love the idea of turning points, a single insight that shifts everything. It makes for great stories. But real change is iterative, not cinematic.
Even when insight strikes, it still needs to be enacted, tested, revised, and maintained. Waiting for the perfect realization is a subtle form of avoidance. It postpones the hard work of doing.
Progress relies more on repetition than revelation.
10. My change will be permanent [false permanence]
Treats transformation as a one-and-done event.
We like to believe that once we make a breakthrough, we’ll stay changed. That once we become a “disciplined person,” we’ll never need to think about it again.
But maintenance is the work. Habits atrophy, and contexts shift. The forces that pulled you off track in the past don’t disappear just because you’ve had a good week.
Change is an infinite game, less like flipping a switch and more like tending a fire.
11. Solving old problems won’t bring new ones [misunderstanding future challenges]
Assumes life gets simpler with progress.
Every solved problem creates the conditions for a more complex one. That’s not a failure of the process. It is the process.
Got promoted? Now you deal with politics. Built confidence? Now you have to manage expectations. Lost weight? Now you have to sustain it.
Mature change efforts don’t assume that success leads to eternal peace. Instead, it assumes that growth brings new complexity. So we better expect it.
12. My efforts will be fairly rewarded [resentment]
Expects a just world, gets disillusionment instead.
This is the fairness fallacy: the belief that hard work will be recognized and reciprocated in the way we want. But organizations and life don’t work that way.
By tying the value of our effort to external acknowledgment, we set ourselves up for resentment. Not because it isn’t worthy, but because we handed over the scorecard.
Work toward your goals, but the effort needs to be its own reward. At the very least, diversify your sources of validation.
13. No one is paying attention to me [isolation]
Underestimates visibility and ripple effects.
In change, especially subtle change that’s slow to realize, it’s easy to assume no one is noticing. Often, they don’t at first. But in leadership, even small behaviors send signals.
People may not mention it, but they’re watching your consistency, reactivity, and tone. Quiet change is still contagious.
Ironically, it’s often your worst moments, not your best, that are remembered.
14. If I change, I’m being inauthentic [stubbornness]
Confuses comfort with integrity.
We equate what’s familiar with what’s “real.” But much of what we call authenticity is just habit with a justification attached. It isn’t about staying the same but aligning your behavior with what you value.
Trying something new will always feel awkward. That’s not inauthenticity but growing pains. New behavior becomes authentic through repetition, not ideology.
15. I have the wisdom to assess my own behavior [impaired objectivity]
Relies on self-assessment while ignoring self-deception.
We all think we’re the exception and that we see ourselves clearly. But studies show otherwise. We overrate our strengths, underestimate blind spots, and rationalize our failures.
Real self-awareness requires mirrors, not just introspection, but also clear feedback.
If you’re serious about change, outsource some of your self-perception. You can’t audit your own blind spot.
In closing
As the systems thinking iceberg shows, visible change is at the “events” level, tactics and techniques are at the “structures” level, while working with your belief triggers is at the much deeper (more effective) levels of "models and stance". That’s why Goldsmith focuses on belief triggers before tactics.
Staying alert to them is a high ROI activity.
The power of belief triggers lies in their partial truth. Each contains a kernel of wisdom that makes it resistant to examination. Of course, understanding helps change, and of course, willpower matters.
But these fragments of truth mask the fact that real, lasting change is an imperfect process. One that emerges from the messy intersection of intention and circumstance, of our internal will and external reality.
Long-term change is an adaptive challenge that requires us to evolve how we relate to change itself.