Desire. When you have it, nobody questions it. When it is absent, it can be tricky to talk about. After all, the subject is delicate, and what is the point? You probably have little clue what is going on anyway. Luckily, scientists are looking out for you—because it is not even close [...]

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”

These are the first lines of what’s known as the Serenity Prayer, which is well known to many recovering alcoholics. It’s often recited in the rooms [...]

The Zeigarnik Effect

What can waiters, the TV series ‘Lost’ and the novelist Charles Dickens teach us about avoiding procrastination?

One of the simplest methods for beating procrastination in almost any task was inspired by busy waiters.

It’s called the Zeigarnik effect after a Russian psychologist, Bluma Zeigarnik (above left), who noticed an odd [...]

11 Ways to Achieve Anything!

We’re all familiar with the nuts and bolts of goal-setting. We should set specific, challenging goals, use rewards, record progress and make public commitments.

So how come we still fail?

This psychological research suggests why and what mindsets should help us reach our goals.

1. Stop fantasising

The biggest [...]

It’s natural to make excuses for poor performance but they can be dangerous…

Most of us have a strong fear of failure.

It’s partly because we don’t want to look bad in front of others but it’s also about how we see ourselves. We are afraid to fail because it damages our view [...]

“Procrastination is like masturbation. At first it feels good, but in the end you’re only screwing yourself.” ~Author Unknown Procrastination seems to enter into so many of my clients narratives, that I decided to do some research as to why putting important things off until some time in the future is such a [...]

When a person meets you for the first time they ask themselves two questions. The answers to these two questions will have all sorts of knock-on effects for how they think about you and how they behave towards you.

Professor Susan Fiske of Princeton University has shown that all social judgements can be [...]

BEING CRAZY IS NOISY

John Sterns is diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder (a co-diagnosis of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder), chronic depression and chronic anxiety. He describes a lifetime of fighting demons …

Special to MORE INTELLIGENT LIFE

I.  I hear voices (“auditory hallucinations”, technically). They come from all directions and fill my mind with [...]

How to Think About the Mind

Neuroscience shows that the ‘soul’ is the activity of the brain

By Steven Pinker Newsweek Sept. 27 issue – Every evening our eyes tell us that the sun sets, while we know that, in fact, the Earth is turning us away from it. Astronomy taught [...]