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As a loyal listener to this show, you're always challenging yourself to grow, to be better, to keep learning, and Southern New Hampshire University can help. Southern New Hampshire University offers over 200 career focused degree programs online. Plus, Southern New Hampshire University has some of the lowest online tuition rates in the US So balancing school, work and life actually feels achievable and affordable too. Find your degree at snhu. Edu Dial that's snhu. Edu Dial Hey, a bad hire can really cost your business, and a great hire can really accelerate your business. Running a small business means every hire really matters. A bad hire can cost you time and money and momentum, and a good hire can help grow your business immensely. Finding great talent isn't easy when you don't have the time or resources to sift through resumes. LinkedIn's new hiring pro screens candidates for you, so instead of sorting through applicants, you can spend time talking to only the right ones. Getting get started by posting your job for free@LinkedIn.com dial terms and conditions apply when it comes to health and wellness, the most important thing for me is to be able to trust what I
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put in my body.
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So whether you are tackling fitness goals, a wellness routine, or shopping for family essentials, iHerb is the one stop shop for vitamins, supplements, sports nutrition, personal care, and even grocery, baby and pet products. For nearly 30 years, IHERB has delivered authentic wellness products sourced directly from trusted brands and authorized partners to more than 15 million customers worldwide. And if something doesn't meet your expectations, IHERB makes it right with easy returns and simple refunds. Visit iherb.com and use the code MINDSET for 20% off your order. Welcome to today's episode of the Mindset Mentor Podcast. I am your host, Rob Dial. If you have not yet done so, hit that subscribe button so you never miss another episode. And you if today we're gonna be talking about how to stay focused and productive and how to use different aspects of your brain to actually get more done. And I don't know about you, but have you ever felt like you're doing things all day long but you get done at the end of the day and you're tired and you feel like you didn't really get a whole lot accomplished at the end of the day. Do you ever get more stressed out by your to do list than the actual accomplishment that you get from the to do list? Well, today I'm gonna kind of help you understand why that is. There's an aspect of your that really turns on whenever you don't complete a task. And I'm going to show you how to use this psychological effect to actually help you get more done. So there's a thing that's called the Zeigarnik effect, and it's this phenomenon that was discovered by Soviet psychologists in the 1920s. Dr. Zeigernik and she observed that people tend to remember unfinished or interrupted tasks better than they remember the ones that are completed. And so those things can in turn take our own mental energy until they're actually completed. And this effect is based on the idea that our brains are wired to focus on what's called an open loop, which is basically an unfinished task. But that open loop creates a sense of mental discomfort until it is completed. And this discomfort is actually what drives us to complete a task. And when it's finally completed, the discomfort feels resolved. They actually found that we can use this discomfort to drive us to take more action. It's really interesting. Some of the studies that they've done was they found if you've ever gone to a restaurant and your server asks you what you want and they never write it down, and you're like, man, this is pretty impressive. They remember everything they find at the end of the day when they start talking to servers, and, you know, there's not as many people. There is that many times they can't remember past orders that people had when they were at the table, but they can remember the people who are currently sitting at the table that haven't gotten their orders yet. Because it's like, once that order is delivered, that's completely off my mind. It doesn't exist there anymore. And so most of the time, at the end of the day, you don't focus on all of the things that you've completed, do you? You focus on all the things that you still have to do and the things that you didn't get done. And when you wake up in the morning to go to the bathroom and you then remember all of the things that you didn't get done for the day, and now you're thinking about it, your mental energy is being used towards, oh, my God, now I've got to do that tomorrow. Undone work takes up a lot of mental energy. This is the reason why, like, clickbait works. Clickbait titles on articles, clickbait on YouTube. The reason why is because the mind doesn't like open loops. So you see a thumbnail that says something, and you're like, I got to know what the hell they're talking about. Like, what is this thing that they're talking about? We want to close an open loop. What is an open loop? The news, local news is really good at open loops. It's like the killer chemical found in your tap water tonight at 10 o'.
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And you're like, what the fuck? What's in my tap water? Well, I've got to find out. So now I've got to show up in order to be able to find out what that is. That's what an open loop is. And it makes you want to figure out what that thing is. It needs to close in order for me to have resolve. This is why the best shows in the world, whenever you're watching them, have cliffhangers. Yellowstone, Game of Thrones, their cliffhangers are making. Something happens right at the end of the episode and they're like, you're like, what the hell is going on? Like, what? I've. I have to wait a week to figure that out? And you get all tense and you want to see the next episode, you want to close the loop. This is also why people binge watch shows, if you've ever done that before, where you just, you've gotta go to the next one. You've gotta see what happens. For me, this is, this is an example of why I don't really start puzzles. Once I start a puzzle, for some reason, like, I've gotta finish the puzzle, it feels like it's built into me, like, and if I don't have five hours to do a damn puzzle, I'm not gonna start it. And so we have this feeling of being unresolved and our brain wants to solve it. And so this can hold you back if you don't know how