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In 2005, Sebastien Page nearly died from a mysterious bacterial infection that doctors couldn\u2019t diagnose for a week.<\/p>\n
A single observant physician noticed cuts on his toes from running in wet terrain and connected the dots.<\/p>\n
The experience forced Page to confront mortality \u2014 and completely changed how he thinks about goals.<\/p>\n
Page, the chief investment officer at T. Rowe Price and author of The Psychology of Leadership, joins us to share why traditional goal-setting might be sabotaging your happiness.<\/p>\n
He explains how 80 percent of millennials say they just want to get rich, and 50 percent want to become famous.<\/p>\n
But research from Harvard\u2019s 80-year longitudinal study reveals something surprising: people who climbed the social ladder weren\u2019t meaningfully happier than those who struggled financially.<\/p>\n
The real predictor of long-term happiness? The quality of your relationships with others.<\/p>\n
We explore the dark side of goals through a concept called \u201cgoal-induced blindness.\u201d<\/p>\n
Page uses Mount Everest as an example \u2014 climbers have a 4 percent chance of dying, the same odds as eating four poisoned gummies out of 100. Yet people still attempt the summit because they become blinded by the goal itself.<\/p>\n
Page shares his own experience with goal-induced blindness during his demanding career in money management. The relentless travel and pressure contributed to his near-fatal infection in 2005. He learned that working less actually made him more productive.<\/p>\n
We dive into Page\u2019s framework called the \u201cthree Cs\u201d: core beliefs, curves, and control theory.<\/p>\n
Core beliefs are the filters through which you interpret the world \u2014 like whether you trust people or believe money should be spent versus saved.<\/p>\n
Curves refer to stress management, based on research showing optimal performance doesn\u2019t happen at zero stress.<\/p>\n
Control theory teaches you when to exercise \u201cstrategic patience\u201d versus making quick decisions.<\/p>\n
Page also introduces the PERMA framework from positive psychology: positive emotions, engagement, relationships, meaning, and accomplishment. He calls the last four \u201cproteins for your soul,\u201d while positive emotions are more like a sugar high.<\/p>\n
The discussion covers practical applications for everything from hiring decisions to relationship choices, using mathematical concepts like net present value to make better life decisions.<\/p>\n
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