How To Change Your Behavior | Andrew Huberman EP 765
Oct 11, 2024
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Explore the emotional toll of endlessly pursuing goals and the importance of balancing internal and external rewards. Discover how dopamine influences motivation and learn strategies to reprogram your brain for resilience. The discussion emphasizes recognizing daily achievements and reflecting on progress, highlighting the value of effort and learning in personal growth.
Pursuing external goals without internal rewards can lead to burnout, emphasizing the need for intrinsic motivation throughout the journey.
Celebrating small milestones and finding joy in the process enhances long-term motivation, supporting sustainable behavior change.
Deep dives
The Impact of Pursuit on Mental Energy
Constantly pursuing external goals without internal rewards can deplete mental energy and lead to burnout. Pursuit is compared to wandering in a desert, creating exhaustion and a sense of hopelessness. To combat this, it's essential to acquire internal rewards throughout the journey, which can include recognizing small milestones. Regularly experiencing dopamine hits helps rejuvenate mental energy, which is crucial for maintaining motivation over time.
The Importance of Internal Rewards
Attaching internal rewards to processes rather than solely focusing on external validations is vital for sustaining long-term motivation. An experiment with children showed that when external rewards were removed, their intrinsic enjoyment of drawing diminished, indicating an over-reliance on external acknowledgment. To learn effectively, it's crucial to find joy in the process itself and reflect on the efforts leading to success. Celebrating wins while appreciating the journey can enhance the ability to continue striving for future goals.