Goals and motivation

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You want people to do the right thing? Save them the guilt trip

If you want to inspire people to do the right thing, don’t guilt-trip them. Positive emotions are a more powerful motivator

by Claudia R Schneider

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When a tricky task makes your brain hurt, here’s what to do

Although thinking hard is a daily experience, psychologists are only just beginning to understand how aversive it can be

by Todd Vogel

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To meet your goals, forget willpower and fill your toolbox

Achieving your goals has nothing to do with willpower and everything to do with using the right mix of psychological tools

by Marina Milyavskaya

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Wish you had more self-control? You should hear the downsides

Many people wish they had the advantages of more self-control. But fewer know that the trait can be costly, too

by Samantha Lapka & Franki Kung

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Eight ways to give yourself a pep talk when you feel stuck

All of us could do with more words of encouragement and perspective, and they don’t need to come from another person

by Rachel Goldsmith Turow

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Hope is the antidote to helplessness. Here’s how to cultivate it

If hopelessness is learned, then it can be unlearned: how groundbreaking studies paved the way to help cultivate hope

by Emily Esfahani Smith