Stretch: Unlock the Power of Less - and Achieve More Than You Ever Imagined

by Scott Sonenshein

As valuable as these changes are for diversifying experience, considerable trade-offs come from wandering too frequently.

High expectations, when calibrated correctly, can create positive prophecies but when imposed without safeguards can trip up even the most promising people.

When people set positive expectations for us, they give us two different types of information. First, there’s information that shapes our own expectations. To the degree that we believe in the expectations others set for us, we’re more likely to live up to them. We reason that if others expect great things of us, we must be capable of delivering.

Performance pressure distracts us with worrying about satisfying what others want from us.

thinking about something other than what we’re currently doing, which research finds makes us unhappy. In its most dangerous form, our mindlessness even causes car crashes.

give overworked people more mindless work. This appears ridiculous at first glance. Besides having enough on our plates already, why bother ourselves with mindless stuff when we could be working on more interesting projects?

To give people a break, Elsbach and Hargadon advocate rotating between difficult work and mindless work—mindless work recharges our batteries, readies us to do more down the road, and lets our mind wander to find new connections among our resources.

If you’re an engineer, spend some time doing routine maintenance. Find time to do some clerical work. Pick up an adult coloring book. Clean your office. Cook a simple meal. Play solitaire.

Psychology research finds that when people are grateful, they expand how they think about their resources, often in ways that try to help others.