Do you know where you're going? #motivation #succeed #Success | Alter Ego

Do you know where you're going?

#motivation #succeed #SuccessPsychology
Reading time ~ 4min

It's already January 17th, which means that 60% of us have by now abandoned our New Years' resolutions. Why is that we get motivated and determined to finally turn out lives around, give up bad habits, start practicing good ones, but we unavoidably fail? Understanding how motivation works and what makes us fail can create more opportunities to stick to your goals. There's no shame in failing at resolutions. For example, it takes an average smoker 10 years to quit for good. Some never manage to do it in 20. The point is, anyone can train their self-control; we just haven't been taught how.

"Success is more likely when you focus on the right details in the right way."

When setting goals, we often fail to state them in a way that best helps us achieve them. Let me explain. Saying "I'm going to start exercising this year" is a good goal in and on itself. However, it clearly lacks specificity for our purposes. Thus, rule number one is "Create clear, specific goals." Phrasing it as "I will go to the gym twice a week and exercise once a week at home this year" will make it much easier to follow. Another example of a clearly defined goal would be saying, "I will avoid processed foods and foods high in added sugar" as opposed to "I will eat healthy."

"More difficult goals cause you to, often unconsciously, increase your effort, focus, and commitment to the goal; persist longer; make better use of the most effective strategies."

Let's face it, going to the gym once a week this year might be a secure commitment to follow. Still, it will not bring the observable and, most importantly, satisfying results. Numerous researchers have proven that difficult tasks bring us more satisfaction and higher sense of achievement. Difficult but possible is the key. So, the second rule would be "Set difficult but achievable goals. "don't go too easy on yourself, and you'll enjoy it more.

"The abstract 'Why' and concrete 'What' ways of thinking about your behavior have motivational pros and cons. Each mode of thinking, under different circumstances, can lead to greater achievement. The trick is to adjust your thinking according to your circumstances, and the good news is that it's not at all hard to do. You need to learn when to think why and when to think what."

Simply put, the abstract way of thinking (why) is better for motivation in the global, long-term sense. It allows you to see a bigger purpose in the task you're performing at the moment. You're better off thinking that you're "keeping the house clean" instead of "sucking up bread crumps" to be more motivated to vacuum. However, you must use caution when applying this to novel tasks. The tasks that you're not so familiar with are better thought of in a concrete sense (what). For example, if you never vacuumed before, your performance would be better if you focus on more concrete, functional "sucking up read crumps" than a bigger purpose.

"When people think about what they are doing in why terms, they are guided by the big picture—their smaller, everyday actions become a part of something larger and more important. They are more connected to long-term goals. As a result, when people think why rather than what, they are less impulsive, less vulnerable to temptation, and more likely to plan their actions in advance."

"When what you need to do is particularly difficult to get done, it pays to forget about the bigger picture and focus on the task at hand."

The third rule then would go as follows "Be aware of the way you think about the task at hand." Choosing the right approach might be the key to success in many of our commitments.

If we were to put this post in one sentence, it would look something like this: Set clear, specific, difficult but achievable goals and be aware of how you think about each task that brings you closer to those goals.

- Credit for this post: "Succeed. How we can reach our goals" by Heidi Grant Halvorson, Ph. D.