Daydreaming and Mental Contrasting for Goal-Fulfillment with Gabriele Oettingen

Psychology December 08, 2014 / By Scott Barry Kaufman

SYNOPSIS

Psychologist Gabrielle Oettingen’s research on goal-setting and self-regulation animates discussion of some incredibly practical tools to help with constructive daydreaming, hurdling obstacles, implementation intentions and goal-fulfillment.

Psychologist Gabrielle Oettingen's research on goal-setting and self-regulation animates discussion of some incredibly practical tools to help with constructive daydreaming, hurdling obstacles, implementation intentions and goal-fulfillment. In this episode you will hear about:

The 'WOOP' framework for goal-setting and goal-realization
How simply thinking positively about goals can actually hinder efficacy
The right way to use prospection to energize action, define obstacles and implement a plan
Gabriele's personal philosophy of using science to better our lives

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Gabriele Oettingen is a Professor of Psychology at New York University and the University of Hamburg where her research revolves around how we think about the future, and how this affects our behavior, cognition and emotions. She has written almost 100 articles for scholarly journals and for popular news websites like The Harvard Business Review and The NYTimes online. Her latest book Rethinking Positive Thinking: Inside the New Science of Motivation is an introduction to how prospection ought to be grounded in reality to motivate change and desire-fulfillment.

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Author

Scott Barry Kaufman

Scott Barry Kaufman is a humanistic psychologist exploring the depths of human potential. He has taught courses on intelligence, creativity, and well-being at Columbia University, NYU, the University of Pennsylvania, and elsewhere. He is interested in using his research to help all kinds of minds live a creative, fulfilling, and self-actualized life. Scott likes to share his enthusiasm and knowledge of the science of potential through his books, teaching, coaching, podcast, blog, articles, and speaking engagements. In his latest book Transcend: The New Science of Self-Actualization, Kaufman presents a new hierarchy of human needs for the 21st century, one that allows for the fulfillment of individual potential as well as the actualization of transcendent purpose and peak experiences. Kaufman hosts the #1 psychology podcast in the world— The Psychology Podcast— which has received over 12 million downloads and was included in Business Insider’s list of “9 podcasts that will change how you think about human behavior.” Kaufman’s writing has appeared in The Atlantic, Scientific American, Psychology Today, and Harvard Business Review. Kaufman’s early educational experiences made him realize the deep reservoir of untapped potential of students, including bright and creative children who have been diagnosed with a learning disability (see the free monthly webcast “Critical Conversations on Cognitive Diversity”). Scott received a Ph.D. in cognitive psychology from Yale University, and an M. Phil in experimental psychology from the University of Cambridge under a Gates Cambridge Scholarship. In 2015, he was named one of “50 groundbreaking scientists who are changing the way we see the world” by Business Insider. Scott is a co-founder of The Creativity Post.

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