How do you design change interventions that actually stick?

Interventions stick when they address the forces that operate at the moment of action, not just the forces that operate in a planning meeting. This is the critical distinction most change programs miss.

The SHIFT framework structures this in five stages. Specify the target behavior with enough precision to diagnose. Hypothesize the causes using COM-B to identify whether the barrier is capability, opportunity, or motivation. Design the Intervention by selecting matched strategies. Facilitate the change by building it into existing systems rather than layering it on top. Test and iterate because the first design is rarely the final one.

The "stick" factor comes from three design principles.

First, reduce friction on the new behavior and increase friction on the old one. If the new process takes four more clicks, it will lose to the old one. Redesign the environment so the new behavior is the easier path.

Second, build social proof. People take cues from peers more than from executives. Identify early adopters and make their success visible. Create champions who model the behavior in real work contexts, not just in training rooms. When people see someone they respect doing the new behavior and getting results, motivation shifts.

Third, use implementation intentions. These are specific if-then plans: "When I finish a client call, I will log the interaction in the new CRM before opening my next email." Research shows that pre-committing to a specific trigger-behavior pair dramatically increases follow-through because it turns a vague intention into an automatic response.

Interventions that combine environmental redesign, social proof, and implementation intentions address all three COM-B categories simultaneously. That is what makes them durable.