Why can’t you tell anyone about your plans?

“If you want to make God laugh, tell him about your plans.” It’s a pretty famous saying, but how true is it? Is it really possible that the case will not be concluded just because someone else found out about it? Everyone has some plans, and even if they are not shared, what are the chances of them coming true? What happens if someone gets jealous and casts an evil eye? So where did this prejudice come from? We learned the answer.

There are sayings like “whatever you boast about is incomplete” and “happiness loves silence”, but what if there is nothing to boast about yet? Let’s say you signed up for dance and you’re doing great, but you want to do more, for example, perform on stage. It is a natural desire to share your dream with your loved ones. This is exactly what psychologists and coaches teach us in training. Experts supposedly encourage us to share our plans with others so there’s no chance of not getting the job done. Otherwise you’re just a braggart. It is also possible that your competitors will implement your plan sooner.

But scientists believe that the reason why no one talks about an important topic in advance has nothing to do with esoteric reasons, but with the way our brain works. This phenomenon is called “premature sense of completion.” The truth is that when we tell someone our plans out loud, the brain perceives it as complete and relaxes. Praise stimulates the release of dopamine into the blood and we feel as if we have accomplished everything. Hence laziness and procrastination.

Psychologist Kurt Lewin called this process “substitution” in 1926. His colleague Vera Madler explained this by the fact that people tend to believe in the reality of what is accepted by others. So you told someone about your goals – consider that you have already achieved them. In 2009, Peter Gollwitzer conducted a series of experiments involving 163 people. As a result, subjects who took a break from the study to discuss the results were less effective, and participants who did not tell anyone anything about the progress of the tasks were able to complete everything.

It seems like you don’t need to tell anyone anything? Not exactly. Expression is important. Until you are satisfied with the work process, the brain mobilizes resources to complete the task, but as soon as you boast about what has already been done, stagnation may suddenly arise in your work. Because the brain received a reward signal. So watch your tongue!