Goal
Today, we’re going to discuss how to build willpower and why it’s essential to becoming an individual.
What is willpower, and why is it important?
I’ve covered the importance of willpower before, but just to sum up: will is your capacity to continue with any task that you are engaging in. Without a firm resolve, we cannot overcome procrastination and accomplish our goals. Willpower encompasses persistence, zeal, fortitude, courage, self-control, self-discipline, and emotional control, and you can explore posts on this site covering these topics.
How to build willpower
Building willpower involves delaying gratification as well as resisting temptations. Furthermore, building your willpower will give you more energy and time to engage with what’s important to you. For example, instead of wasting your time on distractions, you can focus on learning a new skill.
Building your willpower is not easy. You have to be forward-thinking as well as capable of dealing with discomfort. However, the benefits far outweigh any drawbacks.
1. Avoid taxing and trying people and ideas
Some people exist only to sap the energy and love of life out of others. Avoid them.
Avoid taxing people or ideas. For example, avoid people who need you to be something you aren’t. Putting on a mask or “show” for people’s amusement drains of you of emotional energy and will deplete your resolve.
Furthermore, you have to reject any voices, ideas, or people who don’t believe in your capacity to improve and respect your rights and free will. Such people are focused on breaking you, and their constant attacks will undermine your resolve.
Lastly, avoid temptation. For example, if you have a problem with snacks, then don’t buy them when you go shopping. You should never consciously put yourself in the paths of people and ideas that will needlessly challenge your capacity to improve.
2. Develop good habits and meet good people
Never travel alone. Build a community that’ll help you build willpower
As individuals, we must make communities of like-minded people who will support us towards our goals. Therefore, find individuals who will assist you even when you feel unmotivated. These people recognize the importance of your goals and will help you reach them, even when you don’t want to.
Additionally, we need to create habits we can lean on when we’re feeling tired. For example, sleeping at the same time every day will give you the energy you need to face new challenges. Furthermore, setting small, achievable goals will provide you with a pattern to model in other areas of your life. Regularly brushing your teeth can give you the confidence you need to set more significant habits and goals.
Lastly, acknowledge when you aren’t running at 100% and plan accordingly. This planning requires understanding yourself. When you’re not feeling your absolute best, adjust your day, and prioritize what is most important. For example, prioritize going to the gym, and if you feel too tired, then skip the dishes. Don’t skip the gym on a rough day.
3. Consume good works that make you stronger
One element that’s crucial to individual growth and development is consuming works that inspire us to become better and stronger people. You must consume positive, enriching films, books, and games that will strengthen your motivation.
Avoid gory works, media where the villains win, and “complicated” stories full of pessimism and fatalism. These media are designed to entrap you in pointless debates, needless speculation, and perpetual sorrow. Therefore, focus on consuming media, which reflects the better person you want to become.
4. Sleep and eat well
Good food and good sleep are the bedrocks of greatness.
Sleep is the bedrock of improvement, and rest deprivation is the foundation of failure. Therefore, grab as much sleep as you can, no matter how hard it may be.
Additionally, we need to eat the food that gives us energy, clean out our bodies, and strengthen us. Our physical beings are essential to building willpower, and the more we avoid empowering our bodies, the worse off we are.
5. Track Your Time
Lastly, keep track of your activities. When we’re able to reflect on our past decisions and choices, we can create a response to what we’re seeing. For example, if you become distracted at a specific time in the day, then you should schedule a daily walk.
We also need to set clear goals for what we want to accomplish. By developing a clear life goal, we can ensure that we’re always on the most relevant path. A monthly goal should support your life goal. These monthly goals need daily goals that feed into what you want to accomplish for the month. Always plan out your day, and you will improve your willpower.
Become an Individual and Build Your Willpower
We must always look for ways to build our self-control, so we’re able to fulfill our dreams and accomplish our purposes. Try the exercises above and see if these techniques help in developing your willpower.
Actionables
Read the following:
- The Science of Self-Control: 6 Ways to Improve Your Willpower Today
- How to Boost Your Willpower
- 10 Simple Exercises That Will Strengthen Your Willpower!
- Which item on the list is easiest for you to do? Which item is the hardest? Why?
- In the past week, when did your willpower fail? What do you wish you could have done differently?
- What ideas or people sap you of your willpower as well as your general happiness? Why do you still associate with them?
Please remember that it’s important to do the actionables. You’re not on this earth to simply read but to do. To become an individual, you must act more than you consume. *Image credit to Unsplash.
