You set goals, write plans, swear to yourself to “start on Monday”... but a month later everything remains a dream?
Harvard scientists have proven that your determination is a self-deception.
Experiment details
In 2021, a team of psychologists led by Professor Amy Cuddy conducted a study involving 2,000 volunteers.
Participants set typical goals: lose weight, learn a language, change jobs. After a year, only 8% achieved their goals. But the most surprising thing is that 67% were sure that they were “actively working on their goals.” How is this possible? The answer lies in the phenomenon of “illusory progress.”
Dr. Cuddy explains that the brain confuses planning with action. When we make a to-do list or read motivational books, the pleasure zone is activated. We feel satisfied, as if we have already achieved the goal, and lose the incentive to act.
The journal Psychological Science called it the "Tolstoy effect": like a writer who has been planning a novel for years but never gets around to it.
The Harvard experiment revealed another paradox.
Participants who were vocal about their goals on social media gave up faster than those who remained silent.
Psychologist Dan Gilbert writes in his book Stumbling on Happiness : "Social approval provides a false sense of accomplishment. You've already received the reward - the admiration - and the brain decides there's no need to go any further."
How to avoid the trap
Stanford professor Carol Dweck , the author of the “growth mindset” concept, advises replacing global goals with microsteps.
Instead of “lose 20 kg” — “walk 500 steps today.” Google uses the OKR (Objectives and Key Results) method, breaking down goals into measurable stages. The result: 70% of employees feel progress, even if the goal is far away.
Your determination is not a lie. The lie is the belief that determination replaces action.
As Lao Tzu said, "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." Stop talking about goals. Start doing.
Author: Igor Zur