Hi
Willpower is often touted as the reason we succeed or fail at many things in
life.
After years watching clients succeed and improve their life, there seems to be more to it than this.
Studies have been done on willpower resulting in original theories years ago that it is a finite resource that you can use up, those that have more, succeed more.
Maybe it is time to reframe this?
Willpower is really only there as a 'course correction' mechanism to our lifestyle.
Kim and I share a
fundamental belief that successful interventions to our clients health occur when habits are formed to drive results...NOT a constant shifting of goals for this that and the other that creates complexity. The more complex a process the easier it is to find a reason to not succeed.
Basically...making health a 'product' of a lifestyle containing good nutrition and plenty of movement
reduces the need to apply willpower as it all just becomes 'what you are' and 'what you do'
Maybe think of willpower as the booster rocket to guide a space ship, whereas the huge thrusters to get the thing into space are the well rooted good habits of a healthy lifestyle? The little rockets are there as a course correction at a
minor glitch, not to drive your life. Remember Apollo 13?
Try viewing willpower as a cumulative entity which you should train regularly to build resource. Set small, achievable targets such as 'today I will drink a 2L bottle of water' or 'this week I will walk 30 min on three evenings'. Making targets achievable means you are more likely to achieve them, thus each time cumulatively
training and increasing your willpower 'reserve'. Nothing breeds success like success right?
This shift in how you view willpower can be the first step in building a reserve for many course corrections needed in the beginning of a fitness and health journey...where you need to rely on it more.
Could you one day get to the point that you don't even need these corrections as you are on a pretty good trajectory already? Couldn't you then channel that build up of excess willpower into success in other parts of your life?
Hit reply and tell me what challenges your willpower reserve...
Keep on track,
J
