"As a youngster (mid-twenties), this situation has taught me to be incredibly

What's killing us: smoking, drinking, diet, stress and lack of exercise has not changed for decades. From Fast Company, the May cover story is "Change or Die." As you can tell by the title, it is about changing behavior, whether it is for health reasons or business. John Kotter, a Harvard Business School Professor says that even in business " The central issue is never strategy, structure, culture, or systems. The core of the matter is always about changing the behavior of people."

MYTH: CRISIS IS A POWERFUL IMPETUS FOR CHANGE

REALITY: Ninety percent of patients who've had coronary bypasses don't maintain changes to the unhealthy lifestyles that worsen their severe heart disease and greatly threaten their lives.

MYTH: CHANGE IS MOTIVATED BY FEAR

REALITY: It's too easy for people to go into denial of the bad things that might happen to them. Compelling, positive visions of the future are a much stronger inspiration for change.

MYTH: THE FACTS WILL SET US FREE