to use it. If you know how to use it, it can propel you forward. And actually, and that's why I love studying the brain and I love studying humans so much, is because I want you to be able to use your brain to drive yourself forward in life and become better. So how can this all be bad? First off, let's talk about bad and then talk about how we can use it. Right? When we don't complete a task, our brain is focused on it until it is done. It causes this mental tension and this can cause us to. When we think about all the things that we need to get done, it could cause stress, it could cause anxiety when you're not really aware of it. And so when we have too many unfinished tasks in our minds, it can become really overwhelming and it leads to this feeling of paralysis. Like there's so many things that I need to complete, I don't know which one to start with first. And so it turns in this like paralysis by analysis. And it can make it difficult to focus on just one task because there's just so many things to focus on. But it can also be used for good, which is what's good about it. One of the key implications of the Zeigarnik effect is, is that it can be used to actually increase your motivation and increase your productivity. And the bigger a task is, the harder that it can be to start to take action towards completing that task. And so what do you do? One of the things that makes it easier to start towards doing something is to take a big task and break it down into smaller tasks, more manageable chunks, setting clear deadlines with it. And then we can tap into this natural tendency to focus on unfinished tasks to drive ourselves to complete them. And so if you have this big huge thing like you have to do a presentation for the company that you work for and it's going to take you like a week to do, starting it can be really hard. Why is that? Because you're looking at, you're going, oh my God, there's so many things I've got to do. And it's such a, it's so daunting for how big this, this task can appear. And so what do you do? You take the entire thing, you break it down into smaller tasks. Okay, well, I've got to do the research on X, Y and Z. I've got to create the table to show revenue for the quarters every quarter this year. And you break it down into smaller tasks and you use those smaller tasks to drive yourself to complete them. So if you have, like I said, like a large report, instead of just putting finish the report, break it down into the smaller tasks, finish the introduction, research the competition, you know, break down the revenue goals, complete the plan to hit the goal, put it all in Excel spreadsheet, send to an assistant to make it look prettier and add animations. The shorter the task, the easier it will be to start it. And for once we start it now, we want to finish it and we will be right back.
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And now back to the show. But it's a lot harder to start something when it's just like finished presentation. And so the shorter, the smaller the task, the easier it makes us to start. And then once we start, we're going to want to finish it. It's still the same massive task, but it's just smaller, more manageable tasks that make it even easier to start. And so how can you take any task on our list and break it down more? When you look at your to do list and you look at some of the things on your to list, so, like, real simple and real easy, you don't really have a whole lot of drive to just like, oh, finish the dishes, Maybe you do if you have guests coming over, but if you're like, oh, I've got to do the dishes, you don't really feel much of a pull on that. But then when you have something, like I just said, like, you've got to create a report, you're like, oh, my God, I really need to get this done. And you want to cross it off, but then you get that mental resistance as well. When it seems really big, take it and turn it put into a smaller task. So can you take as many tasks on your to do list and break them down into smaller, more manageable ones? Each time you cross something off on your to do list, it gives you a little bit of a sense of accomplishment. And what that does is it releases dopamine. And if you don't know what dopamine is, dopamine is the chemical of motivation. It is the one that drives you to keep going. Once you get dopamine, you want more dopamine. There's been books written about this. We're all dopamine addicts in some sort of way. So once we get a little bit dopamine, we want more dopamine. Just like a drug addict, once you get drugs, you want more drugs. And so it's like once you get that dopamine, because you cross one thing off on your to do list, it feels good. You've got some positive momentum on your side, and now you're looking at the next small manageable task that is part of the bigger tax that you have in front of you. And so the best way to do this, and to help you start to get things done is to use something called the Pomodoro technique. It's just basically a time management method that breaks all of the stuff that you do in an entire day down into 25 minute intervals with 5 minute breaks. And so what you're going to do is you're going to find one thing, one thing that needs to be done, and you're going to have a 25 minute timer, you're going to set the timer, you're going to put your phone away, you're going to put everything else away, and you're only going to focus on one task, and one task only for 25 minutes. If you don't finish after those 25 minutes, well, guess what? The zebra Nick effect is going to make you want to complete it. So you just take a five minute break, build up that mental resistance that you have, and then you're going to want to go back into it and finish it. And if you do finish it, well, then now you can go on to the next most important thing. Another thing that's really important is because the fact that we know that with the Zebronik effect, we're not going to pay much attention to our progress, we're not going to really celebrate our small wins because we're focused on these tasks that need to be done. It's really important for us to take a step back as often as possible and celebrate our own wins and reflect on the progress that we have had. And when you celebrate small wins, it can help you reduce the sense of cognitive load that you have in front of you and increase your motivation, because dopamine is a subjective chemical. And so when you celebrate yourself, when you're like, man, I'm so proud of myself, you're doing such a good job, keep on going. I recommend talking to yourself out loud as often as possible. When you do