When The New York Times featured Caroline’s pioneering work on behavioral design and list-making, it sparked a national conversation on how we map out our days. Looking back at that landmark piece, it’s incredible to see how the core principles of evidence-based goal setting have stood the test of time. Here is a look at the timeless insights from that feature, and how they apply to building authentic grit today.

#5 Consult the experts.

Caroline Adams Miller, a life coach and motivational-book author in Bethesda, Md., asks that her clients create their own list of 100 things to accomplish.

“What it does is give you a road map for your life,” she said.
“To check items off your list gives you a sense of self-efficacy, or mastery.”

#7 Return to the experiences of everyday people.

Non-celebrities tend to use their lists to overcome more-fundamental hurdles. Stacey Morris, 40, a sales manager at a housewares company in Ventnor, N.J., created a 100-item list after consulting with Ms. Miller, the life coach, because she said she felt unmotivated and “needed more focus.” Several of her items seemed vague (“develop a more positive attitude,” for example), but the goals have forced her to take specific steps toward self-improvement, she said.

To make good on her vow to “develop persistence,” she trained herself to pause at work every 15 minutes to record the activities she had just finished. The point, she said, is to eliminate distractions like inessential phone calls. She says she has doubled her daily productive hours.

“Having a life list,” she said, “changed my life.”

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