Get It Done cover

Get It Done

Surprising Lessons from the Science of Motivation

byAyelet Fishbach

★★★
3.67avg rating — 1,179 ratings

Book Edition Details

ISBN:0316538345
Publisher:Little, Brown Spark
Publication Date:2022
Reading Time:10 minutes
Language:English
ASIN:0316538345

Summary

"Get It Done (2022) turns the spotlight on the person that’s often hardest to influence: you. Drawing on anecdotes and research from motivation science, it shows how modifying your circumstances can propel you forward both personally and professionally – even when you feel lost at sea."

Introduction

Every day, we face countless moments where we need to summon the energy to act. Whether it's getting out of bed on a difficult morning, pushing through a challenging workout, or tackling that project we've been avoiding, motivation is the invisible force that transforms our intentions into reality. Yet for something so fundamental to our success and happiness, motivation often feels elusive and unpredictable. One day we're unstoppable, the next we can barely muster the energy to respond to emails. The good news is that motivation isn't some mysterious force beyond our control. Decades of scientific research have revealed the specific mechanisms that drive human behavior, and more importantly, how we can deliberately influence these mechanisms to achieve our goals. The key insight that emerges from this research is surprisingly simple: we can change our behavior by changing our circumstances. This isn't about willpower or personality traits, but about understanding the environmental and psychological conditions that naturally lead to sustained action. When we learn to modify our situation strategically, we can tap into reliable sources of energy and persistence that carry us toward our most important objectives.

Choose Goals That Energize You

The foundation of sustained motivation lies in setting the right goals in the right way. Goals aren't merely destinations we hope to reach; they're powerful magnets that either pull us forward with excitement or drain our energy through obligation. The difference between these two experiences comes down to how we frame and conceptualize our aspirations. Consider the mountaineers who attempted to summit Mount Everest in 1996. Despite facing life-threatening conditions, they continued pursuing their goal because reaching the summit felt like an end in itself, not merely a means to impress others. Their goal embodied four crucial elements: it was specific enough to create clear progress markers, challenging enough to demand their full attention, intrinsically rewarding rather than driven by external pressure, and abstract enough to maintain meaning while remaining actionable. When we frame goals as ends rather than means, they become sources of energy rather than obligations. Instead of "saving for a down payment," we focus on "owning a home." Rather than "submitting applications," we pursue "finding meaningful work." This shift in language reflects a deeper shift in how our minds process the goal, making it feel more like achieving something wonderful rather than completing a chore. To set goals that energize rather than exhaust you, start by identifying what you truly want to experience or become, not just what you think you should do. Frame these aspirations as positive states you're moving toward rather than problems you're trying to avoid. Make them specific enough that you'll know when you've succeeded, but abstract enough that they retain their emotional pull throughout your journey.

Keep Your Momentum Going Strong

Progress is the fuel of motivation, but not all progress feels equally motivating. The secret lies in understanding how to monitor and celebrate advancement in ways that sustain rather than satisfy your drive to continue. When you track progress effectively, each step forward creates energy for the next step, building momentum that carries you through inevitable obstacles and setbacks. Research reveals a fascinating pattern in how we respond to progress monitoring. When university students were asked to reflect on their studying, those who focused on material they'd already covered felt more motivated than those who focused on what remained to be studied. But this was only true for exams that weren't critically important to them. For high-stakes exams, the opposite occurred—students were more energized by considering what they still needed to accomplish. This reveals a crucial principle: when you're highly committed to a goal, focusing on what's left to do increases urgency and effort. When your commitment is uncertain, reflecting on progress made builds confidence and determination. The key is matching your monitoring strategy to your current level of engagement with the goal. To maintain momentum, regularly assess not just how much you've accomplished, but how that progress feels. If you find yourself losing energy after early wins, shift your attention to the exciting work still ahead. If you're feeling overwhelmed by the distance to your destination, take time to appreciate how far you've already traveled. Progress monitoring becomes a dynamic tool that adapts to your psychological needs at different stages of the journey.

Master the Art of Goal Juggling

Real life doesn't allow us the luxury of pursuing one goal at a time. We're constantly balancing competing demands, managing multiple aspirations, and trying to make progress across different areas of our lives simultaneously. The art lies not in perfect balance, but in strategic coordination that maximizes our overall success while minimizing internal conflict. Consider the challenge of eating both healthily and affordably. These goals can feel contradictory until we find activities that serve both simultaneously—like learning to cook nutritious meals at home or discovering seasonal produce that's both fresh and budget-friendly. The most sustainable approaches to multiple goals involve identifying these "multifinal" activities that advance several objectives at once. Sometimes, however, our goals genuinely conflict, and we must choose between them. Research shows that we handle these conflicts in two distinct ways: compromising by partially satisfying multiple goals, or prioritizing by fully committing to one while temporarily setting others aside. The key is recognizing which approach serves us better in each situation. When goals touch on our core identity or values, prioritizing tends to work better than compromising. When we're managing resources with diminishing returns, compromise often makes more sense. A working parent might compromise by balancing career advancement with family time on most days, while prioritizing family completely during a child's illness or career completely during a crucial deadline. Master goal juggling by regularly mapping your current priorities and identifying where they support or conflict with each other. Look for opportunities to bundle activities that advance multiple goals, and don't be afraid to temporarily set some aspirations aside when others demand your full attention.

Harness the Power of Social Support

No significant goal is achieved in isolation. The people in our lives don't just provide encouragement; they fundamentally shape our motivation through their expectations, their examples, and their willingness to support our efforts. Understanding how to leverage social influence can transform challenging goals from lonely struggles into shared adventures. Marie and Pierre Curie exemplified the power of goal-aligned partnerships. Their shared scientific interests initially brought them together, but their relationship deepened as they supported each other's individual aspirations while pursuing joint discoveries. They connected through similar goals, mutual support, shared objectives, and holding positive expectations for each other's success. The strength of social support lies not just in having people cheer you on, but in surrounding yourself with individuals whose own goals and actions naturally reinforce your aspirations. When your friends are training for races, you're more likely to lace up your running shoes. When your colleagues discuss professional development, you're more inclined to invest in your own growth. To harness social support effectively, actively cultivate relationships with people who are pursuing goals that align with or complement your own. Share your aspirations clearly so others know how to support you, and reciprocate by understanding and supporting their goals. Don't underestimate the power of finding accountability partners, joining groups of like-minded individuals, or simply making your commitments visible to people who matter to you. Remember that social support works both ways—the more you support others' goals, the more invested they become in your success. The most powerful social networks are built on mutual facilitation of each other's growth and achievement.

Summary

The path to sustained motivation isn't about finding more willpower or waiting for inspiration to strike. It's about understanding the psychological mechanisms that naturally drive human behavior and learning to work with them rather than against them. When we set goals that feel like exciting destinations rather than tedious obligations, monitor our progress in ways that build rather than satisfy momentum, coordinate multiple aspirations strategically, and surround ourselves with supportive people, we create conditions where motivation flows naturally. As Baron Munchausen discovered in his fictional adventures, sometimes the most powerful solutions come from grabbing hold of our own resources and pulling ourselves forward. The baron's story about pulling himself out of the muck by his own hair becomes a perfect metaphor for self-motivation: it seems impossible until we understand the mechanics, and then it becomes not just possible but inevitable. Start today by choosing one goal that truly excites you and take a single concrete step toward it. The science is clear—movement creates momentum, and momentum creates more movement. Your future self is waiting for you to grab hold of your own motivation and begin pulling.

Book Cover
Get It Done

By Ayelet Fishbach

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