Lecture 1: Why Take a Motivation Course Flashcards
how do we seek to motivate ourselves?
by setting goals
why are new years resolutions interesting to motivation researchers?
we almost always fail at them
failure rate of new year’s resolutions over time
- failure rates increase with time
- It usually takes 7-8 times to succeed at a New Year’s resolution
predictors of success in new year’s resolutions
- Desire to change
- Readiness
- Self-efficacy
reasons for failure in New Year’s resolutions
- Factors beyond my control (36%)
- Deliberate decision (30%)
- Lack of willpower (24%)
- Forgot (10%)
self-control
The capacity to alter or override short-term considerations in the interest of more valued long-term considerations
ingredients for successful self-control
- Standards
- Monitoring
- Strength
the big 3 questions in the course
- How can we reach our personal goals?
- How can we become an expert at something?
- How can we motivate others?
goal
a mental representation of something we want to happen
when you set a goal, you:
- Focus your attention
- Prepare to give some effort
- Get ready to persist
goal pursuit and well-being
- Goal pursuit and success is one of the keys to well-being
- Failing at a goal can decrease happiness and well-being
- But, the upsides of goal-setting outweigh the downsides
prevalence of New Year’s resolutions
Around ½ of Americans set New Year’s resolutions
what are resolutions?
- a self-change attempt
- a strive for improvement
- a firm decision
what are the most common New Year’s resolutions?
- Quitting smoking
- Losing weight
- Spending less (especially amid rising inflation)
potential solution to high failure rates for New Year’s resolutiosn
- January is a tough time to set goals in Montreal
- We could set Canada Day resolutions instead (the weather is nicer, we aren’t in school, self-control demands are lower)
