Dr. Adam Grant: How to Unlock Your Potential, Motivation & Unique Abilities

In this episode, my guest is Dr. Adam Grant, Ph.D., a professor of organizational psychology at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, an expert in the science and practical steps for increasing motivation, maximizing and reaching our potential, and understanding how individuals and groups can best flourish. He is also an avid public educator, having written five bestselling books, delivered several top-ranking TED Talks and is the host of two psychology podcasts. We discuss how to overcome procrastination, how to increase intrinsic motivation (even for dreaded tasks), identify blind spots and rethink our assumptions, and how we can build a persistent growth mindset. We also explain tools to improve creativity and discuss the surprising relationship between creativity and procrastination. We then explore how to effectively solicit useful feedback and grow from constructive criticism and how you can improve your level of focus and attention using science-supported methods. We also discuss mental tools to get out of negative thought spirals, how to nurture potential in yourself or others, and the dark side of perfectionism. The discussion delivers more than a dozen science-supported protocols that are readily applicable to anyone seeking to live a more productive, fulfilling, and creative life.

Timestamps
00:00:00 Dr. Adam Grant
00:01:37 Sponsors: Eight Sleep, Levels & Waking Up
00:05:56 Procrastination & Emotion; Curiosity
00:14:06 Creativity & Procrastination; Motivation
00:20:48 Intrinsic Motivation & Curiosity
00:27:59 Tool: Tasks & Sense of Purpose
00:30:52 Sponsor: AG1
00:32:34 Extrinsic Rewards, Choice; Social Media
00:42:24 Tool: “Quiet Time” Protocol, Chronotypes
00:49:20 Tool: Creativity: Mornings, Movement, Stillness
00:57:05 Sponsor: InsideTracker
00:58:14 Tools: Ideas & Filtering, Feedback & Opinions, Advice
01:07:15 Tool: Constructive Criticism, “Second Score”; Verbs
01:14:40 Tool: Growth Mindsets, Scaffolding; Job Innovation
01:21:50 Tools: Task Sequencing & Intrinsic Motivation; Tapering & Frame of Reference
01:30:03 Tools: Momentum, Confidence & Domains; Negative Thought Spirals
01:36:16 Tool: Phone & “To Don’t” List; Writing Ideas
01:39:54 Tool: Bias Blindspot, Reflected Best-Self Portrait
01:45:36 Helping Others, Synthesizing Information
01:50:24 Modes of Thinking, Blind Spots & Assumptions
01:56:10 Thinking Like a Scientist: Hypothesis-Testing & Discourse, Social Media
02:05:15 Tool: Authenticity, Sincerity & Etiquette, “Snapshot” & Online Presence
02:12:49 Realizing Potential: Motivation, Opportunity & Process
02:21:53 Skills to Realize Potential, Perfectionism
02:27:52 Tool: Early Success & Performance Cycle, “Failure Budget”
02:31:56 Future Projects, Complex Issues & Challenging Ideas
02:40:10 Artistic Hobbies, Magicians
02:45:55 Science Communication, Interest & Self-Relevance
02:52:16 Languishing, Descriptive Language & Emotions
03:00:09 Tool: Nurture Potential in Children, “Coach Effect”
03:10:16 Zero-Cost Support, Spotify & Apple Reviews, Sponsors, YouTube Feedback, Momentous, Social Media, Neural Network Newsletter

#HubermanLab #AdamGrant #Science