What the hell…

Here’s how many humans describe the little voice in their head when they think they’re cheating on themselves. “You’ve blown it already today so, ‘what the hell’ have some more.” Yikes…

Herman and Mack, a couple research psychologists whose research is found in the book, Willpower, coined a phrase that describes many of us. When we’ve blown a commitment we’ve made to ourselves whether it’s a diet, a drink, a drug, or a dirty deed of any sort, we tend to say to ourselves, “What the hell.” Herman and Mack, not surprisingly, coined this the “What the hell effect.” Once you say this in your head,the gluttony, the 4th drink, and the affair all transpire as your unrestrained impulses run wild. Virtue, you tell yourself, will jumpstart in the morning. Letting your little voice run unrestrained does not sound like the plan.

Want to stick to your disciplines, whatever they are? Pre-load “bright boundries” that your mind cannot miss. Nothing to eat after 8pm and one cheat meal per week, is a bright boundry. Set yourself up to be monitored. Writing is my favorite form of monitoring. You writing your truth teller and just telling them the truth. If you’re a client of mine, dealing with me and my questions, is another. Remember, we don’t break old habits – we wire up new and improved ones. And, this always take time.

The most disciplined people on the planet spend very little time exercising their willpower. They invest their willpower in building their bright boundries so they don’t have to. They practice the discipline of pre-loading their response before the crucible and the heat of desire arrive. They pre-load. In the moment of truth their brain doesn’t have to think. FM, baby…

Where do you crave more discipline in your life? Why do you want this? What are the patterns to your problem? What are their roots? How are you establishing bright boundries for yourself? How are you monitoring yourself? Who is holding you accountable?

Tell me more, my friend.

Tell me more…