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Welcome to another edition of the Introvert Millionaire Habits Newsletter!

This is where you’ll get up-to-date information on habits, productivity, solopreneurship, and financial independence. 

● 3 Steps to Take Control of Your Life

● Replace One Food Item

● Ranking the Best Passive Income Investments

● The Resource Roundup

● Unlock This Free Stuff

Let’s get to it…

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📈 How to Use Open Loops for Your Goals

Do you often find yourself thinking about a project or task you’ve left unfinished?

Maybe you lay awake at night, mulling over your incomplete assignments.

Or find yourself zoning out of conversations, because your mind is fixated on what’s still to be done.

If these questions sound familiar, then you’ve probably been experiencing the psychological phenomenon known as the Zeigarnik effect.

Put simply:

The Zeigarnik effect can create open loops that will help you achieve your goals.

It can improve your life in a variety of ways, such as having:

● Better recall

● Increased motivation

● Improved test scores

● Increased productivity

● Decreased procrastination

In today’s featured article, we'll look at 5 practical ways to harness the Zeigarnik Effect to help you achieve your goals. 

(And you’ll want to pay close attention to strategy #3 because it’s one that you’ve probably seen throughout your life.)

Alright, let’s get started.

What is the Zeigarnik Effect?

The concept was first noticed in the 1920s by Russian psychiatrist and psychologist, Dr. Bluma Wulfovna Zeigarnik.

While dining at a restaurant, Dr. Zeigarnik was fascinated by the waiting staff’s ability to easily remember long and complex orders.

It seemed to take little to no effort at all. But once the orders were filled and paid for, the waiters struggled to remember any details which intrigued the psychologist.

Zeigarnik went on to actively study this psychological tendency.

And in doing so, she found that people were more inclined to better recall information about tasks that were still in progress, rather than tasks that had been completed.

This is thought to be because a completed task is no longer relevant or at the forefront of our minds. There is no longer a need for the subconscious to remind the conscious mind to work toward the goal. And we relax, making it harder to recall the information.

This is an interesting concept, right?

Well, now let’s talk about five practical ways to apply the Zeigarnik effect to your life. 

#1. Make a Start

Starting a new task can be daunting, especially when you don't know where to begin.

It's easy to become overwhelmed and procrastinate, putting things off until the very last moment. And then becoming stressed with the amount of pressure you’ve put yourself under.

The trick is, if you have a complex task ahead that you’re reluctant to begin, even if the due date isn’t for a while, try to start it early on.

It doesn’t matter how long you work on it for. Simply starting can have a powerful effect on motivation.

And once you’ve made a dent in your task, you’ll find it keeps popping into your head and nudging you to do a bit more… and a bit more… until it’s done.

Making a start is often the most difficult part. But by breaking through your reluctance, you'll fight off those niggly worries of the unknown. And be one step closer to success.

#2. Schedule Tactical Breaks

Tactical breaks are short, strategic breaks that are designed to help you stay focused, motivated, and productive throughout the day.

As counterproductive as leaving tasks incomplete may seem, this can trigger the Zeigarnik Effect and increase your motivation to finish it sooner rather than later.

Think of it like leaving a sandwich only half made. The urge to go back, finish making it, eat it, and satisfy those hunger pains would play on your mind.

And that same need to complete feeling can be applied to any task by taking tactical breaks.

Not only this, but you’ll also give your brain a chance to rest and recharge, which can help you to stay on-task and avoid burnout.

You can come back and finish up at a more convenient time. And you’ll probably do it more efficiently than if you’d forced yourself to stay at the desk.

To learn more, here’s a link to an article on Brainscrape about the right way to take study breaks.

#3. Use Cliffhangers When Working

Okay, it’s confession time…

Remember in the introduction where I told you to pay close attention to strategy #3?

Well, that was an example of how I use the Zeigarnik Effect while writing.

