Brian Johnson explores why we're bad at predicting how bad we'll feel about things. Research from Sonia Lyubomirsky shows people overestimate future regret and bounce back faster than expected after setbacks. The takeaway: pursue your dreams now, because you'll likely regret inaction more than failure.
Chapters
You're listening to the Optymyze with Brian Johnson podcast. Unlock the full Optymyze experience and join over 10,000 premium members at Optimize Me. Hi, this is Brian. Welcome back to another optimize plus one. Mark Twain tells us that 20 years from now, we we will be more disappointed by the things we didn't do than by the things we did do. So he says we should throw off the bow lines and sail away from the safe harbor, catching the trade winds in our sails. Well, get this. Science agrees. In the midst of happiness, Sonia Lybomirsky walks us through the fact that we are surprisingly resilient in the face of adversity, and we consistently overestimate how bad we'll feel in the future. And if something goes wrong. This is one of her myths of happiness. In fact, this is such a common phenomenon that scientists actually have a name for it. They say we have poor effective forecasting abilities. So back to our quote to go for it. If you go for it and fail, odds are you'll bounce back faster than you may think. But if you don't go for it, you. You run the risk of torturing yourself with an infinite number of scenarios where it could have worked out. Enter regret. So, do you have any dreams that you need to pursue? Here's to sailing away from the safe harbors, knowing we have what it takes to bounce back from the inevitable storms and the occasional shipwrecks 20 years from now. Let's look back with a smile at all the things we had the courage to do. Isn't it a bit odd that we went from math to science to history, but somehow missed the class on how to live? For some wacky reason, optimal living 101 never made the schedule. Of course, it's too late to go back and change that and you're too busy to read full time to catch up. But if you're like us, you're all about optimizing your life and actualizing your potential. So imagine this. Imagine having someone read the best books on how to optimize your life and pull out the big ideas that can really change your life. You know those sections you underline and asterisks and mark all up? Then imagine that guy me connecting those awesome ideas to other great books and helping you actually apply the wisdom to your life today. Well, that's what I do with something we call Philosopher's Notes, where I've distilled hundreds of great books into 20 minute super practical summaries. Then imagine me taking the absolute best big ideas from those great books and sharing them with you in hour long Optimal Living 101 classes on everything from productivity, purpose and confidence to nutrition, goal setting and conquering procrastination. Helping you optimize every facet of your life so you can actualize your potential. You've got a personal trainer. I'm kind of like your personal philosopher. Ancient wisdom plus modern science plus practical tools. That's what our optimized membership program is all about. If you're feeling it, we'd love to have you join us.
