Subdivision into subtasks: why it works, and why not

In a large number of materials on self-motivation and optimization of work, it is recommended to break big tasks into smaller ones, but few people explain why this should be done, how, and most importantly, why and when it may not work. I suggest you understand the mechanisms of these statements and finally figure out how to make short goals from more complex ones so that they motivate.





The main mechanism of human functioning in our complex system of behavior is the ability to predict (prediction models created by our experience). It is their development that is most eager to motivate our subconscious. That is why children are so interesting to live and learn the world, and that is why adults do not get as much pleasure from digging in the sandbox as children receive.



The ability to predict underlies the creation of short goals. However, not all so simple.

If we create a prediction with a maximum probability (100%), then it does not create a positive motivation. For example, we are not motivated by the fact that we are sitting on a chair, because with 100% probability we subconsciously predict that it will not break beneath us. We get only a neutral reaction, and do not even pay attention to it.

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Motivation also applies to those cases where the prediction does not guarantee the achievement of the goal, but we by our efforts, on the basis of the prediction, still achieve a positive result. Moreover, the power of motivation is proportional to the ratio of two factors: "bonus" and probability.



We are even ready to act in the field of low probabilities for the sake of a big “bonus” (this is a risk, for example, in a casino). Accordingly, if at a low probability we received a “bonus”, we get a strong positive.



Every time we confirm our prediction, which was not 100% probabilistic, we get a share of "positive". The subconscious mind, as it were, teaches us with the help of neuropeptides, so that we can develop new effective predictions, develop.



Similarly, there are short tasks.



When you set a short task, it should not be 100% predicted, that is, you should not clearly know in detail every step to achieve it. This reduces the "bonus" that motivates our subconscious. If you know this, then such a task does not cause a positive, but is a waste of resources, this is how a “routine” is created.



If you set a short task of average prediction and realize it exactly with your model of prediction, you get your positive.



For example:

You set the task to write a module for the site. You can create 100% probability for this task only if you have already done them more than once, and this is the routine.

If you have not done it before, then to achieve this result you will receive a bonus.



Actually why then tasks are needed precisely short?



The fact is that by setting a goal, you create a prediction of its achievement, and the subconscious mind, by default, believes that the realization of the prediction includes all actions between its formulation and the final result.



If you predict that you will make a module in 30 minutes, the subconscious mind gives you the motivation to achieve it, because it believes that you will be continuously engaged in this module and are likely to finish it in 30 minutes.

If every 5 minutes you begin to "jerk", then the subconscious may eventually lower motivation, as these "twitches" begin to be included in the prediction model, and thus your module "worth" for the subconscious is already much more expensive, and this price is not possible ready to pay.



If such cases are repeated, the subconscious mind is already generating a new prediction that will not be able to shock you even on this simple module.



That is why in such cases it is important either not to be distracted from the fulfillment of the prediction model, or to be able to switch your consciousness very strongly and precisely, so that the prediction also switches. It is quite difficult to do if you are switched to other things that require mental effort, but it is much easier if these switches go into the region of 100% predictions, for example, leaving the toilet.



All this is much more difficult to implement for large tasks, therefore for larger tasks more complex methods of motivation are required and of course splitting them into subtasks.



Ideally, short motivational tasks should not exceed 3 days, and best of all, a maximum of a few hours, and must necessarily be confirmed by the fact of their achievement, so that the subconscious mind records that the prediction has been successfully completed.



This is only a brief part of the mechanism of motivation to act in the case of a definite goal. You can read a slightly more complete description here (many letters).



HS2.0

Good luck to you in achieving your own goals.



UPD1

For those who are at once difficult to understand what is at stake, I will clarify a little.

Prediction models are not a figurative concept born of human observation. This is the principle of functioning of the neocortex neural networks of the brain. It was in humans that he developed to such an extent that he created mechanisms allowing him to regulate his own motivations with the help of neuropeptides (endorphin).

Read more about the prediction models (how they are formed by neurons and how they are arranged) can be found in the book “On the Intelligence” by Jeff Hawkins.

This material is not related to classical observational psychology, but to neurobiology and brain chemistry. And of course, that it is significantly simplified and shortened to fit into the format of the habr.