What the ‘Life. Be In It.’ campaign can teach you about large-scale behaviour change

It’s hard to argue with the power of behavioural change when it’s done well. Human behaviour is feels difficult to influence and yet, when you tap into the right message and techniques, simple, small shifts can make a massive difference. If you grew up in the 80s like me, the ‘Life. Be In It.’ campaign was everywhere. It was so successful in getting our population moving it’s been revamped this year to get us back off the couch post-COVID.

If you break it down, there are several reasons for Life Be In It’s success. There was a powerful ‘why’ it its message; it tapped into the current behaviours of Australians that impact our wellness and it gave us a picture of what life could be. More than that, and probably most importantly, it gave everyone small, simple steps they could take to achieve better health and wellness. Based on research done by Roy Morgan, outcomes and changing behaviour across our population were tracked and measured throughout the original campaign.

You might ask at this point: ‘that’s great, but how can I apply that to my organisation? I can’t run a campaign for every behavioural shift I want to see!’ And you’d be right. But there is a ton of great insight we can all pull from this kind of large-scale behaviour change and apply it on a more individual scale. The key? Behavioural coaching.

What’s behavioural coaching?

Imagine you're learning to play a new instrument. You wouldn't just pick it up and expect to play a symphony, right? You'd start with the basics, learning the right techniques, and then keep practicing. Behavioural coaching works in the same way. It helps you recognise which behaviours are working well and which aren't, and then guides you in practicing the right techniques until they become a habit. The beauty of it is that small changes often lead to significant improvements.

Behavioural coaching is a method employed to refine an individual's actions to align better with organisational goals and values. It is a structured process of observing and assessing behaviours, providing feedback, and facilitating strategies for improvement. And it takes all of the great stuff from the campaign above to drive this improvement: communicating a clear purpose, linking to a bigger goal, examining current and desired behaviours, painting a picture of what a better outcome could look like, and setting easy, manageable steps to get there.

A coaching model that drives effective behavioural change is an indispensable tool for leaders – and there are tons of them out there.

So, what’s the difference? Which behavioural coaching model really works?

The GROW model is by far the most ubiquitous coaching model out there, and like the Life Be In It campaign, it’s been around since the 80s. But GROW isn’t always the best fit, depending on what you want to achieve. GROW coaching is great for guiding personal and professional development conversations. It focuses on helping individuals set long-term goals, identify challenges, and develop strategies to achieve those goals. While GROW coaching is valuable for individual growth and long-term aspirations, it may not provide the necessary immediacy and focus required to address immediate performance and behavioural issues.

The ACDC coaching approach is specifically designed to achieve immediate impact and drive behavioural change in a business context. On its surface, it looks a lot like GROW; ACDC stands for Agenda, Current State, Desired State, and Commitment. But its DNA is very different – under each of the four phases are 5 micro-behaviours that target the small but most effective moments in a coaching conversation that are proven to be most effective in driving immediate behaviour change.

ACDC is designed to be used frequently – daily, weekly, monthly – in short, sharp sessions that build skill quickly. It’s equally effective in group coaching as one-on-one – as well as providing structure to team meetings and focus session. Compared to traditional GROW, which is best used in those longer, more infrequent professional development conversations, ACDC is your Swiss-Army knife leadership conversation tool – it can be applied to any leadership conversation where you need to prompt change.

ACDC vs GROW: choosing the right coaching model

Not all change has to be huge or long-term. Sometimes, what you need is a quick tweak in behaviour, something that you can change today and see results tomorrow. That's where the ACDC model shines.

While GROW can feel like planning a grand journey, ACDC feels like choosing a new route to work—one that gets you there quicker and with less traffic. The ACDC model targets those short-cycle behavioural changes, sets smaller, actionable goals, and encourages immediate practice of new behaviours.

Think back to the example of learning an instrument. Let’s say you’re working on a new song. The GROW model might be like having monthly music lessons, slowly building up your skills. But the ACDC model is like deciding today that you’re going to master the tricky middle section, and practising it until you get it right.

In essence, ACDC is about frequent, focused changes that lead to immediate improvements. It's not about reinventing the wheel but about making it turn smoother, faster, and more efficiently.

At GRIST, we're all about making change happen quickly and effectively. Like the Life Be In It campaign, ACDC is your tool to start the conversation, build buy-in for change and help your people see the little things they need to do to get closer to their goals. Because at the end of the day, the biggest journeys start with the smallest steps.

Tune into our next post where we look at ACDC in action.