 With the high emphasis on test scores these days, the quality of education isn't what it used to be. Teachers are pressured into teaching curriculums that might not always align with their values. Fundings depend heavily on the performance of the schools, and yes, students stop enjoying going to school as much as they used to. Something is definitely wrong when anxiety and depression are on the rise in elementary schools. Kids at that age shouldn't have to worry so much about perfecting their scores when they're only young once. Fed up with the same boring criteria and want something different, here attend psychology lessons not taught in school. Number one, personal stories are more persuasive than research. In writing class, your teacher might have taught you that one way of opening up your essay is by providing statistics. And yes, while that may be powerful, research has shown that antidotes speak louder. The secret is to start off with a story first and then follow up with the data. People will engage with your essay, presentation, or video better. Why? Because stories provoke empathy. It gets people to make connections when it triggers their own relevant memories. Number two, handwritten letters tend to be more honest. It's great we no longer have to rely on pigeons to deliver our letters when there's this thing called texting, but interestingly enough, if you want the truth, a handwritten letter may work best in your favor. In one study from DePaul University, 48 business students were given 89 imaginary bucks and had to decide how much they wanted to share with their partner. One group communicated via email while the other wrote letters. The group that wrote emails lied about the amount of money more than the group that hand wrote letters. The same results occurred for managers who took part in the study, showing that they were more likely to lie over email exchanges instead of pen and paper. Number three, we think we're more important in how events work than we really are. Today's age gets a bad rep for being narcissistic when we enjoy taking selfies. But self-importance has always existed before Instagram was even born. Product manager, Krish Manat, explains the illusory correlation. Think about those days when you're ready to check out during a busy line at the grocery store. You might sulk and complain whether lines aren't going any faster and may even start to believe the other line is better without being aware that you're moving and making progress, too, in the lane you've already chosen. The illusory correlation happens when we mistake two things for being linked, even though they aren't. We only notice two things at the grocery store, ourselves and the line moving faster. When we exaggerate our self-importance, we fail to recognize how the events are actually unfolding. Number four, the nocebo effect is just as powerful as the placebo effect. You've probably heard of the placebo effect. When someone is down with the flu and they are given a sugar pill being told it'll boost their immune system, they get better from this belief. But the nocebo effect is also real. When someone is given a sugar pill, believing it has a side effect that makes them dizzy, it can actually make them feel worse without actually having that side effect. This explains why some people act drunk when they actually aren't after consuming a non-alcoholic drink placed in a party cup. Number five, the law of attraction is in your favor. Although the law of attraction isn't backed up by solid research, it has been studied and applied by many philosophers. Positivity takes you further in life. So you might as well look on the bright side. The law of attraction says that when you focus on something enough, you'll start attracting it in your life. This doesn't mean if you think about your crush or your dream job enough, then they'll magically reciprocate feelings for you or call you in for an interview. But what it does is lends you opportunities when you put in the work. You'll start to build resilience against your failures and work harder next time to catch your crush's attention or a new job opening. Number six, we perform worse on tests when we think of stereotypes. Stereotypes are mean, right? Asians get a rep for excelling and girls are told to stay away from science careers. Aside from being false and degrading, they can cause us to perform worse on cognitive tests. This phenomenon is called priming, in which one stimulus influences the response of another stimulus. One study showed that black participants perform significantly worse on the GRE tests when they were primed with negative academic stereotypes of African Americans. It's intimidating when that stereotype goes hand in hand with the image of smart that is primed as a white person with a prestigious background. Number seven, you know how to do things you've never done before. Yes, you heard that correct. Let's take the example of someone who knows how to read books, but has never read on a Kindle or iPad before. They use what is called a mental model. They're familiar with what a book looks like when they open it up. So to some degree, they also know what to expect when they start navigating the tools on the Kindle or iPad. Mental models can be efficient when they help people problem solve in unfamiliar situations. Number eight, if you see your crush more regularly, your chance of scoring a date is higher. This is called the mere exposure effect. This doesn't mean that chances necessarily 100%, but people generally start to like things they are exposed to on a daily basis. You might shrug something off if you see it once, like a scarf at a clothing store, or a bottle of juice at the gas station. But the more you see these items when you run errands, you might start to grow curious about them each time. The same applies to your crush. They might just start thinking about you too. The more you guys pass each other in the hallways or have the same classes together. Number nine, we associate the individual with adjectives they use to describe others. This phenomenon is called spontaneous trait transference. If you start badmouthing about a family member, friend or coworker, the person listening to you might start to associate those same traits with you. This is why it's probably not a good idea to gossip or talk ill of someone behind their back. Number 10, multitasking slows things down. You see it on job postings and lifestyle blogs all the time. Multitasking is seen as effective, but this information is misleading. According to research studies, it takes an average of 15 minutes for your brain to reorient itself to the primary task. So if you're trying to cook while also responding to texts at the same time, your efficiency actually can drop as much as 40%. Bottom line, avoid multitasking as much as possible. You'll spend more time than if you focus on one project at a time. Want to see more content schools might not always cover? Check out and subscribe to Dr. Mike's channel. Certified, approachable and super informative, you'll get a better grasp on medicine. If you also like this video, be sure to give it a thumbs up. As always, thanks for watching.