Stop Using Your Willpower - Do This Instead

Our environment is one of the invisible forces that shapes human behavior.
We would like to think that the choices we make are our own and not influenced by external factors.
The truth however, is that many of the actions we take each day are shaped by the most easy and obvious option.

If you're overweight, a smoker or a video game addict, you might think that it's because you lack the willpower to quit.
Research however, shows something different.
When scientists analyze people who appear to have tremendous amounts of willpower, it turns out those individuals are not different than you.

Instead, the evidence says that disciplined people are better at optimizing their environment in a way that does not require massive amounts of willpower.
Good behavior is easy for them, simply because they optimized their surroundings in a way that supports it.

In the short run, you can choose to overpower temptation. However in the long run, you become a product of the environment that you live in.

[relaxingmeditationsounds]

the message: Optimize your surrounding in a way that supports your goals

[KaffiRawr]

If Mike can read, meditate and excercise every single day, just let him eat chocolate.

[MrKeithKangaroo]

The phrase “We are not in control of how motivated we will feel tomorrow” hit me like a ton of bricks. Great video.

[frappalina]

I have a super effective rule to motivate myself to cleaning: keep my surfaces and my floor empty. When you have to lift 100 things from the floor in order to clean, you won't find cleaning so much fun. I have a rug in my livingroom and a mat in the bathroom but otherwise nothing is on the floor. And I don't have trinkets or decorations on my furniture, just a couple of vases and bowls, so dusting doesn't seem so annoying. Since I decluttered, my home is so much cleaner

[luck]

Thank you! Now I've sold my bed, because lying on it was too tempting!

[notmyopinion]

before going to bed I lay my sport clothes ready next to my bed, so it is easier for me to wake up and work out. I call it 'beating the procrastination the day before' (i think i read it somewhere). I also lay a jacket next to my bed, bc one of the reasons I can't wake up in the morning is bc it's so cold and my bed is so warm and cozy. :) I try to make the work I have to do as comfortable as possible(like waking up or working out) to beat my procrastinating self that will try to find reasons to not do mentioned things. It's very similar to the concept you mentioned herr

[teachtolearn]

This is why minimalism works, you hide the distractions and make the essential visible

[DraRed]

It's nothing I haven't heard a hundred times before but it is still good to hear it again. It seems I need many reminders to keep up the good habits.

[jesseellis]

In other words, if you live with your parents, and your dad loves donuts, there's no hope for you. Gee thanks

[CristanMeijer]

This applies online as well. It's very hard to cut down on time wasted on social media when you see their icons every time you open a new tab. Just remove these: you can always manually type in the address and it will be a more conscious decision when you do so.

[muzankibutsuji]

Acceptable opinion and based
Bro science: Treat your will power like muscles.
In first you are very weak and have low capacity just like being tired after 5 push ups.
But as time passes his will power increase to resist just like practice in muscle building.

[palusa]

Summery:
To maintain good habits
Apart from motivation and willpower
One more option is changes in environment
Making availability of good chioces easy and bad choices difficult

[AP-jzeh]

So true and im glad i already implement this. Never have unhealthy food or snacks available at home. Never drink soda. Dont have a tv. Some days i just find it hard to get myself off youtube and to study lol. But i do dopamine detox every morning (one hour no internet, etc) and it helps. On weekdays i wont watch youtube or movies until the evening after all my work is done. But today is sundayyy and im lazyyyy but i need to study for exams.. ugh

[veeranshmehta]

wow, after watching this video I started looking at my environment with a much different perspective. Thanks for the video!

[monskie]

Men, I've been trying to bring back my life and these videos somehow help me get the gears running. Thanks

[VladTepesh]

The crux of this is between the options; a) stay home and learn to cook the food on-hand, or b) drive 10 minutes to a fast food restaurant.
My habit was to drive 10 minutes for fast food because it was easier even though the cupboards were stocked with plenty of food.
So what I did was learned to cook small things; boiling noodles, cooking sauces, frying meat on skillet, and cooking vegetables. One lesson a day, one day at a time. Once I learned those things, I can now make the same foods I used to buy at fast food joints without having to pay outrageous prices to franchise owners, nor do I feel my only option is to drive into town and back just to eat a tasty meal.
Tonight, I made a salad, diced some bell peppers over it, grilled some fresh chicken, cut up the pieces, put it in the salad, and topped it off with basel vinegrette and asiago cheese.

The night before, I cooked ground turkey, rice spaghetti noodles, made a pasta sauce with freshly cut tomatoes, and garlic in a tomato paste with diced zucchini. Boiled some broccoli, lightly topped with shredded swiss cheese.

Now I realize what I've been missing in life. Creating my own diet plan at home.
_WAY_ BETTER.

[GeekyMino]

Great video! The only way to not eat junk food at home is to not have any. Environment design is a crucial skill we should learn. Making the default easy option to be the right one can go a long way :)

[nicholasalonzo]

I find This video unrealistic in that it did not show Mike's wife coming home and yelling and screaming at him for getting rid of all the chocolate in the house.

[vadendev]

I put my meals hanging over a bear trap the previous day, that way I kinda have to fight for my food and I don't overeat. This technique is the reason I do it

[SergiodelaVega]

This did not need to be 9 minutes long. Not by a long shot