Chris Bailey, productivity researcher and author of Intentional How to Finish What You Start, explores why some goals feel effortless while others become abandoned projects in our personal 'graveyard of forgotten goals.'

The conversation examines the science behind procrastination, revealing six specific triggers that create aversion to tasks, and introduces Shalom Schwartz's research on 12 fundamental human values that drive motivation.

Bailey presents his 'intention stack' framework - a hierarchy from daily present intentions through plans, goals, priorities, and values - showing how alignment across these layers creates the conditions for effortless goal achievement.

The discussion challenges conventional productivity wisdom, particularly SMART goals, while offering practical frameworks like the rule of three and aversion journaling to overcome resistance and build intentional living as a learnable skill.

The Graveyard of Forgotten Goals and Intention Hierarchy

Everyone has a 'graveyard of forgotten goals' - exercise equipment unused in basements, projects that don't fire us up inside that we fail to accomplish despite being generally productive people.

Intentional How to Finish What You Start emerged from Bailey's research with Buddhist monks, scientists, and academic literature to understand what separates achieved goals from abandoned ones.

The 'intention stack' creates a pyramid structure: present intentions (daily to-do items) → plans → goals → priorities → values, where alignment across levels creates effortless achievement.

Goals are really 'predictions in disguise' about where current and planned actions will take you, which often turn into expectations and inevitable disappointment when we can't predict the future.

The Science of Values and Motivational Alignment

Shalom Schwartz's research identifies 12 fundamental human values: self-direction, stimulation, pleasure/hedonism, achievement, power, face, security, tradition, conformity, humility, universalism, and benevolence.

Bailey's highest values are self-direction and pleasure, while power, conformity, and tradition rank lowest - 'like attracts like' so podcast listeners likely share similar value profiles.

Fitness goals illustrate value alignment: women often pursue fitness for pleasure (feeling better in their bodies) while men lean toward security (feeling strong) or achievement values.

Goals aligned with face value (looking good by beach season) create headwinds if you don't actually value how you come across to others, while security-aligned goals (cardiovascular health for longevity) feel more effortless.

Why SMART Goals Don't Work and Better Alternatives

SMART goals (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, time-bound) lack research backing and originated from a management review article, not academic research - 'go to Google Scholar and type in SMART goals, see what comes up.'

Realistic goals often aren't good enough because challenging goals lead to higher achievement than low-hanging fruit you can 'just step over.'

There's redundancy in SMART criteria - measurable goals are also specific, and the framework has morphed through 'cultural game of telephone' like the 10,000 steps or 10,000 hours rules.

Better goal-setting involves editing goals over time, aligning them with values, and seeing them as flexible predictions rather than fixed expectations.

The Six Triggers of Procrastination and Solutions

Procrastination stems from aversion minus desire - six triggers create aversion: boring, frustrating, unpleasant, far away in future, unstructured, and meaningless tasks.

Adding structure is the 'lowest hanging fruit' for overcoming procrastination - taxes are aversive because they're boring, unstructured, frustrating, and unpleasant all at once.

Aversion journaling involves grabbing a notepad and writing 'why do I find this thing so ugly?' then identifying tactical solutions to make it less aversive.

Resistance lists pair aversive tasks with rewards using 'habit points' - making games out of unpleasant activities or habit stacking them with guilty pleasures.

Default vs Deliberate Intentions and Mind-Wandering

We operate on two types of intentions: default (habits, automatic responses) and deliberate (self-reflective capacity to choose direction) - 'moments of awakening' transition us between modes.

Default intentions come from social environments, pain avoidance/pleasure seeking, biology, learned lessons, and mind-wandering - the deepest intentions emerge from scatter focus modes.

48% of mind-wandering time focuses on the future, making gaps between activities crucial for intention-setting - checking phones during transitions prevents this natural planning process.

Before and after activities are 'most fruitful times to wander' - beforehand sets intentions for upcoming tasks, afterward creates learning loops for different future responses.

Practical Systems: Rule of Three and Social Contagion

The rule of three: 'At the start of every day, fast forward to the end and ask: what are three main things I will want to have accomplished by day's end?'

Expand the rule weekly and connect daily intentions to weekly plans, which connect to goals, which align with values - creating intentional hierarchy alignment.

Social contagion supports goal achievement - joining running groups for fitness goals or knitting circles for creative habits accelerates improvement through human connection.

Many goals are 'socially acceptable cosplays of ambition' - things we want others to hear us say we want rather than authentic personal desires.