that, your brain releases dopamine. And guess what? Now that you've gotten dopamine, the chemical of motivation, your brain wants more dopamine. So it's like, okay, I'm so excited that I completed this task. I'm so proud of myself for getting this done. What's the next task? Because I want more of this dopamine stuff. And so it creates, like using dopamine and knowing that you can celebrate yourself, and you should, and the Zebronik effect of wanting to make sure that you're getting all of your tasks completed that are not completed can actually drive you to take more action. And so when you take A step back and you acknowledge your progress, you start to feel more encouraged more to complete the next task. It's really wild because you get momentum on your side. But all too often I hear people doing the exact opposite. They, like, have a list of, you know, let's say they take their. Their entire report that they need to do, and they break it down into 10 smaller, more manageable tasks, and they get the first one completed, and then instead of celebrating themselves, they just turn into an asshole. And they're like, well, yeah, but you still have so much to do. So you just had an opportunity to celebrate yourself, to give your brain a release of dopamine to get you more motivated, to get more momentum on your side, to get you more driven to want to complete the next one. But instead you just canceled all the motivation and you're like, nah. But you just have so much to do. And so you went into a little negative Nancy, and you actually made it harder to motivate yourself versus motivating yourself because of the fact that you were going, you know what? You're doing so good. I'm so proud of you. You just crossed it off the list. That was a big task. Congratulations. Whatever it is you need to say to yourself, which will give you the dopamine, which will get you excited, which will make you want to go and complete the next task. When you have momentum on your side, become aware of the momentum, bring it up in your mind, celebrate yourself, and keep the momentum going. Momentum is such an important aspect of all of these tasks. When you get momentum on your side, ride the momentum, because it's really hard to get that momentum. I always say, like, if you've ever pushed a car, it's really hard to get a car moving. Like, the first few feet are the hardest feet, but once you've been pushing a car for a little while, the momentum of the car, it's a 3, 4, 5000 pound vehicle. That. That momentum that it has, you just got to kind of keep it on the road. It'll start to move itself almost, and you just got to not push as much, but push a little bit. So many people get the momentum on their side, and then they turn into a negative Nancy and then they just kill the momentum. It's like the car stopping now. You've got to get it going again. And so what do we do at the end of the day when we have this entire to do list? And we're like, man, but I have so many unfinished tasks. When we have more unfinished tasks that have to Go into tomorrow, we will have this feeling of being unresolved and our brain does want to solve it. And so what I always recommend to people is to basically simply write down the things in your mind at the end of the day, schedule when you want to get them done tomorrow, and then take 15 minutes at the end of the day in order to just put them all on your schedule. Make sure you have all of it done so that you don't bring that mental tension home with you after work. You don't bring that mental tension home with you when you're playing with your children, right? So it's like, what do you do? You basically take 15 minutes to close out your day. And so what you do is because of the fact that you've now taken your to do list, you've taken 15 minutes, you've put it into your schedule for tomorrow, and you've started to actually feel like you have scheduled out the tasks that need to be done. You can kind of mentally clock out until you show back up again tomorrow that way, like I said, and I've done this many times, wake up to go to the bathroom at 3 o' clock in the morning, and then you think about all of the things that you have to be done for tomorrow, and then you stay up for 90 minutes thinking about all the stuff that has to be done. And so what I like to do is see all the stuff that need to be done, take 15 minutes, put in my schedule, write down my to do list for tomorrow, and then, oddly enough, what I say is I speak out loud to myself and I say, okay, I'm checking out for the day. And when you speak out loud to yourself, it kind of gives your brain this opportunity to, like, disconnect. Okay, we're disconnecting. We're done for the day. We'll be back tomorrow. And it's a weird thing. It doesn't seem like it would work. It seems weird to talk out loud to yourself. But I promise you, if you use this, it will make it easier for you to just clock out for the day mentally as well as physically. And then when you show up tomorrow, be able to take some action on it. If for some sort of reason, the day still pops up tonight. This is a thing I got from one of my coaches years ago. And it works. I don't know why it works. Whenever your brain comes in and says, yes, but you know you're playing with your children, yes, but we need to think about work, you just simply say out loud to yourself, not right now. I'll do it tomorrow. And if you do this enough, your brain kind of like, it's really odd. I don't know what effect this is, but your brain basically is like, okay, I'll bring it back to you tomorrow and you don't have to worry about it. If you want, you can send a text message to yourself. Put it in your notes tab. Okay, yes. I've got to do X, Y and Z tomorrow. It is in my notes. I will not forget it. Okay, I'm done for this for the day. Thank you for bringing up in my mind we're not going to do this right now. And it's basically just a way to disconnect so that you can be fully 100% in your business. For instance, when you're in your business, but then when you're in front of your children, family, you can be fully present for them as well. And so if you want to be more productive, use this mental tension to drive you forward just a little bit more. So that's what I got for you for today's episode. If you love this episode, please share it on your Instagram stories. Tag me obdialjr. R O B D I A L J R. And with that, I'll leave you the same way I leave you every single episode. Make it your mission to make somebody else's day better. I appreciate you and I hope that you have an amazing day.
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Summary5 min read

