1: Meg was in a bad place.

“I hated my job, and I saw little hope of anything in the future,” she recalls in Jane McGonigal‘s book SuperBetter: The Power of Living Gamefully.

At twenty-six, Meg was living in Boston and working for a large company that didn’t share her values.

“I took the chance to sign up for SuperBetter,” she recalls.

A key element of the SuperBetter … continue reading

1: When it comes to setting big goals, what game designer Jane McGonigal calls “Epic Wins,” why are physical or athletic triumphs so motivating?

“If you search the SuperBetter database for all the epic wins from more than 400,000 players,” Jane writes in her book SuperBetter, four of the ten most commonly appearing verbs are walk, run, exercise, and dance. (Other top epic win verbs include finish, find, and … continue reading

1: After thirty-five years of research on goal-setting, it all comes down to this:

Harder goals inspire greater effort.

There is, however, a caveat,  Jane McGonigal writes in her book SuperBetter. “As long as the goal is not absolutely and obviously beyond a person’s control or ability.”

That’s the rub. Harder goals are better. As long as they aren’t too hard.

Here’s another key point about goal-setting: “Go only … continue reading

1: Laura was pregnant when she learned about SuperBetter.

“I’m getting SuperBetter because my second baby is due any day now,” Laura says in Jane McGonigal‘s book SuperBetter: The Power of Living Gamefully.

“As all parents know, the first three months or so are pretty rough,” she remembers. “I figured anything that encouraged me to take care of myself would be a good thing.”

The SuperBetter framework asks … continue reading

1: Say you’re faced with a difficult challenge.

Or a big opportunity.

What if you approached it like a game?

This is the main idea behind Jane McGonigal’s SuperBetter framework, described in her book. It uses allies, quests, power-ups, bad guys, and epic wins to help you become more resilient and make real progress.

Yesterday, we looked at how radio producer Alex Goldman used SuperBetter to recover after … continue reading

1: What do you do when the battery turns red on your phone?  You recharge it.

Yet, many people who are tired and overworked just trudge forward.

Which begs the question, “Why do you think you can force yourself to run well on empty?” Jeremie Kubicek and Steve Cockram write in their book The 5 Gears: How to Be Present and Productive When There is Never Enough Time.

“People … continue reading

1: Jennifer’s father was ill.
“The two things that he could do to improve his physical condition most significantly are to eat better and exercise,” she tells Jeremie Kubicek and Steve Cockram, who write in their book The 5 Gears: How to Be Present and Productive When There is Never Enough Time.
And, “the two things he refuses to do are eat better and exercise,” she says.
Jennifer … continue reading

1: So what exactly is a habit?

Yes, it is an outfit a nun wears, Tynan writes in Superhuman by Habit: A Guide to Becoming the Best Possible Version of Yourself, One Tiny Habit at a Time.

But, more importantly, “it’s an action that you take on a repeated basis with little or no required effort or thought,” he writes.

The key part of the definition? The second half … continue reading

1: The year was 1975.

Psychologists Edwin Locke and Gary Latham measured how fast forty-five of the fastest typists at a large company were able to generate text.

“The typists knew they were among the best in the company, but they had never measured how quickly they typed,” Charles Duhigg writes in Smarter Faster Better.

On average, each typist generated ninety-five lines of output per hour, setting a clear … continue reading

1: In July of 2009, game designer and PhD Jane McGonigal suffered a severe concussion.

“There is no known effective therapy or treatment for post-concussion syndrome,” Jane writes in her book SuperBetter: The Power of Living Gamefully.

She was on total cognitive rest.  “I literally had nothing to do.  ‘Rest and wait’ is the only prescription,” she recalls.  “Which meant I couldn’t do anything that stimulated my brain: No … continue reading