We’re all aware that McDonald's won’t help us lose weight and watching Netflix won’t boost our productivity, but yet we still choose to do it, why? Instant gratification.
We’re an irrational species, we seek instant gratification and rewards in the short term, which turn us into the most reactive, non-thinking animals around.
The positive return we get from irrational choices outweighs the negative consequences in the long term. Myself and many of us all fall guilty to this.
If you took a bite of a Big Mac and immediately fell to the ground and had a heart attack, you might not consume any Big Macs. If your next cigarette made all your teeth fall out and wrinkled your skin, you’d probably pass on that too.
Just because you didn’t fall to the ground and have a heart attack or all your teeth didn’t fall out, it doesn't mean that you haven’t lined yourself up for this in the future and potentially initiated a bad habit causing negative compounded effects over time.
Discipline and willpower can only go so far when developing good habits, sometimes it takes a new method to stop ourselves from digging the hole in the first place.
Darren Hardy calls this the ‘Why Power’. Your choices are only meaningful when you connect them to your desires. The wisest choices are those which are tied to a purpose. You’ve got to want something and know why you want it in order for it to have a meaningful impact and stick.
If I were to put a ten-inch-wide plank of wood across two buildings and form a 'bridge', would you cross it for £20? Probably not.
However, if your mum or child was on the opposite building and that building was on fire, would you now walk the plank? The chances are a lot higher, £20 or not. The risks and dangers are the same but what changed? Your 'why' changed.
"When the reason is big enough, you will be willing to perform almost any how. - Darren Hardy
The natural lack of will-power often causes continuous failure and less commitment to a goal.
The why comes before the want.
Have a great week!
- Abdullah
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