Thinking about your goals changes how you see the world. It also dramatically increases your willingness and ability to accomplish those goals.
Case in point:
Researchers flashed circles on a screen in front of test subjects. One circle was slightly different from the others—brighter or smaller.
When asked what they saw, the subjects did not notice that one circle differed slightly from the rest. They reported seeing a field of identical circles.
But when researchers asked the subjects to prepare to point at or try to grab circles — absent of what they should look for or expect to see — something amazing happened.
If they simply thought about pointing at the circles, they became better at noticing the brighter circles.
If they were told to think about grabbing a circle, it was easier for them to identify the smaller circle.
By assigning subjects a goal — without telling them how these circles differed — subjects inherently saw the world in a better, more precise, more specific way.
This response is likely biological in nature. When humans think about goals, their brains release dopamine, which makes them feel better and more motivated about completing the task.
Just thinking about your goals dramatically increases your chances of accomplishing your goals.
Dr. Alex Korb, a neuroscientist, explains it this way:
“The goals and intentions you set in your prefrontal cortex change how your brain perceives the world. Sometimes, when you feel like everything is going wrong, and you’re not making any progress, and everything is awful, you don’t need to change the world. You can just change the way you perceive the world, and that is enough to make a positive difference.”
I couldn’t agree more.
My lifetime mantra, given to me by my fourth-grade teacher decades ago, has been, “A positive mental attitude is your key to success.”
I’ve always known this to be true, but now science confirms that belief.
Also, it seems that listing my yearly goals, posting them online, and reviewing them monthly helps a lot, too. Thinking about my goals makes it more likely that I will achieve my goals.
None of this should be surprising. So much of our lives are governed not by our circumstances but by the way we think about, approach, and address our circumstances.
Your mental framing, disposition, and attitude are critical to your success.
Every morning, I ask my students how their afternoon and evening were on a scale of 1-5, 1-10, or 1-17 by holding up numbers equal to their assessment.
Watching kids try to show me the number 17 on their fingers is always amusing.
But when a student holds up a 1, I always interrogate the nature of that single digit, and almost always, the student says something like:
“My mom served green beans for dinner last night, and I hate green beans.”
“I had to go to soccer practice in the rain.”
“My sister tattled on me.”
In these cases, I always try to teach the student to think differently about the day before:
“Yes, it wasn’t ideal, but was it really so terrible? Because a 1 represents your very worst day possible. The single digit should be reserved for things like the death of a pet, the burning down of a home, a bout of norovirus, a Celtics defeat, and the like.”
I’ll go on…
“Yes, I hate green beans, too, but I don’t let them ruin my day. I can’t stand soccer, but if I had to play or watch it in the rain, it wouldn’t be the worst thing ever. And yes, it’s super annoying when your sister tattles on you, but you have a home, a healthy family, and friends. Your dog is alive. You get to play a sport you love. You’re not hungry or sick. Maybe your day wasn’t as terrible as you once thought.”
Rather than catastrophizing green beans, I try to get kids to reframe their day more accurately.
As Dr. Alex Korb said:
“You can just change the way you perceive the world, and that is enough to make a positive difference.”
I agree.
Got goals?
Spend time thinking about them, and your chances of success will increase dramatically.
Don’t have any specific goals?
Find some. Quickly. Life is always better when you’re daring enough to dream.
