As you’ve probably come to realise, I’m not a great believer in New Year’s Resolutions (although I do love a good goal). In saying that, may people like to start the year off with a new focus and it can be helpful when it’s done well. This year, the most common resolutions involve weight loss, diet and fitness. By this time (half way through January and after the day commonly referred to as “quitters day”), over 50% of those resolutions will have gone to the big NYR farm in the sky.
If you have decided to start your year with a resolution or two, it’s important to understand that willpower alone won’t get you there. Here’s why.
We often associate willpower with moments of temptation or procrastination.
When faced with a tempting Mars bar while trying to reduce sugar intake or resisting the urge to binge-watch another Suits episode late at night, we summon willpower into action.
From ancient philosophers to modern-day self-help gurus, our ability to exert self-control and discipline is frequently described as the key to success.
The "Muscle" of Willpower
The muscle analogy is a popular way to understand willpower. Just as lifting weights can cause our muscles to fatigue, continuously resisting temptations can wear out our willpower.
The landmark 'radish vs. chocolate chip cookie' study illustrates this perfectly.
Roy Baumeister and his colleagues published a paper in 1998 concluding that the participants who resisted the temptation of cookies and chose radishes instead had a harder time persisting in a subsequent challenging task.
Their willpower was, in essence, “exhausted” from the prior exercise of resisting the cookies.
Factors That Drain Willpower
As the radish study shows, various factors can deplete our willpower reserve, impacting the willpower we have left for unrelated events.
There isn’t a separate willpower reserve for resisting the Mars bar and another for avoiding late-night Netflix binges.
Our Backstory
Like my binge eating client, our behaviours are often linked to our history and past experiences. Often we have to recognise this and let go of anything that’s not worth holding onto for willpower to provide any help in creating change.
Physical Exhaustion
Just as you wouldn’t run a marathon after an all-nighter, exerting willpower when physically exhausted is a tall order.
Your mind and body are interconnected, and when one is drained, the other struggles.
Mental Load
Continuous cognitive tasks, like solving problems, can chip away at our willpower.
It's why shopping for groceries after a long day can result in impulse purchases or why doctors are more prone to making poorer diagnoses at the end of their day.
Emotional Stress
High stress levels or emotional turbulence make it considerably harder to exert self-control. It's not just you; we all struggle to resist comfort food after a diffucult day.
Decision Fatigue
From choosing outfits to setting priorities at work, the more decisions we make, the harder each subsequent one becomes.
There is a reason why Steve Jobs always wore the same outfits and why other leaders are following that trend.
Willpower might also have a connection with our blood sugar
When participants in the studies drank a sugary drink, their willpower performance improved. Does this mean we should all get a hit of Fanta before making decisions?
While there’s a correlation, researchers debate whether the glucose-willpower connection is causal or merely correlation. It’s possible that our our brain, a significant glucose consumer, may have more willpower when it gets a glucose spike.
However, as we’ll see next, it’s more likely that people’s belief about the limitations of their willpower makes them more sensitive to glucose boosts.
Limiting Beliefs About Willpower
Our beliefs shape our reality. And how we perceive our willpower can influence its efficacy. Studies suggest that individuals who believe willpower is an unlimited resource tend to do better in tasks demanding self-control.
Henry Ford might have been onto something when he said, “Whether you think you can, or you think you can't - you're right.”
Techniques to Preserve and Boost Willpower
While understanding the limitations of willpower is important, it's just as essential to explore ways to strengthen and conserve it.
Pre-commitment Strategies
Pre-commitment strategies are plans made in advance to avoid temptation. For instance, if you're trying to follow a more nutritious diet, not buying junk food in the first place saves you from resisting it later.
Yes, even these pre-emptive strategies require willpower, but it’s less so than when feeling tired and hungry and resisting the urge to eat the bag of potato chips staring back at you from the cupboard.
Setting Clear Goals
Having clear objectives minimises the mental effort in decision-making, thereby conserving willpower. Whether that’s planning your schedule for the next day or knowing the exact outcome you want out of the work project.
Mindfulness and Meditation
There’s plenty of science backing mindfulness and meditation as tools for improving self-control and willpower.
Regular mindfulness exercises help us recognise temptations and make conscious choices with our actions. The awareness and patience to feel our feelings and sit with our thoughts also helps us reduce impulsive actions.
Rest and Recovery
When we sleep, our brain gets to work, processing the day's events, forging connections, and restoring cognitive functions. This restoration is crucial, not just for memory or concentration, but also for our willpower.
The rested mind is more resilient and better equipped to handle challenges, while a sleep-deprived brain can often misjudge situations or surrender too quickly to impulses.
But it's not just about the long slumbers at night. Intermittent daily breaks serve as mini 'recharge sessions' for our mental faculties.
These breaks act as buffers, ensuring our willpower doesn't run on empty, allowing us to maintain consistent self-control and decision-making prowess throughout the day.
The Interplay of Environment
Your surroundings greatly affect how often and intensely you need to tap into your willpower. Surrounding yourself with temptations is akin to doing squats every few minutes; eventually, you'll tire out.
Being aware of environmental triggers and habit loops can create a better environment for willpower conservation.
Willpower is a thread that weaves its way through every choice and challenge
While willpower is a fantastic resource, it's not infinite. Understanding its limitations while harnessing techniques to optimise its potential is the key to navigating temptations and making informed decisions..
By adopting a holistic approach to self-control and integrating personal strategies with environmental adjustments, we set ourselves up for success.
Our journey with willpower is continuous, full of learning and growth.
If you’d like help with the challenges and complexities of this journey, to harness your inner strength and cultivate resilience, please get in touch with me. As a psychotherapist and coach, I'm here to guide and support you every step of the way.
Let's navigate the terrain of your mind together and unlock the power of your willpower.
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