Conscientiousness is the fundamental personality trait most closely tied to self control and it tracks with nearly every type of success across your lifespan.
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Willpower is like energy — using it burns it up, and you have to replenish it. Anything that involves self-control draws on that one willpower fuel source: So dieting takes energy away from your ability to hold your tongue in a conversation — and vice versa.
(SNEAKY TIP: Want to persuade someone? Offer them something tempting they'll say no to. Resisting urges uses up willpower, leaving less for them to fight persuasion with.)
Like a muscle, exerting willpower makes your self-control ability stronger over time.
I've posted many scientifically supported willpower tips over the years but I'm just going to focus on my favorite ones here.
1) Use willpower to build willpower.
Just a little bit of practice every day can increase self-control and improving self-control in one area of life tends to improve all areas of life.
2) Automate your behavior.
When something is a habit and you don't have to make decisions or even think about it, it doesn't use much willpower.
And you can further improve your self-control by planning.
Decide ahead of time how you will respond when willpower is taxed and you'll be much more likely to default to that. Without a clear plan in your head you're more likely to succumb. Christian Jarret writes:
So give a friend $500 and tell them to keep it if you don't follow through with your goals.
Need more willpower for the day? Simply making decisions burns willpower so reducing the number and difficulty of decisions you make is an easy way to conserve it. That's what President Obama does.
Need to quickly replenish willpower?Eat something. Yes, it's that simple.
In fact, kids who skip breakfast misbehave more than kids who eat their Wheaties. Give them a snack and they're little angels again.
A final note
You're not a machine. And the goal here isn't to turn you into one.
There is a powerful human element underlying self-control that should not be ignored.
Which recruits pass Hell Week and go on to become Navy SEALS? They're not necessarily the ones with the biggest muscles but they're often the ones with the biggest hearts.
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