C31 Hack Yourself: Data-Driven Learning and Wellbeing - MIT Schwarzman College of Computing

Offered under: 6.S056, ES.S70
Term(s): Fall, Spring
Level: Undergraduate
Units: 12
Instructors: Ana Bell (EECS), Paola Rebusco (ESG), Carter Jernigan (ESG)

Did you know that your mindset can add up to 7 years to your life? Or that only 5% of leaders know the secret to motivating their teams? Or that time pressure decreases your creative problem solving by 45%? Thriving in life, work, and school isn’t a mystery—it’s within your grasp. Research shows that nearly half of your well-being is shaped by your daily choices.

In Hack Yourself, you’ll learn how to design those choices, building a toolkit of over 60 sustainable positive habits. You’ll apply a data science approach to how you live and lead—using tools from generative AI to vibe coding to statistical analysis to validate and personalize positive psychology practices, while also applying the same data methods across domains from leadership to innovation. Instruction and practice in oral and written communication provided. Students complete a group project in the last ¼ of the course.