Willpower is for Losers

[NAVIGATION]
0:00 - Video games: "I won't play" vs. "I can't play"
0:48 - The Marshmallow experiment
1:38 - Is Willpower a Limited Resource?
3:55 - Resisting Temptations takes Effort
5:00 - The Secret behind being "Good" at Self Control
6:55 - How to Break Bad Habits
8:30 - How Successful Kids didn't eat the Marshmallow
9:30 - The Peace of removing Choices

I will post the link to script pdf with links to sources soon.

Google "SelfControl for Mac" and it should pop up the application I introduced near the end of the video.

Books:

[alank]

In one of your videos on fasting, you talk about the hormone ghrelin. It secretes and makes you hungry at the times you typically eat if what you said is right. For example you typically eat breakfast at 7am, so each day ghrelin will be released at that time even if you woke up and snacked at 2am.

When you fast and reset that routine or in other words the times when Ghrelin is released, then you don't find yourself hungry. That's why many people dont feel hungry after multiple days of fasting.

What I'm getting at is, willpower is the first step towards something then you let your body do the rest. Hormones and all the physiological process you can't voluntarily control of course.

In the example, you willpower your way towards fasting and not eating despite ghrelin making you feel hungry. Then you past that point where ghrelin doesn't know when you eat anymore and isn't secreted as much.

Just some thoughts after watching your videos, and it may not apply to all willpower situations, not sure haha.

What if you use willpower at the right moment, then let your body do the rest?

[Xanderqwerty]

Man defends his expensive Tupperware purchase for 12 minutes and 37 seconds...

[ericshun]

I'm an impulse buyer, I disabled the automatic payment option on my online stores recently. Uber Eats, Amazon, Steam, Google play store ETC. So everytime I would buy something online I had to type in my full credit card information every time I wanted to buy something and that saved me a ton of cash now, because I only buy things that are worth the trouble now.

[Adrian-zlou]

"Choose your battles wisely, if you fight all of it you'll be too tired to win in the important ones"

[angelfebus]

“Willpower is like a muscle. You can tire it out.”
I completely agree with (and evidence supports) this analogy. It logically follows that willpower is like a muscle. It can be trained to make it stronger.

[juddotto]

I quit smoking by telling myself "I'm not a smoker" repeatedly, everytime I got the craving until it went away

[mauritsrietveld]

The mitochondria is the administrative assistant of the cell..

[dingusdangus]

"she ate the inside of the marshmallow." I'm not even joking that's potential genius material there.

[milefiori]

Atomic Habit says it clearly:
"You don't control yourself; you control your environment in which later will control how you behave."

Really brilliant.

[CyberHermit]

As Sun Tzu once said: "If a battle cannot be won, do not fight it."

[cactusguy]

"Researchers thought torturing kids would be fun." That's how all breakthroughs are made.

[matt-dw]

Me:
- Blocks websites
- Turns off phone
- Doesn't have the willpower left to do task

[eanschaan]

Honestly, the idea of removing the temptation altogether is pretty effective. When I moved out of my parents' house, I decided I didn't want to eat as many sweets. So, now having control over my own pantry, I just simply don't buy sweets. Sure, I see them in the store, but I just keep walking.

[TheKingTywinLannister]

YouTube addiction is even worse... if I quit I can’t learn all great knowledge but it takes too much of my productivity

[elvis]

I would probably stare at the ceiling rather than do my project with an inpending deadline

[TheWeazell]

So the moral of the story is: Out of sight - out of mind

[demonschnauzer]

I feel like the girl who ate the inside of the marshmallow but not the outside is on another level and none of these rules probably apply to her.

[strmrbtw]

Plot twist: the tupperware is 60$ so that you can resist breaking it

[jose.a.a.a]

6:50 The dude in the stock footage really said the mitochondria is the Administrative Assistant of the Cell.

[nathanferrell]

This is why I ate much healthier once I moved out. If I have sugary snacks and treats in my house, I'll eat them. But if I buy my own food, I never let myself buy treats or unhealthy foods.