Author: Kelly McGonigal
Format: Audible
Subject: Willpower
Rating: 7/10
Summary:
McGonigal points outs that there are three distinct types of willpower: I Want Power, I Will Power, and I Won’t Power. When most of us think of willpower, we are actually thinking of “I Won’t Power.” We are exercising “I Won’t Power” when we try to resist instant gratification such as eating a cookie, or binge-watching a favorite show. “I Will Power” comes into play when we sacrifice comfort in the present moment, in order to achieve a larger payoff in the future. We exercise this power when we save for retirement, or invest 4 years in college in order to have our dream career. Lastly, we have “I Want Power.”
McGonigal gives several tips for developing and maintaining self control, and cites multiple studies that support the sometimes counter intuitive findings. I plan to add a kindle electronic copy of this book to my library, and I may have a few future post about my experience with the willpower exercises in the book.
Side Note:
I can’t quite remember how this book wound up on my reading list. I do know that the I find the topic of willpower to be interesting. But I’d expect the key selling point was actually a TED Talk that I watched a few years ago; The speaker was none-other, but the authors twin sister Jane McGonigal.
What I liked Most About the Book:
Key Takeaways:
- Willpower is like a muscle, it becomes exhausted over time.
- Willpower is like a muscle, it can be trained.
- The simplest way to improve willpower is to meditate which increases the blood flow to the pre-frontal cortex.
- Start Meditating with 10 minutes a day and work toward 20 minutes.
- “Pause and Plan Response” when dealing with internal conflict. This redirects energy from your body (Fight or Flight) to the brain.
- The excitement of anticipating a reward is almost always greater than the excitement from actually receiving the award
- Dopamine’s primary function is to drive us to seek happiness, not to actually make us happy.
- Self-Criticism drains the willpower, leads to low motivation and loss of self-control.
- We overestimate our future selves ability to address the willpower issues we face today.
- We don’t control our impulses, we only control our reactions.
- Do most important task first.
- Avoid decision-making fatigue; try to make decisions as quickly as possible.
- Sleep is critical to recharging your willpower.
Best Methods for Dealing with Stress:
- exercising/playing a sport
- praying/religious service
- reading/listening to music
- spending time with family and friends
- Meditation/Yoga
- Spending time on a creative hobby