What's new: July 2015

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act, but
a habit." – Aristotle.

Success is a lot of small things done well, day after day.

What seems like an overnight success is usually a very long time in the
making. Success is created from people who establish the right habits,
then execute them over and over.

So I wanted to share with you the top 10 habits that have been
scientifically proven to give you incredible willpower!
1. MEDITATE

Meditation is the fastest and most effective way to increase your
willpower. By meditating you are training the brain to focus and resist
the urge to wander. Research shows that after just 2-3 days of
practicing meditation for 10 minutes, your brain will be able to focus
better, you will have more energy, and you will be less stressed. [1]

There are a lot of myths surrounding meditation. Burning incense,
chanting, wearing robes, etc. So let's start by explaining what
meditation really is.

Meditation is simply the practice of bringing your thoughts to the
present moment. 47% of our lives are spent either reminiscing about the
past or thinking about what we are going to do in the future. [2]

We spend very little time with a clear, focused mind on what we are
doing right now.

Meditation attempts to do just that. This is usually done by sitting
upright in a room that is clear of distractions and focusing solely on
your breathing. However, it can be achieved with any activity that
brings your full focus and attention.

For example, if you are completely focused on the task of cleaning
dishes; without mentally going over your day, pondering another problem
in your head, or thinking about what you will be doing next, you can
achieve a state of meditation.

If your mind is clear and focused completely on the present task, you
will see the benefits of meditation.

To get started meditating, check out this article which will give you
the tools and exercises you need to begin adding the habit of daily
meditation.
2. EAT A LOW GLYCEMIC DIET

When the body takes in food, it creates a chemical known as glucose that
travels through the blood stream. This is what the brain uses as its
source of fuel to think, create, and exert willpower. So to ensure a
healthy stock of willpower, we want to make sure our brain has enough
glucose to use as energy. [3]

Any food that contains calories will give your brain glucose to work
with. But not all glucose is created equally. Sugary foods will cause a
quick spike of glucose, giving you willpower fuel for the short-term,
but will cause a subsequent crash that depletes your willpower just as
fast.

The best thing you can do is keep the glucose level in your bloodstream
steady. This will give your brain a consistent reserve of fuel to exert
willpower for the long-term. To accomplish this, researchers suggest a
low-glycemic diet. [4]

Here are some low-glycemic foods that will give you long-term willpower
fuel:
1. LEAN PROTEINS

Nothing fancy is required – just lean cuts of beef, poultry, pork and
fish.
2. NUTS

Specifically those nuts that are high in omega-3 fatty acids like
walnuts, pecans and cashews. (Note: this does not include legumes like
peanuts).
3. FRESH FRUIT

Fresh fruit is preferred over dried fruit because dried fruits have a
high concentration of sugar in them. This will result in the glucose
spike for the short term and lead to a subsequent crash. Some good
choices are bananas, blueberries, apples and cherries.
4. VEGETABLES

All vegetables will help build your long-term willpower, but specific
veggies have a lot of willpower fuel in them are root-based. These
include sweet potatoes, potatoes, and carrots which will all give you
some serious willpower fuel!

Do not try to completely overhaul your diet if you are not used to
eating these types of foods. Instead focus on eating them for just one
meal per day. The best of which would be eating them for breakfast.
3. GET ENOUGH SLEEP

When you don't get enough sleep, your willpower takes the biggest hit.
When you are tired, your brain cells are not able to absorb glucose as
efficiently as when you are well rested. This means that you begin lose
the "power" in your willpower. [5]

Then your brain will recognize the fact that it is not getting enough
glucose, and immediately start to crave sugary foods and caffeine to
replenish its supply. However, because your brain cells are not
absorbing glucose as efficiently as they should be, not only will you
give in to eating junk, you will eat much more than you need.

Your brain will continue to crave junk food until it gets as much
glucose as it can out of your bloodstream – regardless of how many
calories that may be.

Luckily, there are scientifically proven tactics that will help you get
a better night's sleep even without adding more hours:
1. A COMPLETELY DARK ROOM

Most of us underestimate the affect that lights in our room have on our
sleep. When our room is completely dark, it helps our brain shut down
and sleep more efficiently. This helps us get more rest out of the hours
we lay in bed; helping to restore our willpower. [6]
2. Nap

Other research suggests that it is the amount of consecutive hours you
spend awake that matters the most. So breaking up the day with a nap can
have significant benefits. It is better to sleep for 7 hours with a
1-hour nap than it is to sleep for 8 consecutive hours without taking
that break during the day. [7]
3. Create a reservoir

Getting more sleep on the weekend will create a reserve of energy your
brain can use for willpower during the week. So if you cannot squeeze
more hours of sleep in during the week, see if you can catch up on the
weekend. [8]
4. EXERCISE

We all know that exercise is good for our health, but can it also be
good for our willpower? In order to find out, researchers found 24
non-exercisers between 18 and 50 to partake in a 2-month study. They
were given free gym memberships and asked to exercise just 1x/week for
the first month and 3x/week for the second month.