Podcast Summary: The Mindset Mentor

Host: Rob Dial
Episode: The Kind Of Focus That Makes You Immune To Distraction
Date: July 24, 2026

Episode Overview

In this episode, Rob Dial explores the psychological and neurological underpinnings of focus and productivity, using the Zeigarnik Effect as a central theme. He dives deep into why unfinished tasks dominate our attention, how this can both inhibit and amplify our productivity, and offers actionable techniques to leverage this natural tendency of the brain. The episode is loaded with relatable examples, practical strategies, and a focus on mastering your mindset to maximize your productivity and truly become immune to distraction.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Understanding the Zeigarnik Effect

[02:05 - 05:40]

Rob introduces the Zeigarnik Effect: Discovered by Soviet psychologist Dr. Bluma Zeigarnik in the 1920s, this phenomenon explains why our brains fixate on unfinished tasks, causing mental discomfort until they’re completed.
"The mind doesn’t like open loops. An ‘open loop’ is just an unfinished task, and it’s going to tug at your mental energy until it’s closed." (Rob Dial, 03:35)
Everyday examples include servers remembering current orders but forgetting completed ones, as well as the power of clickbait and TV cliffhangers.
"You’re watching Yellowstone or Game of Thrones and the episode cuts off at a cliffhanger—you just gotta keep going. That’s the Zeigarnik effect at work." (Rob Dial, 04:30)

The Downside: Mental Overload and Paralysis

[05:41 - 07:55]

Too many open loops can overwhelm and paralyze us, leading to stress and anxiety.
"When we have too many unfinished tasks, it leads to that paralysis by analysis—you just don’t know where to start.” (Rob Dial, 06:30)
People often focus on what’s undone rather than what’s been accomplished, which saps motivation.

The Upside: Motivation and Momentum

[07:55 - 09:00]

The Zeigarnik Effect can be harnessed to create productivity and momentum.
Breaking big tasks into manageable chunks makes it easier to start and finish, transforming daunting projects into motivational fuel.

Example: Breaking Down Tasks

[07:58 - 08:45]

"Instead of 'finish the report', break it down: 'finish the introduction, research competition, break down revenue goals, make the plan, put it all in a spreadsheet.' The smaller the task, the easier it’ll be to start—and the more likely you are to finish." (Rob Dial, 08:09)

Dopamine, Celebration, and Positive Reinforcement

[11:51 - 13:55]

Each completed task releases dopamine—the brain's motivation chemical.
Rob stresses the importance of celebrating small wins out loud to keep the motivational momentum going.
"When you celebrate yourself, your brain releases dopamine. Now you want more, and it drives you to cross off the next thing." (Rob Dial, 12:25)
Warning against negative self-talk after accomplishing tasks: being self-critical cancels motivational momentum.
"So many people finish something—then turn into an asshole to themselves: 'Yeah but you still have so much to do.' That just kills your momentum." (Rob Dial, 13:34)

Practical Techniques to Use the Zeigarnik Effect

1. Small, Specific Tasks

Breaking down complex to-do list items into actionable steps.

