Comments on: Writing Down Your Goals – The Harvard Written Goal Study. Fact or Fiction?

By: Julie Hall

Julie Hall — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 18:06:54 +0000

Harvard goal study: fact or fiction? http://t.co/liZsOytM >> lack of empirical evidence that writing down goals is actually effective

By: Helfen Ziele wirklich? - Zeitmanagement leicht gemacht

Helfen Ziele wirklich? - Zeitmanagement leicht gemacht — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 05:19:29 +0000

[...] gefälscht.Ziele helfen eben doch. Foto von JMC Photos[Zu diesem Artikel hat mich übrigens ein Blogartikel von Sid Savara inspiriert. Dort habe ich auch den Link auf die Studie von Gail Matthews gefunden. IB, [...]

By: Why Goals? « Daily PlanIt

Why Goals? « Daily PlanIt — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 01:42:17 +0000

[...] study at Harvard/Yale that showed those who wrote down goals were 10% more successful, has been debunked. However an actual study has been done with results received from 149 participants at Dominican [...]

By: Writing Down Your Goals – The Harvard Written Goal Study | thecardthatkeepsyouontrack

Fri, 25 Mar 2011 10:21:44 +0000

[...] Harvard Writter Goal Study – Fact or Fiction? [...]

By: Jenny Blake

Jenny Blake — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 02:46:04 +0000

RT @ChaChanna: RT @sidsavara: Writing Down Your Goals – The Harvard Written Goal Study. Fact or Fiction? http://bit.ly/egGPGU

By: 1/11/11 – What is your multiple exclamation point? « Gimbalsystems's Blog

1/11/11 – What is your multiple exclamation point? « Gimbalsystems's Blog — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 21:24:35 +0000

[...] that suggests writing your goals down makes you more likely to accomplish them. I found out in Sid Savara’s post that this is at least partially true, which helps to reinforce my belief in the power of writing [...]

By: 8 Simple Steps to Actually Achieving Your New Year’s Resolutions « Corina Mackay

Fri, 31 Dec 2010 04:39:56 +0000

[...] seems there is much dispute over widely-reported studies from Harvard and Yale regarding the effectiveness of writing down [...]

By: My Secret For Personal Growth and Change: How To Change Yourself

My Secret For Personal Growth and Change: How To Change Yourself — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 08:10:26 +0000

[...] important than anything else is considering what my goals are, and the expected end result of a particular project is. If this is not something I desire, [...]

By: Life Rules: Rules For Life

Life Rules: Rules For Life — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 21:14:41 +0000

[...] And while we’re on the subject, write down your goals [...]

By: Gordon Simmons

Gordon Simmons — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 19:32:22 +0000

Hello, Sid.

Thanks for the response, and for the articles. I really appreciate all the links you have and the further reading sections.

I'll check out ther esources you mention in the blogs below.

Thanks again for the info!

Best regards,
Gordon Simmons

________________________________

By: How to Create Your Personal Development Plan

How to Create Your Personal Development Plan — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 18:24:41 +0000

[...] may have previously read this discussion on writing down your goals, where I point to research showing that it has a measurable effect, increasing the likelihood of [...]

By: Sid Savara

Sid Savara — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 00:18:54 +0000

Hi Becca,

Thanks so much for your kind words! I'll check out Yana.com - sounds like
something I'd really enjoy =)

By: Sid Savara

Sid Savara — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 00:18:20 +0000

Hey Svend,

Thanks for the comment – and the nickname. “Sid The Mythbuster” eh? I like
it ;)

By: Sid Savara

Sid Savara — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 00:17:53 +0000

Hi Gordon,

I spent some time looking into the issue of endorphin release and I believe
it's true - accomplishing tasks and winning "games" does indeed release
dopamine. I haven't found a single study on that specifically, but I did a
lot of related research in a couple of articles you may be interested in:

http://sidsavara.com/television-video-games-and...
http://sidsavara.com/personal-development/perso...

=)

I actually did come across a book that references that when we "win" and get
a "reward" we release dopamine, but I cannot find the reference now for you
unfortunately =/. I hope that research helps you though =)

By: beccax

beccax — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 22:13:52 +0000

Thanks so much Sid for taking the time to get to the bottom of this. I've been guilty of spreading the wrong info till I came across your post. :) We are building a community site to help people achieve their goals, called Yana.com. People can set their goals, share them with their Facebook friends, and will soon be able to make status updates on their goals, so a lot of what the study found to help people achieve their goals. So thank you so much for pointing to this study! And if you have time to check out our site and provide us your thoughts, we'd really appreciate it. Have a great day!

By: beccax

beccax — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 12:13:52 +0000

By: Written Goals « Michael Boyle’s Strengthcoach.com Blog

Written Goals « Michael Boyle’s Strengthcoach.com Blog — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 13:41:22 +0000

[...] Written Goals I was going to write an entire post about written goals and use the old story about how the small percentage of Yale students who wrote down their goals out-earned their peers. However, a guy named Sid Sarvara already did a great job of it. [...]

By: Where to Start the New Year | Premier Design Websites

Where to Start the New Year | Premier Design Websites — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 16:02:28 +0000

[...] So have you done it? None withstanding that the Harvard (or Yale) class study was a hoax ( See Sid’s blog for more discussion) , writing down your goals on paper and reviewing them regularly make a [...]

By: Svend Petersen

Svend Petersen — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 04:36:50 +0000

“Sid the MythBuster” – good stuff.
Too much snake oil out there: Red wine that cures baldness, CO2 levels causing earthquakes, florecent tubes causing hearing loss.

By: ajlopez

ajlopez — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 19:27:58 +0000

Fact or Fiction? The Truth About The Harvard Written Goal Study http://bit.ly/4H92KU

By: The Seven Rules Of New Year’s Resolutions

The Seven Rules Of New Year’s Resolutions — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 20:50:14 +0000

[...] is …You Write Down Your New Year’s ResolutionsWhen I previously discussed whether the Harvard written goals study was a myth, I came across another study by Gail Matthews (Summary of Recent Goals Research, PDF) that did show [...]

By: The power of turning your friends into bosses (it’s science) | Pete Mockaitis

Tue, 29 Dec 2009 17:05:14 +0000

[...] substantiates this concept (which is encouraging, after Fast Company and Sid Savara resolutely debunked the oft-quoted Harvard written goals [...]

By: gordonsimmons

gordonsimmons — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 15:21:56 +0000

Sid, thanks for diving into this one. It is a story I have retold as well, citing Brian Tracy as the source. Glad to get to the facts of the issue, and doubly glad that someone else took the time to actually do a study. Lesson learned for me: trust but verify. I should have dug deeper to actually find the study myself.

I am on a similar hunt for a related study. Brian Tracy says that when you write down a goal, and then accomplish it, your brain releases endorphins. I'm searching for a study that shows that conclusively, and so far am having no luck. I have corresponded with a couple professors in the field of positive psychology but they have never heard of such a study.

Have you heard this claim before? Do you know of s study to back it up?

By: a finance guy

a finance guy — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 05:20:00 +0000

[...] with written goals earning great fortunes vs. their peers without written goals is an urban legend. See here for details. Another study was done that demonstrated written goals do help people accomplish more, but huge [...]

By: The Hopkinson Report » Episode 84: Myth or Legend? Is writing down your goals the most important thing you can do for your career?

Wed, 16 Dec 2009 21:46:34 +0000

[...] I came across the blog of Sid Savara. [...]