Throughout the study they would test the participants on various
self-control activities from resisting temptations to persevering
through challenging tasks.

The results were nothing short of remarkable.

After just 2 months of exercise every participant had indeed increased
his or her ability to resist temptations and persevere on tasks.

But the benefits didn't end there. Without any instruction by the
researchers, the participants also:

· Procrastinated less

· Felt more in control of their emotions

· Reduced smoking, alcohol and caffeine intake

· Saved more money

· Ate less junk food

· Began eating a healthier diet

· Watched less TV

· Spent more time studying

· Splurged on impulse purchases less

· Were more likely to be on time to appointments

All of these activities occurred naturally from the habitual exercise!
[9]

Now, before you set a plan to go from not exercising at all to
exercising every day, let's pause. It's important to remember that for a
full month, these participants only went to the gym 1x/week. That means
they only went 4 times total in the entire first month!

Clearly, it is not necessary for you to go crazy with your exercise
plan. To start getting all of the benefits listed above, you just need
to make a plan that is consistent, not overwhelming. Whether you can
exercise 1x/week or 4x/week, it doesn't matter. To see the benefits, you
just need to set a plan that you will not fail.
5. FOCUS ON ONE TASK AT A TIME

Ready for a puzzle? See if you can write down a list of all 50 states.

When you have listed 10, see if you can continue writing them while also
figuring out the answer to 17 x 24.

Were you able to do it?

We have 2 distinct parts of our brain that help in our problem-solving.
One is the limbic system, which makes our easy and automatic decisions.
This includes brushing our teeth and stopping at a red light. This part
of the brain is also short-term minded, and is what motivates us to
indulge in unhealthy food and get off of the treadmill.

The other is the pre-frontal cortex, which solves more difficult
problems like how to effectively communicate or solve more complicated
math equations like the one above. This is also the part of our brain
that thinks long-term and is responsible for our willpower.

The problems above both require the pre-frontal cortex to solve. If I
were to ask you to write the 50 states and do a simple problem like 10 x
5, you would have had no problem doing it. 10 x 5 is easy. It only
requires our limbic system to solve, so we can successfully multi-task.

The more we multi-task, the more we train our limbic system. So by
trying to do 4 things at once, we are unknowingly making the part of the
brain that wants us to indulge stronger.

The pre-frontal cortex, however, cannot multi-task. The problems it
deals with are too complicated. So by focusing on one task at a time, we
are making the part of the brain that exerts willpower stronger!

So resist the temptation to multi-task and remain focused. This will
train your willpower and help you make tough decisions. [10]
6. PRACTICE MINDFULNESS

We tend to believe that every choice we make throughout the day goes
through a process of well-informed decision-making. But 45% of our
daily-decision are made completely automatically. From what we decide to
eat, what we decide to wear and what we decide to do when we first get
to work, our brains are running on autopilot. [11]

You can overcome this tendency by becoming more mindful of your daily
decisions. This is as simple as pausing and questioning why you are
making the decision to get coffee as soon as you make it into the
office. Or why you are eating cereal for breakfast rather than eggs.

Simply question these daily decisions and you will strengthen your
willpower to make better choices throughout the day. [10]
7. SELF-MONITORING

Something odd happens in our brains when we look at ourselves in the
mirror. The part of the brain that would say "hey, that's me in the
mirror" is not activated. Instead it is a part of the brain that says "I
wish I was taller, skinnier, more muscular, etc." [12]

In other words, rather than seeing see who we are, we see who we want to
be. This is not because we are shallow, it is because we all have an
ideal self that we want to live up to. With this ideal self in our mind,
we begin to think and act more like them.

The best way to keep your ideal self in mind is through a process called
Self-Monitoring. This involves keeping track of as much information on
yourself as possible. Like with the mirror, you will look at the
information on yourself and compare it to what you really want. This
will strengthen your willpower and help you make better decisions.

To get started, check out the list of ways to begin self-monitoring at
the bottom of this article.
8. PLAY OFFENSE

When researchers came across a group of people in the Netherlands who
seemingly had unstoppable willpower, they thought they must be saints.
They ate extremely healthy, exercised regularly, hardly procrastinated
and reported less stress than almost everyone around them.

But they were not saints at all. Many of them reported that if they were
to get behind a bar stool, they would never leave. Others reported that
they were unable to resist sweets whenever they were around. It seemed
that these "saints" were prone to the same temptations as the rest of
us. [13]

So what was their secret?

The secret, it turned out, was that these people simply did not put
themselves in those situations. Their lifestyles were well-organized to
prevent having to look temptation in the face.

These people played offense. They thought about what might tempt them in
the future – whether it was alcohol, sweets, or distractions from work –
and set themselves up to avoid them. They were seemingly willpower super
heroes because they almost never had to use it.

In your life, look for the things that test your willpower. How can you
play offense and remove future temptations?
9. FIND INSPIRATION

We have all experienced the feeling of inspiration at some point in our
lives. It may have been from a story in history, a speech by a great
leader, or by a friend or family member. When we become inspired, we get
a rush of energy that we feel can take us to new heights. It's almost as
if we get more willpower.

