This document discusses ways to encourage Stanford student Maddie to pack a homemade salad for lunch at least 3 times per week. The most effective solutions identified are for Maddie to join a fitness challenge to eat 3 salads per week, make salads as soon as grocery shopping on Sundays, and refrigerate prepared salads. Reminders and one-time actions are deemed less effective for creating sustainable behavior change. Next steps proposed include further research, gauging interest, iterating on easy solutions, and using reminders to spark motivation.

1. EXPERT FOCUS AREA:
Getting Stanford Students who live
in an apartment to pack a
homemade salad at least 3 times a
week for lunch
Mia Davis | November 2012

2. Why?

3. Why?
+ Health behaviors established now will help maintain
healthy eating habits down the road.

4. Why?
+ Health behaviors established now will help maintain
healthy eating habits down the road.
+ With limited time, packing a salad to go can be a great
way for students to eat a healthy lunch and save money!

5. Meet Maddie
Age: 20
Year: Junior
Residence: Oak Creek
Apartments
Maddie is part of the 41% of students
who never eat a salad, but regular
grocery shop.

6. HOW MIGHT WE
help Maddie start
packing a salad for
lunch 3x/wk?

7. Let’s Brainstorm
some possible
solutions.

8. Brainstorm of Ideas
Maddie prints 8.5x11 Maddie buys bag of
Maddie starts “Salad of Maddie has picnic with a image of spinach and Spinach
the Week” Club friend 3 days/wk tapes it to the fridge
Maddie creates repeating
Maddie creates alarm for 11pm to make
Campus eateries/
Maddie & roommate repeating alarm for 20 salad at night
dining halls BAN
pack lunches together min before she leaves
Maddie during lunch
every night during for class
hours 3x/ wk Maddie reads article on
week health benefits of salads
Maddie makes 3 salads
Professor makes eating as soon as she gets
salad for lunch a class Maddie joins fitness home from TJ’s, Maddie joins “Salad of the
assignment challenge to eat 3 salads/ Week” Club
wk
Maddie refrigerates Maddie watches video
Maddie buy long-term
Maddie puts post-it note salad(s) on salad preparation
ingredients
on pillow was reminder to
pack salad for next day
Maddie makes a pact Maddie has best salad
Maddie puts all w/ roommate to go to making abilities
refrigerated items on Trader Joe’s every competition with friends
top shelf in fridge Sunday
Maddie hosts a “Salad
Party”
On Sundays, Maddie buys favorite Maddie buys set of
Maddie goes to salad ingredients Tupperware
Trader Joe’s Maddie makes list of
existing behaviors and
ties salad making to Maddie starts
Maddie tracks salad- Maddie buys box of
anchor watching new Food
making in notebook plastic forks
Network show called
Salad Wars

9. Let’s organize these ideas to
determine which solutions are
the easiest and most effective in
accomplishing our goal. Very effective in getting Maddie to pack salad 3x/wk
No way! We cannot get Maddie to do this 
Yes! We can get Maddie to do this 
Not effective in getting Maddie to pack salad 3x/wk

10. Target category: very effective
and easy to do – Yes! We can get
Maddie to do this.
Very effective in getting Maddie to pack salad 3x/wk
No way! We cannot get Maddie to do this 
Yes! We can get Maddie to do this 
Not effective in getting Maddie to pack salad 3x/wk

12. Very effective in getting Maddie to pack salad 3x/wk
Maddie makes 3 salads
Maddie starts “Salad of Maddie joins as soon as she gets
the Week” Club fitness challenge to home from TJ’s,
eat 3 salads/wk
Maddie refrigerates salad(s)
Maddie joins “Salad of Maddie makes list of
No way! We cannot get Maddie to do this 
the Week” Club existing behaviors and ties
Campus eateries/ dining halls salad making to anchor Maddie buys favorite
BAN Maddie during lunch Maddie has picnic with a salad ingredients
Yes! We can get Maddie to do this 
hours 3x/ wk friend 3 days/wk
On Sundays, Maddie goes to
Maddie buys bag
Trader Joe’s
of Spinach
Professor makes eating Maddie & roommate Maddie prints 8.5x11
salad for lunch a class pack lunches together image of spinach and Maddie creates repeating
assignment every night during week tapes it to the fridge alarm for 11pm to make
salad at night
Maddie creates
repeating alarm for Maddie reads article on
Maddie puts post-it note 20 min before she
on pillow was reminder to health benefits of salads
leaves for class
pack salad for next day Maddie hosts a
“Salad Party”
Maddie makes a pact
Maddie watches video
w/ roommate to go to
Maddie tracks salad- on salad preparation
Trader Joe’s every
making in notebook
Sunday
Maddie starts watching Maddie has best salad
new Food Network making abilities
show called Salad Wars competition with friends
Maddie puts all
refrigerated items on Maddie buy long- Maddie buys set Maddie buys box
top shelf in fridge term ingredients of Tupperware of plastic forks
Not effective in getting Maddie to pack salad 3x/wk

