The older I get the more dubious I am of how much control we actually have over our lives. And question if the systems of knowledge familiar to us are actually serving us. This is depressing on some level because feeling a sense of agency and control is somewhat equivocal to having hope. I think the reason I am drawn to behavioral psychology is because it offers some form of science-backed understanding of the ways things are that makes sense to me.
This week, I want to share my interview with Ayelet Fishbach, the Jeffrey Breakenridge Keller Professor of Behavioral Science and Marketing at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. She is an expert on motivation and decision-making and the author of Get It Done: Surprising Lessons from the Science of Motivation.
From my understanding, people are out there seriously questioning if it is actually possible to change our behavior and patterns without changing our environment. The idea that one day you might just wake up and be able to resist temptation is in serious question.
We talk about how there is actually a lot of data that suggests that to make our goals happen, we need to make changes in our environment. We need to make the things that help us move towards our goals exciting, easy, and fun, and the things that move us away from our goals out of our minds.
I really hope you enjoy the interview. Sending love and appreciation.
How to actually do the thing.