2. The Pomodoro Technique

[12:40 - 13:30]

Work in 25-minute focused sprints with 5-minute breaks.
"Just put your phone away, set a timer for 25 minutes, and work ONLY on that one thing." (Rob Dial, 12:44)
Even unfinished, the Zeigarnik effect will pull you back in to complete it after a break.

3. End-of-Day Closure Routine

[15:25 - 17:44]

Take 15 minutes to review, schedule, and write down all tasks for the next day.
"When I’m done, I speak out loud: 'Okay, I’m checking out for the day.' It’s kind of weird, but it helps your brain disconnect." (Rob Dial, 16:30)
If tasks pop up later—say to yourself, “Not right now. I’ll do it tomorrow.”
"Send a text or put it in your notes app if you need to, then let it go and clock out mentally." (Rob Dial, 17:12)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

| Timestamp | Speaker | Quote | |-----------|----------|--------| | 03:35 | Rob Dial | "The mind doesn’t like open loops. An ‘open loop’ is just an unfinished task, and it’s going to tug at your mental energy until it’s closed." | | 04:30 | Rob Dial | “You’re watching Yellowstone or Game of Thrones and the episode cuts off at a cliffhanger—you just gotta keep going. That’s the Zeigarnik effect at work.” | | 06:30 | Rob Dial | "When we have too many unfinished tasks, it leads to that paralysis by analysis—you just don’t know where to start.” | | 08:09 | Rob Dial | "Instead of 'finish the report', break it down: 'finish the introduction, research competition, break down revenue goals, make the plan, put it all in a spreadsheet.' The smaller the task, the easier it’ll be to start—and the more likely you are to finish." | | 12:25 | Rob Dial | "When you celebrate yourself, your brain releases dopamine. Now you want more, and it drives you to cross off the next thing." | | 13:34 | Rob Dial | "So many people finish something—then turn into an asshole to themselves: 'Yeah but you still have so much to do.' That just kills your momentum." | | 16:30 | Rob Dial | "When I’m done, I speak out loud: 'Okay, I’m checking out for the day.' It’s kind of weird, but it helps your brain disconnect." | | 17:12 | Rob Dial | "Send a text or put it in your notes app if you need to, then let it go and clock out mentally." |

Actionable Takeaways

Break down big tasks into specific, manageable to-dos to make starting easier and leverage the motivational pull of unfinished work.
Practice the Pomodoro technique: 25 minutes focus, 5-minute break, repeat. Let the Zeigarnik effect help you return and finish.
Celebrate every small win aloud, no matter how trivial. This self-recognition boosts dopamine and builds momentum.
End your day with intentional closure: Write out tomorrow’s tasks and verbally signal to your mind that you’re “clocked out”. Dismiss lingering thoughts with “Not right now. I’ll do it tomorrow.”
Be conscious of your self-talk: Don’t sabotage yourself with negativity after completing a task. Highlight your progress instead.

Final Thoughts

Rob Dial concludes by emphasizing the importance of mastering your own brain using simple, science-backed processes. By turning the mind’s natural focus on unfinished business into fuel instead of friction, you can multiply your productivity, reduce anxiety, and maintain presence both at work and with loved ones.

"Momentum is everything—once you’ve got it, keep it rolling." (Rob Dial, 14:45)

For more mindset strategies, follow Rob on Instagram @robdialjr.

