Succeed: How We Can Reach Our Goals By Heidi Grant Halvorson

Succeed: How We Can Reach Our Goals By Heidi Grant Halvorson List Price: $25.95 Price: $15.92 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Ships from and sold by Amazon.com 39 new or used available from $9.99 Average customer review:

Product Description

Just in time for New Year's resolutions, learn how to reach your goals-finally-by overcoming the many hurdles that have defeated you before.

Most of us have no idea why we fail to reach our goals. Now Dr. Heidi Grant Halvorson, a rising star in the field of social psychology shows us how to overcome the hurdles that have defeated us before.

Dr. Grant Halvorson offers insights-many surprising-that readers can use immediately, including how to:

• Set a goal so that you will persist even in the face of adversity
• Build willpower, which can be strengthened like a muscle
• Avoid the kind of positive thinking that makes people fail

The strategies outlined in this book will not only help everyone reach their own goals but will also prove invaluable to parents, teachers, coaches, and employers. Dr. Grant Halvorson shows readers a new approach to problem solving that will change the way they approach their entire lives.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #28630 in Books
• Published on: 2010-12-23
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 288 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781594630736
• Condition: New
• Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Social psychologist Halvorson, a blogger for Psychology Today and assistant professor of psychology at Lehigh University, tackles attainment of goals in every area of life from relationships to sports. Extensively reviewing past studies on self-esteem, motivation, and pursuit of goals, Halvorson sidesteps conventional notions about achieving success, particularly the idea that one should imagine oneself achieving goals easily. She cites studies by psychologist Gabriele Oettingen showing that those who think the path is difficult invest more effort and work harder: for instance, "people who believed that getting a good job after college would be easy sent out fewer applications." The ideal, Halvorson says, is to think positively about achieving one's goals but to think realistically about the effort that will be required to achieve them. Halvorson then goes on to advise readers on how to set appropriate goals, avoid obstacles, and exercise self-control to stay on track. "Don't visualize success," she warns. "Instead visualize the steps you will take in order to succeed." Despite repetitious instructions, Halvorson makes academic studies palatable by writing with clarity and interspersing personal anecdotes along the way. Many will find her insights of value. (Dec. 23)
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Review

"People can change... it is possible with the right motivation and the right information.  The problem has always been, Where do we go to get the right information?  The solution is at hand."
--Carol S. Dweck, Ph.D., author of Mindset

"Once every ten years or so, someone says something original in the area of personal development. Heidi Grant Halvorson is that someone.  ... Succeed is a must read." --Matthew Kelly, author of The Rhythm of Life and The Dream Manager

If you manage others or are in a position to help others achieve their goals, then you have to read this book!  It's filled with fascinating studies revealing the secrets of success. --Peter Bregman, "How We Work" Blog (HBR.org)

Rare is a book that is both brilliant and practical, entertaining and rigorous, easy to read and deep.  If you want to bolster your level of success ... this book is for you! --Dr. Edward Hallowell, bestselling author of Delivered from Distraction

About the Author

Heidi Grant Halvorson, PhD, is a social psychologist, consultant, and most recently assistant professor of psychology at Lehigh University. Her research focuses on how people pursue goals, and the strategies that help them to overcome obstacles, increase their willpower, and ultimately succeed.  She is an expert blogger for Psychology Today and Fast Company. Her website is heidigranthalvorson.com

Carol S. Dweck, PhD, is the Lewis and Virginia Eaton Professor of Psychology at Stanford University and author of the national bestseller Mindset.

Customer Reviews

A great guide to success
As a fellow researcher in psychology, I ordered "Succeed" because I was familiar with Dr. Halvorson's scientific accomplishments and found it interesting that she was writing outside the closed-off world of elite scientific journals. After a snowy weekend of reading, I'm stunned by what she has created: "Succeed" is extraordinary, and something only a tiny number of my colleagues could ever have done so well.

In "Succeed," Dr. Halvorson applies real science to the real goals and struggles we all face: losing weight, building better relationships, getting a raise, strengthening willpower, and even just getting up from the couch on those days we feel stuck. Whether one wants to get out of a lousy rut in life or go further faster, "Succeed" presents a comprehensive, step-by-step, scientifically-sound "toolkit" for success.

Using examples from her own life as a working professional, wife, and mother, Dr. Halvorson describes the best ways to frame our goals, plan for success, and put those plans into action - and that includes dealing with moments when we fall down along the way. Piles of scientific studies reveal that HOW we pursue our goals powerfully influences how likely we are to be successful, and many of the most effective methods are genuinely surprising. In "Succeed," Dr. Halvorson takes those studies from the laboratory to life.

All along, Dr. Halvorson's writing is engaging, down-to-earth, and often humorous. I found "Succeed" engaging and enjoyable, and have a feeling it came as much from the heart as from the mind. There's no useless nonsense here about "picturing yourself thin" or asking "the universe" to give you that raise. Instead, Dr. Halvorson has crafted a true, realistic guidebook for boosting motivation, achieving goals, and personal growth. "Succeed" is an absolute success, and I hope we see more from this talented scientist and writer.

Finally, a credible, science-based book of "You Can Do It!!"

I loved this book, because it combines two of my favorite things: surprising and interesting science described in simple English, and the writing of a brilliant and very funny woman.

First, the science: "Succeed" describes different aspects of setting and achieving goals from the perspective of research psychology. Every suggestion in this book is backed up with, "... and here is how psychologists proved that it works:", with a discussion of some crazy study involving vinegar Kool-aid or internet disses or Robin Williams. The other cool thing about Dr. Grant Halvorson's work here is that she takes interesting psychology results and explains succinctly how to use them in real ways to improve your life, in whatever area of your life that needs improvement. Her advice is left general, which I like; what it takes to lose weight or change jobs or quit smoking is at heart the same stuff, and Dr. Grant Halvorson knows that stuff well. The only downside of this book is a minor one-- she will have you convinced that, say, action X is exactly the right one to take for a given situation, but instead of moving on, she'll repeat a few more times why you should take action X and give you many more convincing studies than you need. They're still interesting, but from a proselytizing standpoint, enough already! You had me at the second or third study!

Next, the writer: Dr. Grant Halvorson's writing reads like that girlfriend you turn to when you're going through a rough patch, who takes you out for a beer and tells you how not only has she been there, here's how she got through it, here's what worked for your other friends, and here, have another beer. She illustrates her intellectual points with perfect anecdotes from her own experience, e.g. with her prevention-focused German mother, her beloved, hapless philosopher husband, or the ending of her first marriage. She is not some ivory tower scientist; she has a personal understanding of how we struggle.

This book is life changing. If you want to finally, finally meet those goals you keep setting and falling short on, (or figure out whether you should just chuck them and move on), you need "Succeed".

Superior Content, Engaging, and Practical - WOW!
This book was an absolutely wonderful read; I couldn't put it down. I read a lot of books like this and Heidi Halvorson has produced a truly superior product with this book. Every chapter is clearly composed, filled with stories and examples, describes the research behind the conclusions, and ends with a bulleted summary of the key concepts.

There are some counter-intuitive ideas presented, all backed up by research, that can't help but improve your chances of success in achieving your goals - whatever they may be. I can't recommend this book highly enough and I believe you will be very pleased should you decide to get it.