Jane McGonigal's idea is to treat challenges and habits the way gamers treat games: as something you choose to play, where obstacles teach you something and failure means another try. Here is how that works for habits. Who is Jane McGonigal? McGonigal holds a Ph.D. and has studied the psychology of video gamers. After a debilitating concussion, she used what she knew about games to recover. She turned her life into a game, and that gave her the motivation and strength to work through it. The gameful mindset A gameful mindset means facing challenges with enthusiasm and a willingness to keep growing. It has four parts. Treat habits as games. Think of your habit goals as games you've chosen to play. That puts you in control of your actions and motivations. Be playful and curious about it, and see yourself as the main character in your own story of growth. See obstacles as chances to learn. Gamers treat obstacles as part of the game. You can treat habit setbacks the same way, as ma...