The "Fantasy Realisation Theory"

Everything starts with a wish. But don't transform that into fantasy.

When you fantasize, your brain thinks you’ve actually achieved your goal. So rather than ramping up, motivation dials back.

Be specific about the form your wish should take.

For example: If a "better work-life balance" is your wish, your outcome  could be “No work on weekends."

It involves attaching positive thinking to realistic goals. 

This approach also connects positive thinking to a realistic assessment of one’s possibilities, an awareness of obstacles is inevitable, and that leads to a second aspect of successful mental contrasting.

It involves developing if-then strategies for things that may not go as well as hoped as you work to achieve your goals. 

With these in place, you’re ready to “improvise” — in quotes because you’ve actually planned out your response in advance — as need be and keep moving forward.

1. If you want to have a chance of improving your life, you need to clear about what you intend to do.
2. Align your intentions with the kind of things you can actually do. 
3. See how your intentions are working out,  how well you’re following through and make adjustments.

.. was a pseudonymous patient of psychoanalyst Robert Lindner, in his 1954 case studies, in which the patient had a dual life, which he could switch by mental time-travel and travel in an instant to the far off future, in which a life of power, respect and conquest was lived by him. This premise was a form of ‘escape hatch’, making science fiction literature a kind of evasion from reality.

.. published in 1972 was an alternate fantasy timeline of Adolf Hitler, in which he lives another kind of life as a science fiction author and illustrator(yes it is far fetched!)

The key to shifting your perspective and developing the habit of thinking big involves stepping outside of yourself and into another persona — essentially becoming someone who will help you see things bigger, better and more creatively.

You must also think from the perspective of having no limitations or fears and ask big questions persistently until the right answer comes to mind.

• Limiting habits: procrastination, immediatism, negative thinking, making excuses, solving insignificant problems, over-analyzing, perfectionism.
• People criticize and judge the unknown and big ideas are often so.
• Fears of failure and the unknown restrict us to small thoughts, decisions, and actions. 
• Lack of time turns us into small thinkers and immediatists. 
• Lack of incentives robs you of the motivation to stretch yourself emotionally or physically. 

They refer to the plan you make about when and where to act before the action occurs.

The format for creating an implementation intention is: “When situation X arises, I will perform response Y.”

Implementation intentions are an effective way of sticking to your goals.

If you make a specific plan for when and where you will perform a new habit, you have bigger chances to follow through.

You don't need motivation, you need clarity. Simply follow your predetermined plan: I will [BEHAVIOR] at [TIME] in [LOCATION].

Reading connects us to people across time and space.

• Research shows that those who read the Bible more tended to have a stronger sense of purpose.
• Reading fiction also seems to make a difference. By seeing purpose in the lives of other people, we are more likely to see it in our own.

Finding purpose is not just an intellectual pursuit, it is something we need to feel. That's why purpose can grow out of suffering.

For a weight-loss hack, it goes like this: As soon as you order a meal at a restaurant, ask immediately that half of it be put in a to-go box once it’s ready and only the other half served to you. It’s basically a stricter version of portion control.

We can apply the same technique to get ourselves to read more.

Instead of 2 hours of Netflix each night, cutting it in half would still give you the satisfaction of watching Netflix in the evenings but also free up time to read as well.

Preview the book in order to vet whether or not it’s worth investing your time in.

• Use book summaries. Find apps that give accurate and concise summaries of many of the most popular books out there and are constantly updating their library.
• Use podcast interviews with the author. Authors often go on the podcast circuit to promote their books. 

Working well is not about maximizing every waking moment of the day, in order to get more done. And the focus on maximizing time may actually diminish our creativity.

Instead, try identifying and focusing on the few hours of the day you are most productive.

To achieve sustainable productivity habits, it’s best to build up with easily achievable tasks.

Small chunks of accomplishment will amount to something big eventually.

...are your most precious for maximized productivity. 

Your brain is most attuned first thing in the morning, and so are your energy levels. Consequently, the best time to do your best work is during this time.

Spend the first 90 minutes of your workday on your #1 priority, nothing else. 

Zero distractions. Just get that work done.