In essence, that teaser acted as an open loop that you needed to close. And if you’re reading these words, then this teaser has successfully worked! .

(Side note: You can also see an example of this in our section about Millionaire Habits.) 

Now, here’s the interesting thing…

This is a concept you see all the time in the entertainment industry. 

Countless movies, books, and TV series keep people hooked by continuously using cliffhangers throughout their content.

And the good news?

You can use cliffhangers for your work!

The idea is to plan your breaks around key points that you touch on but don’t fully cover. This helps to build suspenseful endings to tasks and projects, as talked about on The Muse.

And in doing so, create a sense of anticipation that will drive you to go back and complete the task.

Just remember to jot down a few ideas before you go, or you may come back to a hole in your plot!

This technique can help you to stay focused and on track with your goals, as well as give you the motivational boost needed to get through times when work feels overwhelming.

Let's face it…

We’d all rather have a little excitement in the story. A little suspense to keep us intrigued.

And with this strategy, you'll be able to make that part of your projects while also taking some much-needed breaks to apply the Zeigarnik Effect.

#4. Set Realistic Goals

Applying the Zeigarnik Effect to working on SMART goals can significantly enhance your productivity and focus.

As a reminder, the SMART goals method stands for:

● Specific - What needs to be accomplished and how will you do it?

● Measurable - How can you track your progress?

● Achievable - Are your goals realistic?

● Relevant - What part in the bigger picture does this goal play?

● Time-Bound - What's the time frame for this goal and how will you manage it?

The Zeigarnik Effect suggests that our minds tend to remember unfinished tasks better than completed ones, which can be leveraged to keep us motivated and on track.

Start by breaking your SMART goals into smaller, manageable tasks.

For instance, if your goal is to write a book, divide it into chapters or even daily word counts. This creates a series of unfinished tasks that your brain will naturally want to complete, keeping you engaged and driven.

Next, regularly review your progress.

By continually assessing where you stand with your goals, you reinforce the sense of unfinished business, which can spur you to take action. This aligns well with the measurable aspect of SMART goals, as tracking your progress keeps the tasks at the forefront of your mind.

Finally, set deadlines for each task.

The time-bound nature of SMART goals works hand-in-hand with the Zeigarnik Effect by creating a sense of urgency. Knowing that you have a specific timeframe to complete each task can help maintain your momentum and prevent procrastination.

#5. End Your Day with a To-Do List

In the words of Thomas Edison,

“Never go to sleep without a request to your subconscious.”

And one the best ways to implement this idea is to write a to-do list at the end of the day.

In doing so, you’re effectively giving yourself a list of incomplete tasks that, according to Dr. Zeigarnik’s research, you’re more likely to remember and be motivated to complete.

A to-do list will also help you to stay organized and on track with your goals, ensuring that nothing slips through the cracks.

It allows you to focus on the most important tasks first. And avoid any stress or anxiety that may be brought on by an overwhelming workload.

By planning ahead and breaking down your assignments, you can reduce the ever-mounting pressure and feel more motivated, knowing that each day is bringing you closer to your goals.

Achieving your goals can be a daunting experience.

But if you apply the Zeigarnik Effect, you can ease the pressure by creating open loops that are enjoyable to complete. 

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⚙️1% Better Life

Today’s 1% improvement is another idea from a database that I am currently building. This technique focuses on the small food changes you can make that will help you eat healthier and lose a little weight along the way.

We all know it’s important to eat healthier, but sometimes it’s hard to make smart food choices when we’re tired, stressed out, and overbooked. So, one simple habit you can build is to make a single food substitution each day.

Many foods have common alternatives that are a lot healthier. These choices are often lower in calories and almost always have better vitamins and nutrients. Swapping out food not only improves your health, but it can also positively impact your weight loss efforts.

How to Get Started

This is a simple process. In the morning, when you’re planning your day, think about what you’re going to eat. After going through this mental list, make a commitment to swap out just one of these items with a healthy alternative.

