Implementation intention

An if-then plan decides in advance when and where you will start: "If it is 7:30 and dinner is cleared, then I open the course reader at the kitchen table." A review of 94 tests of this approach found a medium-to-large effect on reaching goals. It costs one sentence, written once, which makes it ideal for people whose evenings get eaten by small choices about when to begin. Plans for distractions work the same way: "If I reach for my phone, then I put it in the hall." The more specific the time, place and first action, the less there is left to decide when you are tired.