In and out of will power

IN AND OUT OF THE WILLPOWER 

willpower is the key to success. successful people strive no matter what they feel by applying their will to overcome apathy ,doubt or fear .

                                                                                                           ~ Dan Millman 

Hey folks, I have some simple questions before starting this article, try to relate and find your answer:

Are you able to stick to the plans you made for your exam preparation? Are you able to follow your diet completely? Do you stick to your fitness routine? Are you able to control your Procrastination?

If your answer to the above Questions is a NO then you have a problem of weak willpower.

The Oxford dictionary explains Willpower as “control of one's impulses and actions; determination; self-control.”

In simple words willpower means “the ability to control oneself and determine one's actions” or “Firmness of will”.

In my last Post “The power of focus” In which I talked about the importance of being focused towards the goal and after reading the post many people told me that it is hard for them to focus one thing for a longer tenure in fact many people said it’s impossible to implement.

After hearing to all these reviews I realized that the main problem behind these review is lack of will power. People are short of willpower and determination to sustain chasing their goal.So let us have view over the will power.

HOW DO WILLPOWER WORK.?

Kelly McGonigal, PhD and author of The Willpower Instinct says willpower is a response that comes from both the brain and the body.

The prefrontal cortex (that section of the brain right behind your forehead) is the part that helps us with things like decision-making and regulating our behavior. Self-control, or willpower, falls under this heading, and thus is taken care of in this part of the brain.

To be effective at controlling our urges and making sound decisions, the prefrontal cortex needs to be looked after. That means feeding it with good-quality food so it has enough energy to do its job and getting enough sleep.

HOW DOES WILL POWER DEPLETS ?

McGonigal points out that one of the most replicated findings about willpower is that it seems to be finite—that is, we only have so much and it runs out as we use it.

Trying to control your temper, ignore distractions or refuse seconds all tap the same source of strength.

We can look at willpower like a muscle—it can get exhausted by overuse, but just like our physical muscles, there are some researchers who believe we might be able to strengthen our willpower by training it.

Many people believe they could improve their lives if only they had more of that mysterious thing called willpower. With more self-control we would all eat right, exercise regularly, avoid drugs and alcohol, save for retirement, stop procrastinating, and achieve all sorts of noble goals.

At its essence, willpower is the ability to resist short-term temptations in order to meet long-term goals. And there are good reasons to do so.

Now as we know the problem let us try to look for the solution:

First of all we need to understand that we are not born with the willpower, we must build it like a muscle with continuous effort and Repetition. So if you lack willpower then don’t worry just remember it’s never too late to start , you build a super will power now .
Let us see few points to increase our willpower :

1. Increase your capacity for pressure (Learn how to manage stress): At first we need to manage our stress. Being under high levels of stress means that our body’s energy is used up in acting instinctively and making decisions based on short-term outcomes. Our prefrontal cortex loses out in the battle for our energy when high-stress is involved. McGonigal says that stopping to take a few deep breaths when we feel overwhelmed or tempted can be a great start in managing our stress levels and improving our willpower.

2. Encourage yourself to stick to your plans: To make it even easier, it appears that self-affirmation can even help you to have more self-control when you’re running out, according to a study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. A good example of this is the difference between telling yourself “I can’t” and “I don’t.” Taking back control of the situation using the phrase “I don’t” has been shown to be more effective at helping you to stick to your plan and break bad habits- if you tell yourself you can’t, you are creating a feedback loop that keeps you reminding of your limitation and this whole process suggest you are forcing yourself to do things you don’t want.

3. Get more sleep to help your brain manage energy better : McGonigal also says getting enough sleep makes a big difference to how efficiently our prefrontal cortex works- sleep deprivation (even just getting less than six hours a night) is a kind of chronic stress that impairs how the body and brain use energy. The prefrontal cortex is especially hard hit and it loses control over the regions of the brain that create cravings and the stress response.

And if you’re wondering how much sleep is enough, here’s a rough guide: one of the most acclaimed sleep researchers, Daniel Kripke, found in a recent study that “people who sleep between 6.5 hours and 7.5 hours a night, live the longest, are happier and most productive”.

4. Postpone things for later to gain focus on what is important now: Postponing something you really shouldn't have can be effective if you’re trying to break a bad habit. In Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength, Roy F. Baumeister explains that people who tell themselves “not now, but later,” are generally less tormented by the temptation of something they are trying to avoid.

5. Create powerful habit, Rituals and routine: Building on the last point, creating rituals is a great way to remove needless decision-making from your day. Once something has been turned into a habit, you don’t even have to think about it. You do it without using any of your willpower. Every morning, I start my day with the same 20- 30 minute power routine to get me in an optimal physical, emotional and intellectual state.Each step of the ritual is carefully choreographed for optimal results, yet it requires no willpower on my part because it’s engrained in my ritual.

