7 Psychological 'Tricks' That Are Total Bullsh*t

6. Tell People Your Goals

A popular little "hack" that usually does the rounds at new year time, is that you should tell people about your goals to lose weight/learn german/take up knitting. The theory is that, if other people know about your grand plans, you'll be more likely to stick to them so as not to let them down.

Where this all falls down, however, is that it doesn't work in the slightest, and could actually have the opposite effect.

The first problem is that, harsh as it might sound, nobody else cares enough about your personal goals for it to be a big deal when you eventually abandon them in favour of Netflix and cronuts. The second is that announcing your goals to the world might actually make you less likely to see them through.

This is because, in telling your friends that you're going to learn german, you're rewarded with a little kick of pleasure straight away. Your brain reacts as though you have taken steps to achieving your goal, when you haven't at all, and is more likely to lose motivation to actually do it. Why would you put in the effort to actually learn german, when you can get the same warm glow from just telling people about it?

The better strategy is to keep it to yourself, and use the