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As a loyal listener to this show, you're always challenging yourself to grow, to be better, to keep learning, and Southern New Hampshire University can help. Southern New Hampshire University offers over 200 career focused degree programs online. Plus, Southern New Hampshire University has some of the lowest online tuition rates in the US So balancing school, work and life actually feels achievable and affordable too. Find your degree at snhu. Edu Dial that's snhu. Edu Dial Hey, a bad hire can really cost your business, and a great hire can really accelerate your business. Running a small business means every hire really matters. A bad hire can cost you time and money and momentum, and a good hire can help grow your business immensely. Finding great talent isn't easy when you don't have the time or resources to sift through resumes. LinkedIn's new hiring pro screens candidates for you, so instead of sorting through applicants, you can spend time talking to only the right ones. Getting get started by posting your job for free@LinkedIn.com dial terms and conditions apply when it comes to health and wellness, the most important thing for me is to be able to trust what I
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put in my body.
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So whether you are tackling fitness goals, a wellness routine, or shopping for family essentials, iHerb is the one stop shop for vitamins, supplements, sports nutrition, personal care, and even grocery, baby and pet products. For nearly 30 years, IHERB has delivered authentic wellness products sourced directly from trusted brands and authorized partners to more than 15 million customers worldwide. And if something doesn't meet your expectations, IHERB makes it right with easy returns and simple refunds. Visit iherb.com and use the code MINDSET for 20% off your order. Welcome to today's episode of the Mindset Mentor Podcast. I am your host, Rob Dial. If you have not yet done so, hit that subscribe button so you never miss another episode. And you if today we're gonna be talking about how to stay focused and productive and how to use different aspects of your brain to actually get more done. And I don't know about you, but have you ever felt like you're doing things all day long but you get done at the end of the day and you're tired and you feel like you didn't really get a whole lot accomplished at the end of the day. Do you ever get more stressed out by your to do list than the actual accomplishment that you get from the to do list? Well, today I'm gonna kind of help you understand why that is. There's an aspect of your that really turns on whenever you don't complete a task. And I'm going to show you how to use this psychological effect to actually help you get more done. So there's a thing that's called the Zeigarnik effect, and it's this phenomenon that was discovered by Soviet psychologists in the 1920s. Dr. Zeigernik and she observed that people tend to remember unfinished or interrupted tasks better than they remember the ones that are completed. And so those things can in turn take our own mental energy until they're actually completed. And this effect is based on the idea that our brains are wired to focus on what's called an open loop, which is basically an unfinished task. But that open loop creates a sense of mental discomfort until it is completed. And this discomfort is actually what drives us to complete a task. And when it's finally completed, the discomfort feels resolved. They actually found that we can use this discomfort to drive us to take more action. It's really interesting. Some of the studies that they've done was they found if you've ever gone to a restaurant and your server asks you what you want and they never write it down, and you're like, man, this is pretty impressive. They remember everything they find at the end of the day when they start talking to servers, and, you know, there's not as many people. There is that many times they can't remember past orders that people had when they were at the table, but they can remember the people who are currently sitting at the table that haven't gotten their orders yet. Because it's like, once that order is delivered, that's completely off my mind. It doesn't exist there anymore. And so most of the time, at the end of the day, you don't focus on all of the things that you've completed, do you? You focus on all the things that you still have to do and the things that you didn't get done. And when you wake up in the morning to go to the bathroom and you then remember all of the things that you didn't get done for the day, and now you're thinking about it, your mental energy is being used towards, oh, my God, now I've got to do that tomorrow. Undone work takes up a lot of mental energy. This is the reason why, like, clickbait works. Clickbait titles on articles, clickbait on YouTube. The reason why is because the mind doesn't like open loops. So you see a thumbnail that says something, and you're like, I got to know what the hell they're talking about. Like, what is this thing that they're talking about? We want to close an open loop. What is an open loop? The news, local news is really good at open loops. It's like the killer chemical found in your tap water tonight at 10 o'.
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Clock.
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And you're like, what the fuck? What's in my tap water? Well, I've got to find out. So now I've got to show up in order to be able to find out what that is. That's what an open loop is. And it makes you want to figure out what that thing is. It needs to close in order for me to have resolve. This is why the best shows in the world, whenever you're watching them, have cliffhangers. Yellowstone, Game of Thrones, their cliffhangers are making. Something happens right at the end of the episode and they're like, you're like, what the hell is going on? Like, what? I've. I have to wait a week to figure that out? And you get all tense and you want to see the next episode, you want to close the loop. This is also why people binge watch shows, if you've ever done that before, where you just, you've gotta go to the next one. You've gotta see what happens. For me, this is, this is an example of why I don't really start puzzles. Once I start a puzzle, for some reason, like, I've gotta finish the puzzle, it feels like it's built into me, like, and if I don't have five hours to do a damn puzzle, I'm not gonna start it. And so we have this feeling of being unresolved and our brain wants to solve it. And