the pass-fail nature of goals, their inflexibility, and how pursuing them leads to ignoring other opportunities that might be available. - Annie Duke

Gabriele Oettingen, professor of psychology at NYU and author of Rethinking Positive Thinking: Inside the New Science of Motivation, has conducted over twenty years of research, consistently finding that people who imagine obstacles in the way of reaching their goals are more likely to achieve success, a process she has called "mental contrasting." Her first study, of women enrolled in a weight-loss program, found that subjects "who had strong positive fantasies about slimming down . . . lost twenty-four pounds less than those who pictured themselves more negatively."

SIX STEPS TO BETTER DECISION-MAKING Step 1 — Identify the reasonable set of possible outcomes. Step 2 — Identify your preference using the payoff for each outcome — to what degree do you like or dislike each outcome, given your values? Step 3 — Estimate the likelihood of each outcome unfolding. Step 4 — Assess the relative likelihood of outcomes you like and dislike for the option under consideration. Step 5 — Repeat Steps 1–4 for other options under consideration. Step 6 — Compare the options to one another.

When someone asks you about a coin they flipped four times, there is a correct answer: "I'm not sure."