Here are just a few examples (based on a similar cooking and prep time).

You could try substituting:

● Soda with tea

● Bread with pita

● Rice with quinoa

● Ketchup with salsa

● Bacon with turkey bacon

● Vegetable oil with coconut oil

● Sour cream with Greek yogurt

● Ground beef with ground turkey

● Croutons in salads with almonds

● White bread with whole grain bread

● Mayonnaise with mustard or avocado

● Potato chips with non- (or lightly) buttered popcorn

● Eggs with Egg Beaters or two egg whites for each egg

● Iceberg lettuce with arugula, romaine, spinach, and/or kale

● Milk with almond milk (regular milk has six times the sugar of almond milk)

These are just a few ideas you can use to slowly build a healthy eating habit. You’ll consume just as much food, but what you eat will be of a higher quality while typically having fewer calories.

If you’d like to learn more about this topic, I’d highly recommend checking out David Zinczenko’s Eat This Not That series of books.

💲Millionaire Habits

Have you ever wondered which passive income investments could help you achieve financial freedom with minimal effort?

Or which options offer the best balance between risk and return?

The article "Ranking The Best Passive Income Investments" on Financial Samurai offers a comprehensive guide to various passive income streams, ranking them based on several key criteria: risk, return, feasibility, liquidity, and activity level.

If you’re interested in generating passive income, then this article offers one of the best overviews of what is actually working right now. 

The article highlights several popular passive income investments, including:

● Bonds

● Dividend stocks

● Real estate crowdfunding

● High-yield savings account

● Creating your own products

By evaluating each investment type through specific criteria, the article provides a balanced view of the pros and cons, that will help you make informed decisions based on your financial goals and risk tolerance.

Whether you're looking to diversify your income streams or achieve financial independence, this guide serves as a valuable resource for building a robust passive income portfolio.

🗂️ The Resource Roundup

⏳ Beware of the Hidden Time Costs of Each New Commitment. – Do you say “yes” to everything? Carl Pullein suggests keeping a visible list of your current commitments and protecting specific times for focused work so you can better control your schedule, avoid overcommitment, and ensure time for important tasks.

🗓️ You waste years by not being able to waste hours. – George Mack points out how certain behaviors, like blindly doing work without questioning its purpose, can hinder success later in life, emphasizing the importance of identifying and prioritizing meaningful tasks. He warns against the “busy trap” where constant busyness prevents you from focusing on what’s truly important and suggests regularly reassessing your activities to ensure they align with your main goals.

📙 Amazon is filled with garbage ebooks. Here’s how they get made. – This Vox article explores the rise of low-quality, AI-generated ebooks being sold on Amazon, a trend popularized by the Mikkelsen twins through their Publishing Life program. The article highlights the broader implications of this phenomenon, including the ethical concerns and potential harm to the credibility of self-publishing platforms.

✅ This template ended my procrastination (finally) – Mitchell Cohen explains how he ended a three-year procrastination streak by using Dan Sullivan’s “Impact Filter,” a five-question tool designed to assess the importance of a project and motivate action.

😨 Stop Worrying About What You Can’t Control – Do you worry too much? Country Living suggests focusing your energy on what you can change and letting go of the rest to reduce stress and anxiety. It also offers tips such as deep breathing, staying present, and practicing gratitude to calm your mind.

That’s it for today.

I hope you have a great start to your week!

Cheers,

Steve Scott 

P.S. Whenever you’re ready, here are a few ways I can help you:

#1. 90 Days to Your #1 Goal: How to Achieve a Breakthrough Goal in Under 3 Months: Whether it's starting a business, getting in shape, or writing a book, this course is your step-by-step framework to make it happen.

#2. Steve on Twitter: Get up-to-date messages and threads. I publish a few times a day on this platform.

#3. What is Your #1 Challenge?: Are you struggling with something specific? If so, can you take a few minutes to answer this one-question survey. 

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