Don't Eat Those Marshmallows if You Want to Be Successful
In his book, "The One Thing," Gary Keller describes an experiment performed in the 1960s by Walter Mischel at Stanford University. In a nutshell, he designed the experiment to test the willpower of 4-year-olds. First, Mischel placed children in a room, placing a marshmallow in front of them. Then, he told them if they could wait 15 minutes without eating the marshmallow, they would receive another treat.
The researchers left the room, leaving the kids alone with the marshmallow. The kids did what kids do. Most of them lasted three minutes, on average, to wait out the marshmallow. I like marshmallows, and I don't know if I would last three minutes. It would be kind of hard. In fact, only about three out of every ten kids waited through the entire 15 minutes.
We are Bad at Willpower. At Least Some of the Time.
Even as adults, we can be awful at willpower. It's not even about doing something vs. don't do something. The kids have an excuse. There were no toys or anything in the room to distract them. Plus, they were kids, and kids aren’t the most long-term thinkers. So they had to just sit there with the marshmallow and just stare at it for 15 minutes. How do you think you would fare?
Willpower Can Lead to More Success in Life
The researchers revisited several of the kids later in life. They found that the kids who could wait the full 15 minutes became more successful in their lives as they grew up. Their SAT scores, on average, were 210 points higher. As adults, they were more successful, less stressed, and had a better sense of self-worth. There is something about the ability to either focus on something or deprive yourself of something for a goal. If you have the willpower to do it, you probably have a more natural sense of pride in yourself. Another thing the researchers found is the children who didn't wait were 30% more likely to be overweight and more likely to struggle with using alcohol and drugs.
Fried Chicken Buffalo Sandwiches are my Nemesis
I sometimes struggle too. Let's take the buffalo chicken sandwich I ate last night. Generally, I try to eat foods that are good for me. However, there are times when I eat something, and the next day, I think, "I'm an idiot." It kind of makes sense. If you know that you should or should not be doing something and you do the opposite, ordinary people generally will beat themselves up a little bit. They know they gave in. Most people have enough awareness not to enjoy that.
On the other hand, people who don't have a fair amount of willpower often do things that are counter to their goals. Eating a fried chicken sandwich for me is like that. The next day, I may feel like garbage and beat myself up. But then, I might work out a little bit longer the next day, just to burn off those extra, delicious calories. My willpower may have failed me the night before, but my willpower can kick in the next day to correct my error… my crunchy, savory error.
It's Not Necessarily the Lack Willpower
Everyone has some level of willpower, but not everyone uses it. However, it might not be that simple. It might be that people don’t know how to manage their willpower.
Research shows that willpower is a limited reservoir. It's not a lack of willpower that you may or may not have. Willpower is like a battery with a limited life. It will deplete throughout the day or over time. Then, it needs to recharge to be drawn upon again.
You have to manage your willpower like a battery. It's a limited resource, and everyone has different-sized tanks. But if you manage it well, you could be more efficient at tapping into willpower than another person.
In another experiment, two groups of college students were placed in different rooms. The researchers asked one group to memorize seven numbers. Researchers then placed a choice of healthy or sugary snacks in both of the rooms. One was a bowl of fruit, and the other snack was chocolate cake.
They found that the students who were asked to memorize the seven numbers were more likely to grab the cake instead of the fruit. It only took a small amount of mental exertion to drain the students’ willpower, leading them to choose the unhealthy snack.
Keep the Battery Charged
What’s the lesson here? Be mindful of how willpower works. Because it can be depleted, it is important to time tasks that require willpower to take place when your battery is charged. Eat healthy foods, get rest, and do things early in the day that will draw on your willpower. Managing your willpower tank will set you up for success.
Note: To read more about this topic, I highly recommend reading “The One Thing” by Gary Keller. https://the1thing.com/