5 Ways To Utilise Zeigarnik Effect For Personal Development

The third and final wryt-up regarding the ever-present Zeigarnik Effect deals with how to harness the good effects of this phenomenon in one's life. Here are five ways to do so, which can certainly improve the way of dealing with situations and enhance the overall quality of life.

So, here we go...

1. Starting and Sticking to New Avenues Becomes Easier

The Zeigarnik Effect suggests that thoughts of unfinished tasks remain present in our mind, making us feel discomfort and desperate to finish them. This need of attaining closure at completion can be exploited in a fruitful manner. Therefore, making a start on something – no matter how big or small – keeps it ticking way at the back of your mind until you reach the end. Hence, we say, A single step becomes a leap of faith! Just make that first step and the rest will follow.

2. Improving the Mental Health

When used personally or in a therapeutic setting such as cognitive behaviour therapy, the Zeigarnik effect can promote mental well-being by motivating someone to complete tasks, develop healthier habits, set goals and resolve issues that are being postponed. This attainment of completion provides a feeling of fulfillment, putting an end to the uneasiness caused due to prolonged avoidance of task-completion. This achievement, in turn, increases one's belief in themself and induces a general sense of well-being. All these factors work together towards creation of peace of mind, which implies improvement in overall mental health.

3. Say Bye-Bye to Procrastination

This is essentially a continuation of the first point mentioned here. The evil of procrastination prevents people from starting new projects or working upon the existing ones. People facing such problems can be motivated to start their tasks anywhere and anytime. The Zeigarnik Effect , if used effectively, would create cognitive tension which would keep pulling them back to their tasks, reducing the tendency to delay/stall.

4. Enhance Your Productivity

Productivity may also be increased for individuals who work promptly but have issues with multitasking. A thorough understanding of the cognitive intrusions accompanying uncompleted tasks will help workers appreciate that each new task is essentially an interruption of what was previously being done. Workers may be therefore motivated to set reasonable limits on the amount of multitasking they do, thereby increasing work performance while reducing cognitive overload and frustration.

5. Study Judiciously

This point is mentioned again and again in my wryt-ups, highlighting the benefits of inculcating such practices. If students study in small time slots accompanied by smaller breaks involving completely unrelated tasks, they are likely to be intrigued by what was going on during their study time and think about it. Hence, they would get a better chance to reflect upon what they are learning and would be able to think in all dimensions. This ensures better application of concepts learner. Also,this is the theory behind giving homework to students. A prolonged study period without breaks is typically less effective for information recall.