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| Just start small and be consistent |
Regarding
will power and staying on track with whatever the tasks (habits) are at
hand that we're trying to develop and remain consistent, the following
are the five main causes of ego-depletion or will power depletion
according to Guise (albeit will power still remains superior to
motivation, however, since we're not robots we can still run out of will
power):
Effort
"Mini
habits require very little actual effort. This is a natural structure
that greatly reduces the chance for burnout (p. 49). My translation:
Mini habits are not that bad, because you're starting "stupid small" as
Guise says. We can develop great and healthy habits with minimal effort
if we choose to. I'm trying to get up to 30 full-body push-ups everyday.
Right now I can do 10 every day. There was a short time ago when I
couldn't even do one.
Perceived Difficulty
"Mini
habits have almost zero perceived difficulty by design. Setting mini
goals is the best way to drop the perceived difficulty in any project.
Once you start and are free to continue, your perceived difficulty will
be much lower due to the psychological impact of having already started.
Just like in physics, the greatest inertia comes before the start of
motion. Once you're in motion, everything gets easier as a result of
momentum", ie, increased motivation (p. 49). My translation: Whatever
that habit is we want to accomplish, can be accomplished if we change
our attitude about it. I'm forcing myself to read everyday and I started
with reading a little bit of the things I want to read. I didn't put a
time frame on it yet. I'm still at just-got-to-read stage. That's good
enough for now.
Negative Affects
"Negative
affect simply means the experience of unpleasant feelings" (p. 50);
"even if you're replacing a pleasure with a mini habit, the commitment
is so small that you won’t feel negative affect from it" (p. 51). My
translation: Instead of watching TV or Netflix (the pleasure), and
replacing that with going out to run, the "negative feeling" we start
getting from the thought of running won't be so bad, because we will
begin to see great results. I'm trying to walk at least 15-20 minutes
per day (trying).
Subjective Fatigue
"Will
power is a battle of the mind, and according to some of these top
willpower drainers, the battle appears to be between the perception of
your strength relative to your task." "Subjective fatigue depends on
many factors, and a big one is how you see yourself stacking up against
your goal" (p. 51). My translation: See yourself successful; picture
it; do it, and stay with it. Just start small, is all. Don't try to do
10 crunches if you're not in that shape. Just start with 1 a day and the
results will come.
Blood Glucose Levels
"Glucose
(sugar) is your primary energy source. If you have low glucose in your
blood, you're going to feel very tired. If it's dangerously low, you can
even pass out. Your blood sugar levels are determined by genetics,
diet, and lifestyle" (p. 52); "and if you're tired from low blood sugar,
mini habits give you the best chance to take action anyway" (p 53). My
translation: Stay away from that junk food. Sugar is in alot of stuff.
Starting with a healthy habit is a start. Just start with something
small. I'm trying not to eat chocolate that much (I absolutely love it).
So I will just buy it maybe once per month. The good news for me is
that I love dark chocolate (I'm smiling big right now).
We can do something if we start small -- "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength" (Philippians 4:13).
Nothing's changed.
For daily encouragement, visit and share this blog, my Facebook, Twitter, Instagram,
We can do something if we start small -- "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength" (Philippians 4:13).
Nothing's changed.
For daily encouragement, visit and share this blog, my Facebook, Twitter, Instagram,
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