"I made the same mistake again."
Kaito held his head. In the club room, Leo and Sora were doing assignments.
Leo looked up. "How many times?"
"I'm not counting. But many times."
Sora closed the book. "What kind of mistake?"
"Not listening to people until the end, interpreting on my own. That creates misunderstandings."
"You know that, but repeat it?" Kaito asked.
"Yes. Even when conscious of it, I realize I'm doing it."
Leo showed interest. "That's a habituated pattern."
"Habit?"
"Actions the brain has automated," Sora explained. "Executed without thinking."
Kaito asked, "Why does the brain do that?"
"For energy efficiency," Sora answered. "Consciously thinking about all actions exhausts the brain."
Leo supplemented, "So frequently done actions get automated."
"But what if it's a bad habit?" Kaito asked.
"It still gets automated," Sora answered. "The brain doesn't judge good or bad. Only frequency."
Kaito thought. "So things repeated many times become habits?"
"Exactly," Leo nodded. "In neuroscience, this is called 'neuroplasticity.'"
"Neuroplasticity?"
"The brain changing through experience," Sora explained. "Repeated actions strengthen neural circuits."
"Like roads," Leo compared. "Roads traveled many times get maintained and easier to walk."
Kaito understood. "So repeating the same mistake strengthens that neural circuit?"
"Correct," Sora acknowledged.
"Then how can I change it?" Kaito asked seriously.
"Create new neural circuits," Leo answered.
"How?"
"Consciously repeat new behavioral patterns," Sora explained.
Kaito asked, "For example?"
"Create a new habit of listening to people until the end."
"But that's difficult," Kaito said.
"It's difficult at first," Leo admitted. "Creating new roads is hard."
Sora supplemented, "But with repetition, it gradually becomes easier."
"How many repetitions?"
"Research shows an average of 66 days," Sora answered. "But there are individual differences."
Kaito was surprised. "66 days?"
"Habit formation takes time," Leo said. "But once created, it becomes automatic."
Sora explained, "There's a model called the habit loop."
"Habit loop?"
"Cue, routine, reward," Sora listed. "These three create habits."
Kaito asked, "In my case?"
"The cue is someone starting to talk. The routine is interpreting midway. The reward is... what?"
Kaito thought. "Feeling like I understood quickly, maybe."
"That's the reward," Leo pointed out. "The brain seeks immediate satisfaction."
Sora continued, "So you need to change that reward."
"Change the reward?"
"When you listen until the end, praise yourself. Recognize 'I listened properly.'"
Leo added, "Then the new behavior gets reinforced."
Kaito asked, "But won't I forget midway?"
"That's the problem," Sora admitted. "So you need reminders."
"Reminders?"
"Visual signs. For example, put a rubber band on your wrist."
Leo supplemented, "When you see the rubber band, remember 'listen until the end.'"
Kaito showed interest. "Does that work?"
"Yes," Sora answered. "A technique called implementation intention."
"Implementation intention?"
"Deciding in advance 'if X, then Y.'"
Leo gave an example. "'If someone starts talking, I'll listen until the end.'"
Kaito understood. "Pair the condition with the action."
"Yes. That makes automation easier."
Sora continued, "Another important thing is anticipating failure."
"Anticipate failure?"
"Understand you won't be perfect. If you fail, immediately course-correct."
Leo added, "Self-blame after failure lowers motivation."
"But recognize failure and use it next time."
Kaito asked, "Can the brain really change that much?"
"Neuroplasticity research shows the brain changes throughout life," Sora answered.
"Age doesn't matter?"
"Younger is more flexible, but adults can change enough."
Leo said, "There's research on London taxi drivers."
"Taxi drivers?"
"It was found that memorizing complex routes enlarges the brain's hippocampus."
Kaito was surprised. "Brain structure changes?"
"Yes. That's neuroplasticity," Sora explained.
"So my brain can change too."
"Of course," Leo smiled.
Sora summarized, "Repeating the same mistakes is a brain mechanism. But you can use that mechanism to create new patterns."
Kaito asked seriously, "What should I do starting today?"
"Choose one action," Sora proposed. "'Listen until the end' is fine?"
"Yeah."
"Next, create an implementation intention. 'If someone starts talking, I'll listen until the end.'"
Leo added, "And set up a reminder."
Kaito put a rubber band on his wrist. "This will remind me."
"Perfect," Sora acknowledged.
Outside the window, the sunset was fading.
"The brain mechanism that repeats the same mistakes," Kaito murmured. "But it can change."
"It definitely can change," Leo said.
"Though it takes time," Sora added.
Kaito wrote in his notebook. "Implementation intention: If someone starts talking, I'll listen until the end."
The brain changes. Habits can be created. Believing that, move forward step by step.