Key Takeaways:
- Willpower is the ability to make choices that align with our goals, values, and vision for our lives, even when it's challenging.
- Humans are a set of conflicting impulses, wanting immediate gratification and also having the ability to delay gratification for future benefits.
- The three forces of willpower are "I will," "I won't," and "I want."
- It's important not to deprive ourselves of our favorite foods when we're trying to create health, as food should be seen as something that fuels our mental and physical health and allows us to connect with others and create memories.
Show Notes
In this podcast, Kelly McGonigal, a health psychologist and lecturer at Stanford University, discusses the concept of willpower and how it plays a crucial role in our lives. She defines willpower as the ability to make choices that align with our goals, values, and vision for our lives, even when it's challenging or when part of us doesn't want to.
Kelly explains that humans are a set of conflicting impulses, wanting immediate gratification and also having the ability to delay gratification for future benefits. She emphasizes that willpower is about recognizing and managing these conflicting impulses to invest in the future and create the change we want.
She also discusses the three forces of willpower: "I will," "I won't," and "I want." The "I won't" power is about resisting temptations that lead to unwanted consequences. The "I will" power is about putting time, energy, attention, and courage into things that are hard to start or inconvenient. The "I want" power is about knowing what matters most to us and making choices that honor our values and goals.
Kelly also talks about the importance of not depriving ourselves of our favorite foods when we're trying to create health, emphasizing that food should be seen as something that fuels our mental and physical health and allows us to connect with others and create memories.
Quotable Moments
- "Willpower is the ability to make choices that are consistent with your goals, your values, and the vision that you have for your life, even when it's hard, even when you're tired, even when some part of you doesn't want to." - Kelly McGonigal
- "All humans want immediate gratification, and also we have the ability to delay gratification and invest in the future." - Kelly McGonigal
- "We are a set of conflicting impulses. So willpower is just about the ability to be like, all right, I'm both of those things, they're both me. So how do I help the self, who is going to invest in the future and, and create the change that I want?" - Kelly McGonigal
- "If you actually want the kind of transformation that allows you to do things with less effort, more ease, more enjoyment, like it's a real part of you. That's why willpower matters." - Kelly McGonigal
