ExhausTED

https://www.ted.com/talks/derek_sivers_keep_your_goals_to_yourself

In his brief three minute-fifteen second TED Talk back in 2010, Derek Sivers postulated that it was better to keep your goals to yourself than to share them out to others. Although this contention is bold and may defy conventional sensibilities, it is not the first time this has been stated; as Sivers pointed out. Sivers' main argument is that when you announce your goals to others and are those goals are acknowledged you feel a sense of "social reality" and are satisfied without having actually done the work.

Sivers argument is mostly based in logos, and he develops his own credibility by citing the works of famous psychologists such as Kurt Lewin, Wera Mahler, and Peter Gollwitzer. Sivers then goes into depth about a 2009 study of Gollwitzer's where 163 people in 4 separate tests were told to write down their biggest goals where half of them were told to share their goals out while the other half were not allowed to discuss their goals. Sivers goes on to explain that after the people who were told to share out finished, everybody was given 45 minutes to work towards that goal with the instruction that they could use as much time as they needed. Sivers explains that Gollwitzer's study found that people who did not share out their goals actually spent much more time working to achieve them as compared with those who shared out.

Sivers' delivery of his argument is filled with personal connections to the audience, as he opens with a direction to brainstorm their biggest goals and then engages them by asking about them. Sivers then goes on to tell his audience that they "should have kept their mouths shut" and piques their attention. Sivers is succinct and blunt in his delivery of his argument, but still manages to introduce his point of view, support it with research, and conclude by drawing connections to real life goals (his example was running a marathon). Sivers is successful in convincing his audience that what he is saying is not only true, but supported by various credible sources and in-depth research.

I chose this TED Talk because the title intrigued me; I am used to sharing my grand goals with everyone around me and I am often encouraged to do so. After watching Sivers talk, I am pretty convinced that what he said was true. I find that it is really easy for me to say something like "I'm going to clean my room today" and feel accomplished about it without actually doing it (like today). In my experience, the people who work hard in silence are the ones who get the most done. While the urge to share out my goals hasn't diminished, I will definitely think twice before shouting out long term goals to the world.