Your brain prefers to follow the path of least resistance. So it will continue doing what it’s been doing unless you persuade it to do something different.
For the past few months, I’ve been expanding on the 6 Keys to Creating Positive Change. This month, the focus is Key Number Four, Personal Agency. (If you missed any of the previous articles you can catch up here.) This seems like a good time to recap the first four keys to show how they work together—and how they use both parts of your brain (System 1 and System 2) to help you get more of what you want and less of what you don’t want.
Key #1: Identify What You Want or Where You Want to Be
System 1 and System 2
In order to change your status quo, you need to identify what you want to change it to. That includes both a juicy desired outcome (System 1) and a measurable objective (System 2) that will get you your desired outcome. Desired outcome comes first and objective second. The purpose of an objective is to get you the desired outcome—and not the other way around.
I created a chart to describe the differences between the two because the primary obstacle to identifying a juicy desired outcome tends to be a failure of imagination. That can take the form of applying feasibility criteria to desired outcomes or setting small, easy, “sure thing” objectives. Small dreams aren’t motivating. I mean that literally: they don’t produce as much dopamine, the source of motivation, as big dreams do. Nor do they generate creative tension.
Key #2: Identify Where You Are Now (Your Status Quo)
System 2
If you want to get your juicy desired outcome, you need to be clear about where you are now in relation to it and the steps you will need to take to get there. Focused, logical, linear thinking can help you get a clear picture of your current situation. Comparing your status quo to your desired outcome is what generates creative tension. If you miss this step, you are just making it harder to get where you want to go. Identifying where you are now also helps you create a more effective plan to bridge the gap.
Key #3: Develop a Sense of Urgency
System 1
The brain is an insatiable wanting machine. Urgency, which inspires you to initiate action, is fueled by desire and the possibility of reward. It drives you forward toward your desired outcome. If you don’t have a sense of urgency about getting where you want to go, you’re more likely to be distracted by situational pressures or to give up. Your brain has an agenda, which is to maintain the current status quo. The way to override that agenda is to make what’s important to you as compelling to your brain as possible.
Key #4: Develop a Reliable Sense of Personal Agency
System 2
Personal agency is the sense you have that you can take action to influence your own functioning and wellbeing and the outcome of events. I call having a reliable sense of personal agency “effectiveness in action” because it requires discernment. You need to be able to determine how much agency (or control) you have in a given situation so you can take effective action toward meeting your objective and getting your desired outcome.
Developing a reliable sense of personal agency involves stepping back and taking a minute to determine the best approach—whether it’s going forward, retreating, overcoming an obstacle, or taking an alternate route. When it comes to personal agency, every situation is a learning experience. The more you can count on yourself to reliably determine where to focus your energy and effort, the more likely you are to get what you’re going after.
As I wrote in the last newsletter, creating a consistently satisfying and meaningful life is a process of effectively identifying and pursuing desired outcomes by setting and accomplishing relevant objectives, such as goals. A sense of urgency (strong desire) and a reliable sense of personal agency (discernment and effective action) are both essential for creating positive, sustained change.