THE POWER OF FOCUS.

           "Focus on your potential instead of your limitation."
                                                                                                           -- Alan Loy McGinnis

The dictionary meaning of word FOCUS is "the state or quality of having or producing clear visual definition." simply speaking it means creating a visual and staying connected with it all the time .
the Idea of being focus is simple to understand but hard to implement .


The problem with many of us now days is that we spend our time focusing on what we don't want rather then focusing on what we want and this is what winners associate with ,they have  clearly focused priorities.


Winners focus on their potential and cherish every opportunity they have where as others focus on the limitations and seek for excuses .


the famous Author and success coach Robin Sharma once said " the ordinary focus on what they are getting. The Extraordinary think about who they are becoming." indeed a deep thought, isn't it ?


the people who are on their utmost success know very well where to focus on , they have clear cut priorities for their lives , they connect emotionally and physically with the focused point and spend most of their time on their goal .


Note: being focused to something in now ways mean that you should start ignoring everything and just continue doing one thing all the time, of-course it is necessary to give time to the material things like enjoying with your family or doing any other thing that gives you an ease .
Here it is suggested to cut off your focus from all those things which are unnecessary or irrelevant and just divert your focus on your goal.


Now let me clear a simple point first focusing on your goal and focusing on the end result are two different things always remember one thing "the more you focus on end results ,the more you eradicate from lessons of the journey." So we don't just need to focus on the end result but we need to focus on the journey of reaching our goal as the joy of learning during the journey is much more then the happiness of reaching the final destination without any experience.


Focus is what keeps us on track when we are trying to reach our goals. If you think of an archer as he aims at a target, it is essential that the archer has focus in order to hit the bulls eye. Likewise, when a person wants to create something in their life, they must main focus in order to achieve the goal.


There are many reasons why a person loses focus while pursuing their goals. The constant distractions in today's world mean that maintaining focus can be very difficult. Distraction of work, home, friends, socialising, events and everything else constantly compete for our attention and dedicated time. It takes time to stay focused on achieving our goals and it's so easy to fail in our attempt to maintain enough momentum, desire, energy and persistence needed to achieve our goals. As a result we often give up and think our goal is unachievable.


One of the main reason due to which we loose our focus is " negative self talks" i.e. the things you tell to your self regarding all the possibilities of why you cant achieve your goal. Initially we pursue a goal because we are contaminated by the motivating thoughts that we are going to improve our self but slowly we tend to feed our mind with excuses and reasons for not doing it any more.
If you too are doing the same thing of feed your mind with retarded thoughts i'll suggest you to stop it right now .


now let us have a look on some simple but effective ways which can help you to maintain your focus on the goal :


1. Get rid of excess internet usage.  Breaks are important. But unscheduled Internet breaks can keep you from ever getting into the “flow” of work. Even quick surfing as a reward will snap you out of your most productive periods, which can be hard to restart.

For those of us who don’t trust out own willpower in the face of that shiny, browser icon, you can get Internet-blocking software like Freedom that actually prevents your computer from logging onto the Internet for set periods of time. It might feel silly—but so does a grownup who can’t quit looking at pictures of others.

2. Make a list and go through it methodically. The list is one of the simplest and most ignored relics of the pen and paper age. There is something viscerally satisfying about manually crossing a task off the list. Without a “guide” to the work that needs to get done, we’ll tend to forget what needs to be done.

Make your brain a chores list, and don’t let it go play until the chores are done. No excuses.

3. Set a deadline and do not break it. If you don’t have a deadline to get something done, you can push it off till tomorrow. And as we know, there is an infinite supply of tomorrow. As Henry Rollins said, “Don’t think about it, don’t talk about it, do it.”

4. The journey is long, so slow down. The biggest impediment to productivity is unrealistic expectations. This is often a result of excessive guilt over not having been productive lately. Taking a couple days off? Don't try to cram in everything you "have to" do. Even if tasks seem tiny, remember to just work on one at a time.


5. Use the Power of Visualisation. To have something to focus on we must have a strong visual picture of our target so we can maintain focus on the end result. The more you bring what it is you wish to obtain to the forefront of your mind, the more focus you can give to it.


6. Write your goals down. Put your goals, reasons, objectives and beliefs in writing. When they are in writing it makes them more real and they can be reviewed and used as a constant source of encouragement. Eventually your goals will become branded in your mind.

7. Prioritise your Goal. Focus on a few goals at one time. Try not to overburden yourself as it will limit your chance of achieving your goal and demotivate you. Concentrate on the important ones first, achieve them and then you can look at addressing the other goals.

well thought of sharing few lines I read on Google few days back "remember life is like a camera just focus on what is important and capture the good time develop from the negative and if things don't work out,just take another shot" and  at last  Dream big , work hard ,stay focused and surround your self with good people.