Mind
Simple exercises to strengthen your willpower
Can our willpower be strengthened? That was the question a group of researchers recently set out to answer. Their findings suggested what has been thought for many years. Your willpower is like a muscle. It gets tired and requires exercise to strengthen it. With this knowledge, it becomes apparent that our willpower can be strengthened with the right practice. Here are 5 scientifically proven strategies to help you flex your willpower strength.
- 10 minutes of meditation – Meditation is proven to give the fastest results of all the willpower exercises. It helps the brain to focus and resist the urge to wander aimlessly which in turn boosts energy levels and the ability to concentrate for longer periods. There are plenty of guided meditation tracks available online to get you started.
- Keep a food diary – Research has found a link between keeping a food diary and an improvement in willpower. The majority of us don’t record our food intake and it takes a conscious effort to keep track of every little thing. Try downloading an app like My Fitness Pal or just using a notebook/pen to keep track for a fortnight.
- Correct your speech – Shifting your natural speech requires you to actively assert yourself against your instinct, which takes considerable willpower. A simple change like eliminating a certain word or changing from saying “Hi” to “Hello” for a couple of designated hours each day is effective enough to hugely improve your willpower.
- Create and meet deadlines – If you’ve ever studied or worked to a concrete deadline you’ll know just how productive and effective it can make you. Creating self-imposed deadlines can have the same impact on our willpower. To get started, pick a task and set a deadline for accomplishing it. Picking a task you’ve been putting off is a good choice, as it’ll increase the effectiveness of the experiment even more.
- Tempt yourself, and resist – If you really want to challenge yourself, try increasing your ability to say “no” by carrying around something really tempting that you’d usually eat or drink for the full day. Pop whatever it is in your pocket or handbag and flex your willpower to continually resist temptation.
Related links:
People are happier when they do good
How to be truly happy in today’s world
7 ways to banish negative thoughts