When we witness something inspiring, the part of the pre-frontal cortex
that thinks about the long-term lights up. The neurons in this part of
the brain start firing and we feel a rush of energy as we begin to
believe in our dreams and goals.

This essentially means that by becoming inspired, we give the
pre-frontal cortex more power. This strengthens our willpower and makes
it easier to work towards our long-term goals. [14]

To tap into this willpower, find something inspiring that you can turn
to on a daily basis. This will help you find the willpower you need even
when times get tough.
10. CHUNKING

The last and perhaps the most important willpower habit is chunking.
Chunking is the process of taking a large task, goal, dream, etc. and
breaking it into manageable "chunks".

If you've ever had a goal, you know how exciting it can be at first. You
can see the "after photo" of your life when the goal is achieved - and
you love what you see. You imagine all of the great things about the
"new you" and you can't wait to get started working towards that goal!

Then it's time to actually do the work. And whether that work is putting
pen to paper, or putting foot to treadmill, you get a sudden rush of
being completely overwhelmed. You see just how much work it's going to
take to get you from where you are, to where you want to be. Then you
get paralyzed by the fact that you don't know where to begin. So you
don't bother trying, or you lose the persistence to keep going.

Chunking works because it shifts your focus from that larger goal, into
smaller chunks that are easier for your brain to comprehend. If your
goal is to follow a 12-week exercise plan, it can be overwhelming when
you're tired on day 4 and thinking about the fact that you have 80 more
days of this. [15]

But if you shift your focus to simply accomplishing the workout plan
today, you are far less likely to become overwhelmed. Then, before you
know it, 20, 40, 60 days have passed and you are more confident than
ever that we can make it to the end.
CONCLUSION

Excellence is a habit. It is a lot of small things done well,
day-after-day. Starting any one of the habits listed above has been
proven to give you incredible willpower over time. But you must be
consistent.

It will be far more beneficial for you to begin just 1 of these daily
willpower habits and do it consistently, than to do all 10 for a short
period of time. So select just 1 habit to add to your life and stick to
it. After it has truly become a habit, move on to the next one. Over
time, you will see incredible benefits to your willpower!
STRENGTHEN YOUR WILLPOWER

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Sources:

Oman, D., Shapiro, S., Thoresen, C., Plante, T., & Flinders, T.
(2008). Meditation Lowers Stress And Supports Forgiveness Among
College Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Journal of American
College Health, 569-578.
Bradt, S. (2010, November 11). Wandering mind not a happy mind.
http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2010/11/wandering-mind-not-a-happy-mind/
Gailliot, M., Baumeister, R., DeWall, C., Maner, J., Plant, E.,
Tice, D., ... Schmeichel, B. (2007). Self-control Relies On Glucose
As A Limited Energy Source: Willpower Is More Than A Metaphor.
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 325-336.
Pollan, M. (2009) Food Rules: An Eater's Manual. New York: Penguin
Spiegel, K., Tasali, E., Leproult, R., & Van Cauter, E. (2009).
Effects Of Poor And Short Sleep On Glucose Metabolism And Obesity
Risk. Nature Reviews Endocrinology, 253-261.
Dijk, D., & Archer, S. (2009). Light, Sleep, and Circadian Rhythms:
Together Again. PLoS Biology, E1000145-E1000145.
Feature, J (29 Nov. 2011) WebMD Magazine. Power Naps: Napping
Benefits, Length, and Tips. WebMD.
Breus, M. (2013) Can You Ever REALLY Catch-up on Sleep? Psychology
Today: Health, Help, Happiness.
Oaten, M. & Cheng, K. (2006) Longitudinal Gains in Self-regulation
from Regular Physical Exercise. British Journal of Health Psychology
11.4: 717-33.
Kahneman, D. (2011). Thinking, fast and slow. New York: Farrar,
Straus and Giroux.
Duhigg, C. (2012). The power of habit: Why we do what we do in life
and business. New York: Random House.
Baumeister, R., & Tierney, J. (2011). Willpower: Rediscovering the
greatest human strength. New York: Penguin Press.
Ridder, D., Lensvelt-Mulders, G., Finkenauer, C., Stok, F., &
Baumeister, R. (2011). Taking Stock of Self-Control: A Meta-Analysis
of How Trait Self-Control Relates to a Wide Range of Behaviors.
Personality and Social Psychology Review, 76-99.
McGonigal, K. (2012) The Willpower Instinct: How Self-control Works,
Why It Matters, and What You Can Do to Get More of It. New York:
Avery.
Bandura, A., & Schunk, D. (1981). Cultivating Competence,
Self-efficacy, And Intrinsic Interest Through Proximal
Self-motivation. Journal of Personality and Social
Psychology,586-598.

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love email again

https://medium.com/keep-learning-keep-growing/the-37-best-websites-to-learn-something-new-895e2cb0cad4
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Written by @kristynazdot, founder and CEO of maqtoob.com — app discovery
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Go to the profile of Kristyna Z.

Kristyna Z.

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