so this can hold you back if you don't know how to use it. If you know how to use it, it can propel you forward. And actually, and that's why I love studying the brain and I love studying humans so much, is because I want you to be able to use your brain to drive yourself forward in life and become better. So how can this all be bad? First off, let's talk about bad and then talk about how we can use it. Right? When we don't complete a task, our brain is focused on it until it is done. It causes this mental tension and this can cause us to. When we think about all the things that we need to get done, it could cause stress, it could cause anxiety when you're not really aware of it. And so when we have too many unfinished tasks in our minds, it can become really overwhelming and it leads to this feeling of paralysis. Like there's so many things that I need to complete, I don't know which one to start with first. And so it turns in this like paralysis by analysis. And it can make it difficult to focus on just one task because there's just so many things to focus on. But it can also be used for good, which is what's good about it. One of the key implications of the Zeigarnik effect is, is that it can be used to actually increase your motivation and increase your productivity. And the bigger a task is, the harder that it can be to start to take action towards completing that task. And so what do you do? One of the things that makes it easier to start towards doing something is to take a big task and break it down into smaller tasks, more manageable chunks, setting clear deadlines with it. And then we can tap into this natural tendency to focus on unfinished tasks to drive ourselves to complete them. And so if you have this big huge thing like you have to do a presentation for the company that you work for and it's going to take you like a week to do, starting it can be really hard. Why is that? Because you're looking at, you're going, oh my God, there's so many things I've got to do. And it's such a, it's so daunting for how big this, this task can appear. And so what do you do? You take the entire thing, you break it down into smaller tasks. Okay, well, I've got to do the research on X, Y and Z. I've got to create the table to show revenue for the quarters every quarter this year. And you break it down into smaller tasks and you use those smaller tasks to drive yourself to complete them. So if you have, like I said, like a large report, instead of just putting finish the report, break it down into the smaller tasks, finish the introduction, research the competition, you know, break down the revenue goals, complete the plan to hit the goal, put it all in Excel spreadsheet, send to an assistant to make it look prettier and add animations. The shorter the task, the easier it will be to start it. And for once we start it now, we want to finish it and we will be right back.
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And now back to the show. But it's a lot harder to start something when it's just like finished presentation. And so the shorter, the smaller the task, the easier it makes us to start. And then once we start, we're going to want to finish it. It's still the same massive task, but it's just smaller, more manageable tasks that make it even easier to start. And so how can you take any task on our list and break it down more? When you look at your to do list and you look at some of the things on your to list, so, like, real simple and real easy, you don't really have a whole lot of drive to just like, oh, finish the dishes, Maybe you do if you have guests coming over, but if you're like, oh, I've got to do the dishes, you don't really feel much of a pull on that. But then when you have something, like I just said, like, you've got to create a report, you're like, oh, my God, I really need to get this done. And you want to cross it off, but then you get that mental resistance as well. When it seems really big, take it and turn it put into a smaller task. So can you take as many tasks on your to do list and break them down into smaller, more manageable ones? Each time you cross something off on your to do list, it gives you a little bit of a sense of accomplishment. And what that does is it releases dopamine. And if you don't know what dopamine is, dopamine is the chemical of motivation. It is the one that drives you to keep going. Once you get dopamine, you want more dopamine. There's been books written about this. We're all dopamine addicts in some sort of way. So once we get a little bit dopamine, we want more dopamine. Just like a drug addict, once you get drugs, you want more drugs. And so it's like once you get that dopamine, because you cross one thing off on your to do list, it feels good. You've got some positive momentum on your side, and now you're looking at the next small manageable task that is part of the bigger tax that you have in front of you. And so the best way to do this, and to help you start to get things done is to use something called the Pomodoro technique. It's just basically a time management method that breaks all of the stuff that you do in an entire day down into 25 minute intervals with 5 minute breaks. And so what you're going to do is you're going to find one thing, one thing that needs to be done, and you're going to have a 25 minute timer, you're going to set the timer, you're going to put your phone away, you're going to put everything else away, and you're only going to focus on one task, and one task only for 25 minutes. If you don't finish after those 25 minutes, well, guess what? The zebra Nick effect is going to make you want to complete it. So you just take a five minute break, build up that mental resistance that you have, and then you're going to want to go back into it and finish it. And if you do finish it, well, then now you can go on to the next most important thing. Another thing that's really important is because the fact that we know that with the Zebronik effect, we're not going to pay much attention to our progress, we're not going to really celebrate our small wins because we're focused on these tasks that need to be done. It's really important for us to take a step back as often as possible and celebrate our own wins and reflect on the progress that we have had. And when you celebrate small wins, it can help you reduce the sense of cognitive load that you have in front of you and increase your motivation, because dopamine is a subjective chemical. And so when you celebrate yourself, when you're like, man, I'm so proud of myself, you're doing such a good job, keep on going. I recommend talking to yourself out loud