The Power of Personal Projects for Well-being

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Exciting data came in following the methods of asking people about their projects. Some favorite personal projects included being a better druid and clarifying philosophy of life. The sustainable pursuit of core projects is essential for well-being. Five key features of projects include meaningfulness, self-expression, manageability, time, and coherence. Manageable and meaningful projects contribute to well-being, while purpose without progress is not sufficient. The most important dimension for predicting health and happiness is efficacy, the perceived likelihood of successful completion of projects.

Award-winning researcher and pioneering psychologist Brian Little has plenty of accomplishments under his belt. He’s the author of the bestselling books “Me, Myself, and Us” and “Who Are You, Really?” His TED Talk on the science of personality has tens of millions of views and he’s been elected a Favorite Professor multiple times at Harvard. And he’s also Adam’s favorite psychologist – and personal mentor. Brian and Adam talk about how our personal projects shape our well-being, the nuances of introversion and extraversion, when it makes sense to act out of character, and what our daily pursuits reveal about us. Transcripts for ReThinking are available at go.ted.com/RWAGscripts