Writing Goals: Harnessing the Power of Your Subconscious

December 16, 2024

Years ago, I created little goal books where I could write my yearly, quarterly, and weekly goals. These books worked like a charm for achieving my goals. However, as technology advanced, I shifted to typing my goals and stopped producing my little goal books. Recently, I read that people who write their goals down tend to achieve them more than those who type them. Curious, I dug out my old goal books from the last 20 years and compared my achievement records. The results were striking—I achieved 40% less when I typed my goals.

The Science Behind Writing Goals

The science behind writing goals is fascinating. Writing goals down happens on two levels: external storage and encoding. External storage is straightforward—you’re storing the information in a location (like a piece of paper) that is easy to access and review at any time. More importantly, writing improves the encoding process, which is the biological process by which the things we perceive travel to our brain’s hippocampus, where they’re analyzed. From there, decisions are made about what gets stored in our long-term memory and what gets discarded [1].

The Generation Effect

Neuropsychologists have identified the “generation effect,” which states that individuals demonstrate better memory for material they’ve generated themselves than for material they’ve merely read. When you’re writing goals down, you access this effect twice: first, when you generate the goal in your mind, and second, when you write it down, essentially reprocessing that image[1]. This process cements the goals deeper into your subconscious, making you more likely to achieve them.

Personal Experience with Writing Goals

Inspired by this realization, I started writing a letter to myself each year, looking five years ahead and detailing what I have achieved as if it already exists.

In these letters, I talk about:

Where I live
My living accommodations and the steps I took to manifest them
My vacation destinations
My company’s progress, including revenue and the type of clients and employees we attract
My physical health
My family and friend relationships

Reviewing and Achieving Goals

Each year, I review these letters and mark my accomplishments in red. Ironically, over the course of five years, almost everything on my list gets accomplished. This phenomenon can be attributed to the power of the subconscious brain. Even though my brain doesn’t know how to make these things happen, it starts working in the background to find the people and resources needed to achieve these goals.

For instance, a few years ago, I wanted to take a trip to New Zealand or go on an African Safari with my husband. A friend called me about a great deal on international flights, and I booked New Zealand. I’ve also met two people who run safaris in Africa, which is my next goal.

The Subconscious Power of Writing Goals

When you write down your goals, it activates the subconscious part of your brain. The act of writing goals gives them form and focus, allowing your subconscious to work towards the goals, even when you’re not consciously thinking about them[2].

If you haven’t already, take the time to write a letter to your future self as if your goals have already been achieved. Your future is yours to create!

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1: Neuroscience explains why you need to write down your goals if you actually want to achieve them

2: The Power of Writing Down Your Goals: Evidence from Multiple Studies