The method
Psychology with a calendar.
Meridian is not a vision board and it is not a task list. It is an interview that produces a dated path, then a daily prompt that makes the next action smaller than the obstacle.
WOOP / mental contrasting
Gabriele Oettingen’s work shows that fantasizing about the outcome without naming the obstacle reduces effort. Meridian forces Wish, Outcome, Obstacle, Plan in that order.
Implementation intentions
Peter Gollwitzer: “If situation X, then I will Y.” These if-then plans consistently outperform vague motivation. Every course stores at least one, and the daily briefing repeats it.
Identity-based habits
You are not collecting a streak. You are casting a vote for a person. The identity line sits at the top of every briefing.
Self-efficacy, confirmed
Bandura: confidence tracks mastery evidence. A self-rating is a hypothesis. The quiz is the test. Timelines use the confirmed level, and we tell you when they disagree.
Deliberate practice
Ericsson: improvement comes from working the weak point with feedback, not from more variety. Phases increase load only after consistency holds.
Fogg behavior model
Behavior = motivation × ability × prompt. We do not try to inflate motivation. We shrink the action (ability) and send a prompt (email/SMS/Today).
Stages of change
Prochaska’s model: people in contemplation need a different path than people in action. The interview locates you; the first phase is an on-ramp if you have never done this.
Time, from the world
The calculator starts from typical professional timelines (C25K, fat-loss rates, first-revenue arcs, habit automaticity research), then multiplies by skill and hours. Live web research, when available, updates the estimate. Aggressive dates get a warning, not a lie.