7 Surprising Science-Based Hacks To Build Your Willpower
Tempted by that second doughnut? Struggling
to resist checking your phone? Shopping impulsively on Amazon? Slacking off by
reading Lifehack instead of doing work? What you need is
more willpower! Recent
researchshows that strengthening willpower is the
real secret to the kind of self-control that can help you resist temptations
and achieve your goals. The great news is that scientists say
strengthening your willpower is not as hard as you might think. Here are 7
research-based hacks to strengthen your willpower!
1.
Smile
Smiling and other mood-lifting activities
help improve willpower. In a recent
study, scientists first drained the willpower of
participants through having them resist temptation. Then, for one group, they
took steps to lift people’s moods, such as giving them unexpected gifts or
showing them a funny video. For another group, they just let them rest.
Compared to people who just rested for a brief period, those whose moods were
improved did significantly better in resisting temptation later! So next time
you need to resist temptation, improve your mood! Smile or laugh, watch a funny
video or two.
2.
Clench Your Fist
Clench your fists or partake in another type
of activity where you exercise self-control. Studies say that exercising
self-control in any physical domain causes you to become more disciplined in
other facets of life. So do whatever works for you to exercise self-control
when you are trying to fight temptations: clench your fist, squeeze your eyes
shut, or you can even hold
in your pee, just like UK Prime Minister David
Cameron.
3.
Meditate
Meditation is great for a lot of things –
reducing stress, increasing focus, managing emotions. Now research
suggests it even helps us build willpower! With
all these benefits, can you afford not to meditate? An easy way to get started
is to spend 10 minutes a day sitting in a calm position and focusing on your
breath.
4.
Reminders
Our immediate desires to give in to
temptations make it really challenging to resist them. Our emotional desires
seem like a huge elephant and our rational self is like a small elephant rider
by comparison. However, one way to steer
the elephant is to set in physical reminders in
advance to remind ourselves of what our rational self wanted to do. So put a
note on your fridge that says “only one doughnut” or set an alarm clock to buzz
when you want to stop playing video games.
5.
Eat
Did you know that your willpower is powered by food? No wonder’s it’s so hard to diet! When we have low levels of glucose,
our willpower goes down the drain. The best cure is a meal rich in protein,
which produces a constant and steady glucose level and enables the most optimal
willpower.
6.
Self-Forgiveness
How is self-forgiveness connected to
willpower? Well, what the science shows is that feelings of regret deplete your willpower. This is why
those who eat a little too much ice cream and feel regret are then much more
likely to just let themselves go and eat the whole pint or even gallon!
Instead, when you give in to temptation, be compassionate toward yourself and
forgive yourself. That way, you’ll have more willpower going forward!
7.
Commitment
The most important thing to strengthen your willpower
is commitment to doing so! Only by committing to improving your willpower every
day will you be able to take the steps described above. To do so, evaluate your
situation and why you want to strengthen your willpower, make a clear decision
to work on improving this area, and set a long-term
goal for your willpower improvement to have
the kind of intentional life that you want.
Then break down this goal into specific and
concrete steps that you will take based on the strategies described above.Research
shows this is the best path for you to build
your willpower! So what are the specific and concrete steps that you will take?
BY GLEB
TSIPURSKY
http://www.lifehack.org/326340/7-surprising-science-based-hacks-build-your-willpower?mid=20151029&ref=mail&uid=687414&feq=daily
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