Delayed gratification isn't easy. Watch this:
Even these kids know that delayed gratification makes sense, but they still succumb to the temptation of the marshmallow. There's a lot of "marshmallows" in life. I've been working on my "marshmallows" lately. Funny enough, marshmallows are some of my marshmallows. It's not that I could have had more later if didn't have fewer now. The whole idea is that we will take minimal pleasure from some thing now at the expense of a greater reward later. Intellectually we all know it is a bad decision, but we want our marshmallows now.
Willpower. There's a lot that's been said about will power. I won't bother writing about that now. I'll just say that it is the ability to make the preferred decision regardless of outside influences.
I've been using my willpower to eat better lately. A little over 3 months ago I was 206 pounds. I haven't touched a donut in over 2 months. I've eaten a lot of spinach and kale. And nothing happened for the first while. But I kept making long term decisions instead of accepting short term gratification. No donuts. One month ago I was 196 pounds. One week ago I was 185. By the end of summer I'll be a much healthier 175. The result of my decisions will have taken 4 or 5 months to fully appear, but it will be much more satisfying than a summer of donuts. I'm sure my 70 year old self will thank me.
1 comment:
"Good things come to those who wait." I find something wrong with that. Sure it can be true, but it doesn't always happen. I find myself feeling the use of marshmallows to not be the best example. Sure all but one waited and got what was promised. Yes, it can be hard to wait. But in my life I have waited and nothing has necessarily happened. In jobs I have waited. Waited for a better position and a better wage, but none of that happened for the most part. That is a why I feel discouraged and frustrated at times. I want something better and waiting for it won't necessarily make it happen.
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