13. Very effective in getting Maddie to pack salad 3x/wk
Maddie makes 3 salads
Maddie starts “Salad of Maddie joins as soon as she gets
the Week” Club fitness challenge to home from TJ’s,
eat 3 salads/wk
Maddie refrigerates salad(s)
Maddie joins “Salad of Maddie makes list of
No way! We cannot get Maddie to do this 
the Week” Club existing behaviors and ties
Campus eateries/ dining halls salad making to anchor
BAN Maddie during lunch Maddie has picnic with a
TargetMaddie buys favorite
salad ingredients
Yes! We can get Maddie to do this 
hours 3x/ wk friend 3 days/wk Category
On Sundays, Maddie goes to
Maddie buys bag
Trader Joe’s
of Spinach
Professor makes eating Maddie & roommate Maddie prints 8.5x11
salad for lunch a class pack lunches together image of spinach and Maddie creates repeating
assignment every night during week tapes it to the fridge alarm for 11pm to make
salad at night
Maddie creates
repeating alarm for Maddie reads article on
Maddie puts post-it note 20 min before she
on pillow was reminder to health benefits of salads
leaves for class
pack salad for next day Maddie hosts a
“Salad Party”
Maddie makes a pact
Maddie watches video
w/ roommate to go to
Maddie tracks salad- on salad preparation
Trader Joe’s every
making in notebook
Sunday
Maddie starts watching Maddie has best salad
new Food Network making abilities
show called Salad Wars competition with friends
Maddie puts all
refrigerated items on Maddie buy long- Maddie buys set Maddie buys box
top shelf in fridge term ingredients of Tupperware of plastic forks
Not effective in getting Maddie to pack salad 3x/wk

14. Very effective in getting Maddie to pack salad 3x/wk
Maddie makes 3 salads as
Yes! We can get Maddie to do this 
Maddie joins fitness soon as she gets home from
challenge to eat 3 TJ’s
salads/wk
Maddie refrigerates
salad(s)
Maddie makes list of
existing behaviors and
ties salad making to
anchor Maddie buys favorite
salad ingredients
On Sundays, Maddie goes
to Trader Joe’s
Maddie buys bag of
Spinach
Maddie prints 8.5x11 image Maddie creates repeating
of spinach and tapes it to alarm for 11pm to make
the fridge salad at night

15. Insights

16. Insights
+ Best solutions rely solely on Maddie, not external forces

17. Insights
+ Best solutions rely solely on Maddie, not external forces
+ Reminders can be useful, but not 100% effective –
especially when ignored due to frequency

18. Insights
+ Best solutions rely solely on Maddie, not external forces
+ Reminders can be useful, but not 100% effective –
especially when ignored due to frequency
+ Instilling sense of responsibility to others as well as
herself (ex. Start salad of week club, pact w/ roommate) are effective
ways to inspire a behavior change – however, would have
to be achieved in period of high motivation to get Maddie
to do it.

19. Insights
+ Best solutions rely solely on Maddie, not external forces
+ Reminders can be useful, but not 100% effective –
especially when ignored due to frequency
+ Instilling sense of responsibility to others as well as
herself (ex. Start salad of week club, pact w/ roommate) are effective
ways to inspire a behavior change – however, would have
to be achieved in period of high motivation to get Maddie
to do it.
+ One time behaviors (read article, watch video) not
enough to get Maddie to create new sustainable behavior

20. Next Steps
+ More research on healthy eating and cooking for self as
a college student
+ Gauge interest – who wants to eat a salad 3x/wk
+ Iterate on ways to make it easy and effective for
students to pack themselves a salad lunch at least 3x/wk –
test & refine
+ How can reminders be used as a tool to spark motivation
and set the “on switch” for completing a behavior?

21. Next Steps
+ More research on healthy eating and cooking for self as
a college student
+ Gauge interest – who wants to eat a salad 3x/wk
+ Iterate on ways to make it easy and effective for
students to pack themselves a salad lunch at least 3x/wk –
test & refine
+ How can reminders be used as a tool to spark motivation
and set the “on switch” for completing a behavior?
More to come! Stay tuned.
Follow me on twitter @saladinstead

22. Thanks for reading!
I would love any
feedback.
Mia Davis
email: miadavis@stanford
tw: @saladinstead