Leverage Dopamine to Overcome Procrastination & Optimize Effort

In this episode, I explain how dopamine dynamics — meaning changes and interactions between our baseline and peak levels of dopamine drive our cravings and sense of motivation. I also explain how to leverage dopamine dynamics to overcome procrastination. I cover behavioral, cognitive, nutrition-based and supplementation-based tools to optimize baseline and peak dopamine levels to ensure a persistently motivated state. I also discuss how to boost motivation when you are in a rut, why you might not want to stack behaviors/substances that spike dopamine and how to build and maintain a “growth mindset” for pursuing goals of any kind. Dopamine is an incredibly powerful neuromodulator involved in basic functions (e.g., hunger, romantic attraction, etc.) and feats of cognitive and physical performance; by understanding the dynamics of dopamine, listeners ought to be better positioned to overcome procrastination, maintain motivation, and improve confidence. #HubermanLab #Dopamine #Motivation Thank you to our sponsors AG1 (Athletic Greens): https://athleticgreens.com/huberman Helix Sleep: https://helixsleep.com/huberman WHOOP: https://join.whoop.com/huberman ROKA: https://roka.com/huberman InsideTracker: https://www.insidetracker.com/huberman Supplements from Momentous https://www.livemomentous.com/huberman Social & Website Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hubermanlab Twitter: https://twitter.com/hubermanlab Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hubermanlab LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-huberman Website: https://hubermanlab.com Newsletter: https://hubermanlab.com/neural-network Articles Pain modulates dopamine neurons via a spinal–parabrachial–mesencephalic circuit: https://go.nature.com/3FPaFIH Dopamine, Updated: Reward Prediction Error and Beyond: https://bit.ly/3Gha0A7 Human physiological responses to immersion into water of different temperatures: https://bit.ly/3IumXX1 Effect of tyrosine on cognitive function and blood pressure under stress: https://bit.ly/3LSSHZq Tyrosine Improves Working Memory in a Multitasking Environment: https://bit.ly/3LSgCZ6 Books Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence: https://amzn.to/3TIWfj2 Other Resources Non-Sleep Deep Rest (NSDR): https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPNW_gerXa4P6-7EC4twzLBjR22rQYk3u Timestamps 00:00:00 Dopamine 00:02:32 Sponsors: Helix Sleep, WHOOP, ROKA, Momentous 00:06:27 Dopamine Brain Circuits 00:14:53 Goals & Addiction 00:17:13 Dopamine Dynamics, “Wave Pool” analogy 00:20:28 Craving, Motivation, Pursuit & Reward Prediction Error 00:28:26 Sponsor: AG1 (Athletic Greens) 00:29:40 Feedback Cues & Reward Contingent Learning, “Scoreboard” 00:37:40 Addiction; Pleasure & Pain Imbalance 00:44:55 Dopamine Release & Addictive Substances/Behaviors 00:50:43 Addiction Recovery, Binding Behaviors 00:53:25 Tools: Maintain Baseline Dopamine Levels 01:02:08 Sponsor: InsideTracker 01:03:26 Tool: Deliberate Cold Exposure & Dopamine 01:09:38 Prescriptions & Supplementation: L-Tyrosine, Mucuna Pruriens 01:18:58 Dopamine Trough Recovery, Postpartum Depression 01:23:31 Dopamine Dynamics, “Dopamine Stacking”; Intrinsic Motivation 01:38:10 Making Effort the Reward, Growth Mindset 01:41:49 Tool: Overcome Procrastination 01:52:16 Tool: Meditation & Procrastination 01:57:01 Zero-Cost Support, YouTube Feedback, Spotify & Apple Reviews, Sponsors, Momentous, Neural Network Newsletter, Social Media Title Card Photo Credit: Mike Blabac - https://www.blabacphoto.com The Huberman Lab podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute the practice of medicine, nursing or other professional health care services, including the giving of medical advice, and no doctor/patient relationship is formed. The use of information on this podcast or materials linked from this podcast is at the user’s own risk. The content of this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard or delay in obtaining medical advice for any medical condition they may have and should seek the assistance of their health care professionals for any such conditions.