SUCCESS SECRET: Keep Your Goals To Yourself
BY BETHANY HEITMAN
Say you want to eat cleaner. Or perhaps you're trying to stick to a regular workout routine. Whatever your goal is, it’s natural to want to chat about it. After all, telling loved ones can help keep you accountable and you’ll be more likely to stick to whatever you’ve committed to—right? Well, as it turns out, maybe not. In actuality, keeping your goals a secret may help you achieve them.
There’s even research to back this theory up. New York University psychologist Peter Gollwitzer has dedicated much of his career to understanding motivation. He’s done a number of studies looking at what happens when we share our goals with other people. In every single one, he concluded that when study participants share their goals with someone else, it reduces their commitment to actually accomplishing that.
Photo by Kristina Flour
So, why is this? One theory is that when you tell people your goal, they praise you and it subconsciously makes you feel like you’ve already achieved it. At the end of the day, you need to do what you know will motivate you most—whether that means telling others or not. “Goal setting is an excavation process,” explains Jen Widerstrom, founder of Förena. “Life fluctuates and so should your goals—and the same goes for motivation. Thinking about the long term benefits that will come with accomplishing your goals are great, but it’s the short term goals that are going to really keep you connected to what you are doing. You need that carrot that dangles in front of you.”
If you’re looking for other ways to motivate you, consider these science-backed tips:
Get specific: The American Psychological Association has found that the more nitty gritty you get with what you want to do, the more likely you are to accomplish it. For example, rather than saying you want to eat healthier, make it your goal to eat veggies with every meal. Or, if you want to run more often, set a weekly mileage target.
Embrace the morning: Research has shown that it’s easier to form habits in the a.m. hours. So, reschedule those evening workouts for pre-work sweat sessions. Want to get into journaling? Do it while sipping your morning coffee, rather than after dinner.
Be your own cheerleader: One study found that cyclists who repeated positive phrases to themselves (like “You can do it!”) when they hit the wall during a tough training wound up pedaling longer than those who didn’t. Consider following suit and amping yourself up when you hit moments of low motivation.
Bethany Heitman, Contributor
P.S. Remember that no matter what you're going through right now, you don't have to do it alone! There are others like you in our community, where we interact on a daily basis, fight our demons, share our victories, and watch over each other as friends and accountability partners.
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