Making It FEEL Necessary
It’s unfortunate that when what we’ve intelligently decided we should do is at odds with what we FEEL like doing, what we FEEL like doing often wins.
It’s unfortunate that when what we’ve intelligently decided we should do is at odds with what we FEEL like doing, what we FEEL like doing often wins.
I think you’re going to be surprised by this: I can make a serious case for just throwing up your hands and formally giving up on following through.
The Intention Vault was designed to be a place where you can formally register and securely store the intentions you’ve decided to adopt.
I’ve been accused before of having a cynical view of the way the human mind works. That’s because I flatly reject the widely accepted notion that the human mind is a perfectly designed achievement machine.
Suppose you have several ideas for future intentions. You’re ready to begin a self-improvement project based on one of these ideas, but you’re not quite sure which of your possible intentions you should adopt first.
I have a confession. Although I’ve spent years helping people improve their ability to follow through, I’ve never found a way around this paradox: To follow through a lot, you have to be able to make yourself follow through just a little — just enough to take the first easy step. Sadly, I have yet to figure out how to make someone take that first easy step.
As a psychologist who’s spent decades helping people improve their ability to follow through, I’m often asked this question:
“Doc, if you could give people just one piece of advice, what would it be?”
My answer usually goes like this: “Take your intentions seriously.”