How to stick to your goals when your own brain is fighting you. Michael J. López, organizational change consultant and author of Change: Six Science-Backed Strategies to Transform Your Brain, Body, and Behavior, gives Chris Anderson the science, the reason men quit, and the fix, in fourteen minutes. This is the most valuable stretch of the conversation, released as its own episode.

Michael J. López spent more than a decade at Big Four firms leading transformation programs before starting his own company at 50.

Chris opens with the question. What is it in the brain that lets us actually make change? Michael's answer starts with the fact that your brain has one job: keep you alive. It does that by predicting what happens next. Every hard thing you try to do fights that prediction. That is why you feel great on January 1 and done by Quitters Day.

Then he gives the fix. Fewer goals. One at a time. And written as verbs, not nouns. "Lose 30 pounds" is a noun, and nothing happens when you step on the scale. "Walk 30 minutes a day, four days a week, for three weeks" is a verb, and it is a light switch. You did it or you didn't.

In this episode:

• Your brain is a prediction machine, and why that gap stops you
• Quitters Day, and why motivation runs out in week three
• Nouns versus verbs, with the walking example
• Dopamine without effort is dangerous
• A habit is the opposite of change
• The "I don't want to do this" voice, and why it is the signal to go

Questions this episode answers

Why do I quit my goals by the third week?
Michael J. López says your brain predicts the easy path and fights every hard one, and a goal written as a noun shows no progress for weeks, so motivation dies.

How should I write a goal so I actually keep it?
As a verb with a number. Michael J. López uses "walk 30 minutes, four days a week, for three weeks." Did it or didn't.

How many goals should I set at once?
One. Michael J. López says the adult brain can only chase one at a time, so stack them after you win the first.

Find Michael J. López at michaeljlopez.coach. His book Change is on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and audiobook.

The Upgraded Man is hosted by Chris Anderson. Full episode with Michael is out now. Send this one to the friend who just said "I'm starting Monday" for the fourth time.

#theupgradedman #sticktoyourgoals #mensmindset

This episode may or may not be sponsored. Some product links are affiliate links, meaning we'll receive a small commission if you buy something.

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