as often as possible. When you do that, your brain releases dopamine. And guess what? Now that you've gotten dopamine, the chemical of motivation, your brain wants more dopamine. So it's like, okay, I'm so excited that I completed this task. I'm so proud of myself for getting this done. What's the next task? Because I want more of this dopamine stuff. And so it creates, like using dopamine and knowing that you can celebrate yourself, and you should, and the Zebronik effect of wanting to make sure that you're getting all of your tasks completed that are not completed can actually drive you to take more action. And so when you take A step back and you acknowledge your progress, you start to feel more encouraged more to complete the next task. It's really wild because you get momentum on your side. But all too often I hear people doing the exact opposite. They, like, have a list of, you know, let's say they take their. Their entire report that they need to do, and they break it down into 10 smaller, more manageable tasks, and they get the first one completed, and then instead of celebrating themselves, they just turn into an asshole. And they're like, well, yeah, but you still have so much to do. So you just had an opportunity to celebrate yourself, to give your brain a release of dopamine to get you more motivated, to get more momentum on your side, to get you more driven to want to complete the next one. But instead you just canceled all the motivation and you're like, nah. But you just have so much to do. And so you went into a little negative Nancy, and you actually made it harder to motivate yourself versus motivating yourself because of the fact that you were going, you know what? You're doing so good. I'm so proud of you. You just crossed it off the list. That was a big task. Congratulations. Whatever it is you need to say to yourself, which will give you the dopamine, which will get you excited, which will make you want to go and complete the next task. When you have momentum on your side, become aware of the momentum, bring it up in your mind, celebrate yourself, and keep the momentum going. Momentum is such an important aspect of all of these tasks. When you get momentum on your side, ride the momentum, because it's really hard to get that momentum. I always say, like, if you've ever pushed a car, it's really hard to get a car moving. Like, the first few feet are the hardest feet, but once you've been pushing a car for a little while, the momentum of the car, it's a 3, 4, 5000 pound vehicle. That. That momentum that it has, you just got to kind of keep it on the road. It'll start to move itself almost, and you just got to not push as much, but push a little bit. So many people get the momentum on their side, and then they turn into a negative Nancy and then they just kill the momentum. It's like the car stopping now. You've got to get it going again. And so what do we do at the end of the day when we have this entire to do list? And we're like, man, but I have so many unfinished tasks. When we have more unfinished tasks that have to Go into tomorrow, we will have this feeling of being unresolved and our brain does want to solve it. And so what I always recommend to people is to basically simply write down the things in your mind at the end of the day, schedule when you want to get them done tomorrow, and then take 15 minutes at the end of the day in order to just put them all on your schedule. Make sure you have all of it done so that you don't bring that mental tension home with you after work. You don't bring that mental tension home with you when you're playing with your children, right? So it's like, what do you do? You basically take 15 minutes to close out your day. And so what you do is because of the fact that you've now taken your to do list, you've taken 15 minutes, you've put it into your schedule for tomorrow, and you've started to actually feel like you have scheduled out the tasks that need to be done. You can kind of mentally clock out until you show back up again tomorrow that way, like I said, and I've done this many times, wake up to go to the bathroom at 3 o' clock in the morning, and then you think about all of the things that you have to be done for tomorrow, and then you stay up for 90 minutes thinking about all the stuff that has to be done. And so what I like to do is see all the stuff that need to be done, take 15 minutes, put in my schedule, write down my to do list for tomorrow, and then, oddly enough, what I say is I speak out loud to myself and I say, okay, I'm checking out for the day. And when you speak out loud to yourself, it kind of gives your brain this opportunity to, like, disconnect. Okay, we're disconnecting. We're done for the day. We'll be back tomorrow. And it's a weird thing. It doesn't seem like it would work. It seems weird to talk out loud to yourself. But I promise you, if you use this, it will make it easier for you to just clock out for the day mentally as well as physically. And then when you show up tomorrow, be able to take some action on it. If for some sort of reason, the day still pops up tonight. This is a thing I got from one of my coaches years ago. And it works. I don't know why it works. Whenever your brain comes in and says, yes, but you know you're playing with your children, yes, but we need to think about work, you just simply say out loud to yourself, not right now. I'll do it tomorrow. And if you do this enough, your brain kind of like, it's really odd. I don't know what effect this is, but your brain basically is like, okay, I'll bring it back to you tomorrow and you don't have to worry about it. If you want, you can send a text message to yourself. Put it in your notes tab. Okay, yes. I've got to do X, Y and Z tomorrow. It is in my notes. I will not forget it. Okay, I'm done for this for the day. Thank you for bringing up in my mind we're not going to do this right now. And it's basically just a way to disconnect so that you can be fully 100% in your business. For instance, when you're in your business, but then when you're in front of your children, family, you can be fully present for them as well. And so if you want to be more productive, use this mental tension to drive you forward just a little bit more. So that's what I got for you for today's episode. If you love this episode, please share it on your Instagram stories. Tag me obdialjr. R O B D I A L J R. And with that, I'll leave you the same way I leave you every single episode. Make it your mission to make somebody else's day better. I appreciate you and I hope that you have an amazing day.
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