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Comment by chaosmachine | Hacker News Reader

There was a study recently that said people are less likely to achieve their goals when they tell other people about them. Here's an article that discusses it:

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/ulterior-motives/200905/...

And the actual study, "When intentions go public : Does social reality widen the intention-behavior gap?" [PDF]:

http://www.uni-konstanz.de/psychologie/gollwitzer/PUBLICATIO...

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There was a study recently that said people are less likely to achieve their goals when they tell other people about them.

It's interesting that Robert Cialdini says the opposite; according to his concept of "Commitment and Consistency", if people commit, orally or in writing, to an idea or goal, they are more likely to honor that commitment (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Cialdini#Six_.E2.80.9CWe...).

So does G. Richard Shell in Bargaining for Advantage: Negotiation Strategies for Reasonable People. Shell, a Wharton professor, cites a study where half of negotiators committed to a goal in writing and the other half did not. Those who wrote down their goals were far more likely to win at the negotiation table. I picked up the book last week after several people here recommended it and am enjoying the many examples from famous people with which Shell peppers his lessons. http://www.amazon.com/dp/0143036971

In the end it still boils down to self discipline, but a different quality.

You still have to do the work. You have to be someone that cares what others think of you, and you have to be willing to put a part of that reputation on the line.

I'm sure the example studies are real but I don't think they are of a similar shape.

What I'm talking about is stuff that you have to do either way, you're not going to be able to postpone it for ever. The activities listed in that study sound like they were optional to begin with.

So, the fact that you are going to have to do this stuff combined with damage to your reputation of being able to get stuff done is what drives it, not the fact that you've simply told someone.

I often feel this way. I try not to tell anyone what I'm working on, because I usually don't finish it—the expectations drive me crazy.

Also, for me, talking about a project is another way to procrastinate actually doing it.

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