What’s behind the extraordinary experiences that stay with us? Are they as random as we’re led to believe or is there a pattern to them that, if we understood it, would allow us to create them ourselves?
In his research, Dan Heath, co-author of the book, The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact, uncovers four key elements that characterize these kinds of moments. And he explains how we can create them not only for ourselves, but for our family, our friends, and the people in our organizations.
Dan is a Senior Fellow at the CASE Center at Duke University and co-author of the bestselling books, Made to Stick, Switch, and Decisive. In this interview we discuss:
- The important role that elevation, insight, pride, and connection play in defining moments
- How we can tap into defining moments to celebrate and inspire employees at work
- Ways to spot opportunities, like important work and life transitions, to design defining moments
- How our brains hold onto the peaks and endings of defining moments
- The fact that great experiences are mostly forgettable and occasionally remarkable
- What it looks like when we break the script to create unforgettable moments
- Why we need to beware of the soul-sucking force of reasonableness to create defining moments
- How defaulting to ease and efficiency can turn peak moments into speed bumps
- How social moments of shared meaning and responsiveness build connection
- The key roles that understanding, validation, and caring play in connecting with others
- Why we build deeper connections more quickly when we work together on something bigger than ourselves
- How creating the right mission and conditions can get people to take on difficult challenges
- The fact that purpose has a greater impact on our performance than passion
- Why purpose is central in making us more effective in our roles
- How we can learn to cultivate purpose
- How just one hour visiting student families in their homes completely changed the culture of a low-performing elementary school
- Why 36 simple questions can help us deepen our relationships in less than an hour
- When people experience crystallizing experiences that cause them to rethink their work and their lives
