For example, the researchers asked them questions such as, “How many unhealthy meals have you eaten recently?” and “How often do you watch TV, instead of studying?” Then, they monitored their answers for an entire semester during which the students went through periods of stress, rest, anxiety, boredom, and so on.
The researchers were trying to identify a pattern in the responses of students who had no problem sticking to their goals, such as eating healthy, studying, and other good habits. That is, they were studying individuals with superhuman willpower.
However, the study's findings, although interesting, contradict those of previous studies in the same field. It seems that these students who have tremendous strength of will despite great pressure did one thing differently from their peers who had a difficult time committing to achieving their goals, and anyone can do that thing, and you can train yourself to do it too, and immediately reap the fruits of this strong willpower.
The influence of your beliefs on your willpower
Have you ever felt that accomplishing anything required a lot of energy, and after accomplishing anything, no matter how small, you immediately needed a break? Walking between rooms without a destination and doing anything to avoid work? By the end of the day, you've spent most of it idling and barely getting anything done.
Now, compare that day to a day when you should have done the same amount of work, but somehow you managed to stay focused all day, avoid distractions, and get everything done. It sure felt great.
You may think that your willpower is out of your control, and for decades it has been the norm that willpower is highest in the morning and wanes during the day. Most research has shown that willpower is limited, and if you use it up on one thing, you will have a hard time finding more of it to do something else. This is known as "Ego depletion", and it states that you must do things that require a lot of willpower in the morning and relax in the evening, thinking you'd have no other choice.
But they may be wrong. More new research shows that what determines your ability to work on your goals is your willpower capacity. However, you can determine this, and you can decide that you have enough until the end of the day or only for the morning.
Returning to the study, the researchers conducted a set of tests in which they divided the participants into two groups. The first was composed of people who believed that willpower was limited, and the second of people who believed that willpower had no limits and that they had as much as they wanted of it.
First, they asked people what they thought, then asked them to complete a combination of hard and easy tasks. When assessing their performance, they found that people who thought they could perform well regardless of stress and fatigue performed significantly better than their peers who thought their willpower was limited.
You can increase your willpower by changing your beliefs
In the second phase, the researchers conducted a survey in which they used biased questions. The questions in the first version of the survey were designed to lead a group of participants into believing that willpower is limited and that the more you consume, the worse your performance gets.
In the second version, they did the opposite, designing the questions to convince a second group of participants that willpower is unlimited and that they can perform well no matter how much of it they use. Then, they asked all participants to perform willpower-related tasks, rated their performance, and got the same results, regardless of what they thought at first.
The group of participants who were deceived by the survey into believing that willpower is unlimitedly performed better regardless of the pressure and how tired they were. To confirm the results, the researchers conducted another survey to control the variables that might affect the results, such as:
- Did people who believed willpower is limited use up their reserves early, getting tired before the rest of the tasks were done? The answer is no.
- Do people who believed that willpower is unlimited feel tired when using it? The answer was also no.
This means that you can trick yourself into believing that you have unlimited willpower every day and that you can make great decisions even when you feel tired.
How to change your beliefs into having unlimited willpower?
You can apply these scientific findings in your practical life, for example:
- you may be trying to lose weight, but you have trouble sticking to healthy eating or exercising when you're tired.
- You may want to do extra work in your spare time, but you are very tired every evening, and you put it off.
- You may want to learn to play a musical instrument, but you give up after working out just a little bit at a time.
In these cases, the solution is to change your beliefs about willpower and convince yourself that willpower is unlimited, and once you do that, everything else will be easier to do.
To change your beliefs, start gradually, complete a small task, and then move directly to the next without stopping and thinking about it. It is easier to change the way you think after making adjustments to your behavior than change your behavior after making adjustments to the way you think.
In conclusion
Change your beliefs about willpower in the same way you would when you want to develop a good habit. That is, little by little, as you are not obligated to completely change your beliefs immediately. It is enough to change them a little every day for months. Even this speed is acceptable compared to most people who adopt their beliefs at an early stage and never change them throughout their lives.
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