The Use of Fantasy Goals
The proverbial "Castle in the Sky." Not talking about the 2001 dance song of the same name that you've likely heard (or loved, no judgment; http://bit.ly/1SxrVms). Give it a listen while you read this post if you dare.
No, I don't mean that song, but maybe the intention behind it. The human instinct to pine for something grander than current circumstances, or wish for ideal circumstances as an escape from the tedium or discomfort of daily living. If we deliberately see our lives as moving toward some purpose or a series of related purposes, having a vision for it makes some sense.
In this line of thought, terms like "dreams" and "fantasies" become important to mention.
Does escaping or daydreaming away in ideal fantasies of our imagined future help us, or hinder us? You'd think they help, as they give you a glimpse of what's to come (potentially), and there is that popular folk wisdom that you have to "visualize your goal." But can we go too far? Or, on the other hand, do we make a mistake by not going far enough?
Gabrielle Oettingen*, Psychology Professor at NYU, looked at this with colleagues in a series of studies that actually provide two sides or perspectives on the issue. See below for some summaries:
AGAINST:
Let's start with against. The anti-fantasy argument evidence I found I happened to find one day in www.psypost.org, an online psychology magazine. On January 30th, the author Eric Dolan summarized reserach by Oettigen, Mayer, & Portnow (2016), which suggests that for those diagnosed with depression, fantizing about the future has positive effects in the short term, yet faced more depression symptoms in the long term.
Why? The reasoning here is that by building your castle in the sky, it's fun to get lost in that fiction. Metaphorically imagining towers, a jawbridge and moat, a friendly dragon protecting your loot, and a large throne to perch yourself upon. Or that's what I imagine. Makes you happy, and forget about your troubles. You literaly "escape" to a possible (however unlikely) future.
Then when you open your awareness back up and realize that building castles takes time, coordination with some stone-cutters and masons, a master blue print, and most of all patience, the pleasure from the fantasy disappates, and may actually feel like a cheated or fake experience. You spent so long actively imagining the end product that the steps to get there seem tedious and no where near as rewarding.
Like this analogy, the reserachers found this in their research, across four studies. Indulging in positive fantasties lead to reduce efforts toward the task at hand, "encouraging people to enjoy their success prematurely in their minds, thus lowering energy and effort."
FOR:
So the pro-fantasy argument is orginally supported here by Oettigen and colleagues (2001). They sugggest that when people contrast their present unpleasant circumstances with a desired "fantasy" future, they feel motivated to take action toward that future only if they see that future as being attainable. If that future is likely to not become "reality," people won't make efforts toward it.
This is intersting because it suggests a process by which you can motivate yourself to take action: At the top of a sheet of paper, write a clear, achievable goal with a timeline (use the SMART acroynm). Dividing that paper in half with a middle verticle line, on the left side write all the things you dislike about your current circumstances. Then on the right side, the desireable future. For each, be as descriptive as possible.
Then to reinforce some commitment to that goal, flip the sheet over: Come up with a series of steps to reach that desireable future. Ask yourself what would you need to do to organize your life to make those steps a priority? How woudl you need to see yourself? As an athlete? As a scholar? As a "top salesperson?" And also list a few ways to keep yourself motivated? For me it's keeping a daily log of my efforts, introduing mini-rewards like small purchases, favorite foods, or time to do whatever.
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Putting such research into action is rarely that simple, but thinking about how these research lessons and how they can be translated into practical use for the betterment of our lives is truly important.
When we try for a goal, a dream, or a fantasy, and put effort in and we fall short, is it because the target wasn't worth reaching for? Or we're not capable, or undeserving?
Or do we attempt to reach from a place that wasn't close enough, or set up for us to get there, eventually? This is the healthier place for us to reflect on our own process, rather than the blame or shame game.
References
Oettingen, G., Pak, H., & Schnetter, K. (2001). Self-regulation of goal setting: Turning free fantasies about the future into binding goals. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 5, 736-753.
Oettingen, G., Mayer, D., & Portnow, S. (2016). (Pleasure Now, Pain Later: Positive fantasies about the future predict symptoms of depression. Psychological Science, doi: 10.1177/0956797615620783.
*Dr. Oettingen is also the co-director of the "Character Lab," and co-founder of the WOOP program, check it out: https://characterlab.org/
