Tired of making to-do lists that you can’t seem to complete, despite your best intentions? You’re in good company. Most of us create these lists to keep track of all the things we need to tackle in the near future, but our to-dos can quickly get out of hand, making it hard to check everything off the list.
Ayelet Fishbach, a professor at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business, has spent her career studying the science of motivation and she knows what it takes to achieve more. She’s literally written the book on the subject, “Get It Done: Surprising Lessons from the Science of Motivation,” and her decades of research can help you finally get through your weekly to-do lists.
If you have a handful of big goals to accomplish each week, Fishbach recommends her “four-ingredient recipe” to help you get them done:
- Set the goal right - That means setting goals that are intrinsically motivating. She explains that an approach or “do” goal is better than an avoidance or “do not” goal. For example, “go to a morning Pilates class” is more motivating than “don’t oversleep.”
- Monitor progress and switch your focus in the middle - When you reach the halfway point of your to-do list, look back at how much you’ve accomplished and what you still need to do. Then readjust your plan as needed to help you finish up. Lots of us lose steam in the middle of pursuing our goal, so refocusing at that point can help.
- Your goals should balance each other - It’s not helpful to you if your goals undermine each other and specific goals should fit in with everything else you want to do. If your overall plan is to eat more healthily, it’s best to take that trip to the ice cream shop off the list.
- Seek social support - There’s no shame in asking for assistance. Let the people around you who want you to succeed give you a hand when you need extra help.
Source: CNN
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