I think the basic reason we pursue our goals ineffectively is that we are afraid to go at them straight on and, instead, look for activities that appear to be g

I think the basic reason we pursue our goals ineffectively is that we are afraid to go at them straight on and, instead, look for activities that appear to be goal-oriented, but are not emotionally difficult. The comments on the site to this article are quite good too. And the post to which it replied is worth reading. lesswrong.com is definitely going into my reader.