Super self-control: not being a slave to habit

Chapter 30

"I'm a long-distance runner. Every morning I do a five-kilometer jog. It doesn't matter if it's cold or hot. It's windy or rainy. My morning run is always consistent. Actually, it wasn't like that when I started. I used to hate getting up early , every morning I lie in bed and do a fierce ideological struggle to get up early. I always use the energy of breastfeeding to barely pull myself out of the bed. Really, you may feel the same, in bed in the morning Every minute of my life is so cherished, many times I dozed off for a few naps. I also don't like running, especially long-distance running, I find it hard and tedious, and it makes my back hurt Pain. So getting out of bed early in the morning to run is a fantasy for me. So how did I, the last slacker with the least persistence, turn into the long-distance runner I am today?
The answer still goes back to the teachings of my grandfather that changed my life.My grandfather told me that in order to be a "doer," one must have self-control.Otherwise, you will never be able to realize your greatest potential.

My grandfather quoted a quote from his favorite celebrity, Mark Twain, to explain self-control: "The key is to do a little thing every day that you don't want to do, so that you don't worry about people who really need you." This is the golden rule of forming conscious habits.” My grandfather called this the “rule of tempering” and encouraged me that as long as I could persist for a month, I would definitely be able to transform myself into a man of action.I followed my grandfather's advice and chose morning jogging, which is good for my body, but it is so hard for me, and I began to practice my grandfather's "exercise rule".

It was a veritable chore.Even though I know the benefits of long distance running, I still hate it.I'm in such bad shape that I'm out of breath just walking back and forth from my door to the letterbox 40 yards away.I really need some kind of exercise that helps improve cardiorespiratory fitness, but I will definitely not choose long-distance running.Therefore, long-distance running has become an out-and-out, uninteresting thing that I have to do every day.

I haven't changed much for a long time, only rewarded with a sore back, I can't run a few steps and I am panting and out of breath.I couldn't help but feel lost about my goal of self-denial and self-control.But the only thing that keeps me in mind is that I have to force myself to persist for a month!I did, and unexpected things started happening.

Running has gradually become easier, getting out of bed has become less of a struggle, the drudgery of running seems less scary, and while waking up early is still a bit of a struggle, it seems to be overcome.Everything became easier and more natural, until I had an unconscious craving for a morning run!
The daily morning run has become a natural habit and a part of my daily behavior, and I don't have to force myself.At this time, I began to really feel that long-distance running in the morning is a kind of enjoyment.

You can, like Jack Hodge, choose a chore to help you develop a high level of self-control.The drudgery is not limited to running. You can choose aerobic sports such as swimming, dancing, cycling, and yoga, or you can stick to relatively quiet activities such as reading, writing, painting, and embroidery.

People's self-control is cultivated and exercised in thousands of small things in study, work, and life.For any small thing, pay attention to training willpower, it will make people stronger.Don't think that special conditions and unusual encounters are necessary to develop good habits.Many trivial things will affect the formation of a person's habits.For example, whether to get up on time in the morning or dawdle in bed for a while is a small test for one's self-control.Small things add up to big things, if we can exercise self-control in such small things, we will be able to show strong self-control once we encounter big things.

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Think of something you feel you really should do, but you never wanted to do.Before doing it, convey this thought to yourself: "I like to do this, and I am willing to do this."Then do it with joy.When doing it with interest, find out the most perfect and effective way to do it, and do it with your heart, you will find that it is not a painful thing to complete this headache, and you will be able to do it again. Acquired a new habit.

Break the status quo with the Imagine trilogy
Few of us realize how powerful imagination is in our lives.If we know how to use our imagination to change our bad habits, we can be completely new.

If you've been avoiding a task due to a lack of self-control, "visualization" is a powerful self-motivation technique that starts with listing the benefits of actively performing the task.A table like this allows you to see the positive side of things.People are born with the instinct to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages, but in general, if you want to make the measures you take effective, big sticks are not as effective as sweet carrots.

Suppose you want to quit smoking and drinking. You may warn yourself that smoking and drinking cause cancer and many other diseases.The more you remind yourself like this, the more fear and anxiety you will feel, so you can't help but take a cigarette or take a sip of wine, and the promise of quitting smoking and drinking will be wiped out.

There is a three-step method below, and its effect is much better.

first step:
List the benefits of quitting smoking and drinking, list all the benefits you can think of, for example

(1) My body is healthier.

(2) The cleaner the body, the cleaner the air around it.

(3) I will be more self-disciplined, and maybe I can finish the things I procrastinated a few days ago.

(4) More vigor and vigor, and more energy.

(5) Cardiopulmonary function will be stronger, and blood pressure and blood lipids will also drop.

(6) My mind is faster than before I quit smoking, and my skills are more agile.

(7) Sleeping will be better than before, and it is easier to enter the realm of sweet dreams.

(8) If you are a "driver", your driving safety factor will be greatly increased.Statistics prove that in the traffic accident rate, smokers are twice as many as non-smokers.

(9) You will find that the originally irritable mind can calm down, and the spirit that is always unable to control the errands can be easily concentrated.

(10) I’m also living longer.

……

The second step:
You can imagine that you are in your favorite place: one mid-autumn afternoon, you are alone in the wilderness of the country, and the sky is blue.There is only one cloud in the sky, which seems to be floating and dissipating.There's no wind, it's warm... and there's something like fresh milk in the air!Everything is as we imagined.Even if there are some sounds of nature, it does not affect us to listen to the sound of our own heartbeat.At this moment,
third step:
Imagine that you are still standing in that pleasant scenery, and you have already quit smoking and drinking.Go over the benefits of quitting smoking one by one in your head, then repeat each one to yourself like this: "Now I have really high energy, which is great. I have more self-control, and if I I am willing, and I am open to any challenge." In this way, proceed one by one.

This method of developing self-control harnesses the power of imagination, and it works wonders.There are many people who can completely quit the bad habits of smoking and drinking for many years in only one month.This method is easy and effective.It can be used to improve your self-control, let you consciously lose weight, do housework, get up on time, and keep exercising. It can help you consciously do anything to change yourself.

All change lies in persistence

Professor William James, a famous educator and psychological writer, said very sincerely: "In the process of forming a new habit or abandoning an old habit, we put ourselves in the position of as strong and active will as possible all the time. Under protection. Unless a new habit has taken root in your mind, never relax, not for a moment. Whenever possible opportunities arise, seize them immediately! Whether it is a decision you make, or you The encouragement you have experienced, or the good habits you have been eager to develop."

A good habit is a behavior developed through repeated practice. Once formed, it will be fixed and operate automatically without the need for constant supervision and reminders from others, that is, "habits become natural".

In forming a new habit, or breaking an old one, we must engage ourselves in the highest possible state of frenzy, only in this way can we achieve better results, because the opposite habit The hindering effect of our energy will slowly drain us, and only by doing so can we reach our goal before our energy is exhausted.We should start now to carve the deepest possible imprint on our subconscious mind, and then persistently resist all kinds of temptations, so as to prevent these "don't do it again" temptations from ruining our efforts.

(End of this chapter)