Nir Eyal
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Nir Eyal

Hooked, habit-forming product-growth

Author and lecturer at Stanford Graduate School of Business, where he teaches on the psychology of products. His 2014 book *Hooked* introduced the Hook Model (trigger, action, variable reward, investment), widely adopted in product and growth teams. His follow-up, *Indistractable* (2019), examines how to resist the same persuasive mechanics.

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Frameworks

Attributed to Nir Eyal

Mental models, principles, and operating frameworks extracted from sources where Nir is the credited author or speaker.

21frameworks
01
Habit Testing Process
Three-step method to discover what hooks users and replicate it at scale
Innovation·from Hooked
02
Hack Back External Triggers
Ask one critical question about every ping, ding, and interruption: Is this trigger serving me, or am I serving it?
Productivity·from Indistractable
03
Internal Trigger Management
Reimagine the trigger, the task, and your temperament to disarm the discomfort that drives distraction
Mindset·from Indistractable
04
The Ethical Habit Design Test
A conscience check for product builders wielding habit-forming psychology
Innovation·from The Hook Model: How to Manufacture Desire
05
The External-to-Internal Trigger Shift
How products graduate from needing notifications to living in users' minds
Marketing·from The Hook Model: How to Manufacture Desire
06
The Fogg Behavior Model (B=MAT)
Every behavior requires motivation, ability, and a trigger at the same moment
Productivity·from Hooked
07
The Habit Zone Framework
Plot frequency against utility to predict if a behavior becomes automatic
Strategy·from Hooked
08
The Hook Cycle
Four repeating phases that turn product usage into automatic habit
Marketing·from The Hook Model: How to Manufacture Desire
09
The Hook Model
Four-step cycle that turns products into unbreakable habits
Marketing·from Hooked
10
The Hook Model for Habit-Forming Products
Trigger, action, variable reward, investment—the four-step cycle that builds product habits
Marketing·from What Makes Some Technology So Habit-Forming?
11
The Indistractable Model
Four strategies to control your attention — master internal triggers, make time for traction, hack back external triggers, and prevent distraction with pacts
Productivity·from Indistractable
12
The Indistractible Model
Master distraction by addressing the internal discomfort that drives all off-task behavior
Productivity·from How To Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life with Nir Eyal | Feel Better Live More Podcast
13
The Investment Phase Design Pattern
Get users to store value so they cannot leave without losing something
Strategy·from Hooked
14
The Manipulation Matrix
Four-quadrant ethical test for building habit-forming products
Entrepreneurship·from Hooked
15
The Misinformation Amplification Audit
Evaluate media health claims before they influence your decisions
Self-Mastery·from Steven Bartlett sharing harmful health misinformation in Diary of CEO podcast | BBC News
16
The Three Pact Types
Lock in your intentions with effort pacts, price pacts, and identity pacts — precommitments that make distraction harder, costlier, or incompatible with who you are
Productivity·from Indistractable
17
The Traction vs. Distraction Compass
Judge any activity by its alignment with intention, not by its nature
Productivity·from Nir Eyal on How to Be Indistractable - Brainfluence Podcast
18
The Workplace Distraction Diagnosis
Treat distraction as a symptom of organizational dysfunction, not individual weakness
Leadership·from Nir Eyal on How to Be Indistractable - Brainfluence Podcast
19
Timeboxing for Traction
Turn your values into time by scheduling every minute of your day — because you can't call something a distraction unless you know what it's distracting you from
Productivity·from Indistractable
20
Traction vs Distraction Model
Define what pulls you toward your goals versus away from them
Productivity·from How to be Indistractable with Nir Eyal
21
Variable Reward Design (Tribe, Hunt, Self)
Three reward types that create craving through unpredictable reinforcement
Marketing·from Hooked
Domains

Framework distribution

21frameworks
Productivity8 frameworks · 38.1%
Marketing5 frameworks · 23.8%
Strategy2 frameworks · 9.5%
Innovation2 frameworks · 9.5%
Self-Mastery1 framework · 4.8%
Entrepreneurship1 framework · 0%
Other2 frameworks · 14.3%
Bibliography

Sources by Nir Eyal

10sources
Book
Essay
Podcast
Video
Appears alongside

Top neighbors of Nir Eyal

8people
Last updated
10 May 2026
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