Make Willpower Irrelevant

12/08/2021 17 min Episodio 31
Make Willpower Irrelevant

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Episode Synopsis


If you want to get to the next level, you need willpower to make creative breakthroughs and steady progress. Don’t you? After all, willpower helps you to beat distractions and delay gratification to make wise choices. But willpower is limited. It gets depleted the more you use it and as the day goes on. While you could do certain things to boost and improve willpower, you could also shape your environment so you don’t need it. Your situation and circumstances either encourage or discourage positive change. In episode 31 of The Incrementalist show, you will learn:1. The stages of changeprecontemplation (you deny you have a problem)contemplation (you acknowledge there’s a problem and weigh the pros and cons of change)preparation (you commit to the change)action (you behave and act in new ways to effect change, which is shaped by internal factors like willpower and external factors like rewards and consequences)maintenance (you keep the good habits and drop the bad habits)relapse (you slip back into old behavior)2. Why willpower is not enough to overcome obstacles3. The problem with decision fatigue and how to reduce it Make a full, 100% commitment to make the changeGet clear and specific on what you really wantDefine positive goals to approach instead of negative goals to avoidHave implementations intentions and an if-then strategyChoose the big three things you will do to support your prioritiesPerform a weekly review and planning session 4. The benefits of imagining the future and future you when making decisionsYour future self is how you want to be and show up 90 days, 1 year, and 3 years from nowPractice strategic ignorance by blocking things that are not serving your highest goals or desired lifePractice strategic remembering by adding reminders of your future self in your current environmentKeep visual cues of your wins and progress5. The importance of making your commitments public and having support networks and accountability partners6. The Pygmalion Effect, which means you rise or fall to the demands of expectations and situationsYour personal history and past affect you, but does not define you, your present, or your futureYour emotions are a key source of information in designing your environment7.  How Forcing Functions put you on the hook for things that matter and help you create desired outcomesParkinson's law, i.e. work expands to fill the time allotted for itThe 80% approach, i.e. going for 80% gets results while striving for 100% is still thinking about it8. Peak experiences allow you to stretch and grow beyond your limitsThe integration of pure work and pure play is necessary for creative insightsMental breakthroughs occur when you engage in deliberate rest, daydreaming and mind wandering, and quiet reflection9. You usually need willpower to change your environment. But it’s really the environment that allows you to sustain the change. Read the transcript. Resources cited:Benjamin Hardy, Willpower Doesn't Work: Discover the Hidden Secrets of SuccessDyan Williams, The Incrementalist: A Simple Productivity System to Create Big Results in Small StepsThe Incrementalist, Ep. 8, How to Plan Your Ideal WeekThe Incrementalist, Ep. 10, Rest Even When You're BusyThe Incrementalist, Ep. 20, Consistency and the Compound EffectMusic by:Sebastian Brian Mehr: Album – Olemus; Song – La Nieve (hearnow.com)Dyan WilliamsCheck out the book: The Incrementalist, A Simple Productivity System to Create Big Results in Small StepsVisit website: www.dyanwilliams.comSubscribe to productivity e-newsletter