Do you have big dreams for your future, but do you lack the willpower to achieve it? Well, luck

The appliance of willpower can truly make a tremendous difference in our lives. It’s what helps us create new habits and what keeps us on track, no matter the circumstances.

It’s the fuel behind the greatest achievements; achievements of which most of us can only dream about.

And it’s a funny thing, because, even though we know that it’s the exact thing that helps us further, we often fail to put it into actual practice.

Why is that? How come that the majority lacks this feature? Why don’t they us teach this in school?

Anyway, as so many are struggling in this time-consuming and distracting digital era, naturally the following question arises: “How to build willpower and how to maintain it?

In this article we’ll give you 10 easy examples of how you can train your willpower into an automatic and ongoing process.

A man with a cape that wants to know more about how to build willpower.

First: What Is Willpower Exactly?

Commonly referred to as ‘self discipline’, willpower is a mental tool that helps us during the creation of long lasting and positive changes in our lives.

It’s the inner strength that helps us move forward towards our goals, despite the challenges that we inevitably face along the way.

Willpower is the ability to resist short-term temptations to meet long-term goals.”

It’s also your reaction to a conflict within yourself. Think about the moments that you know you have something important, but you’re deeply not feeling like executing that specific task. Willpower gives you the strength to do it anyway, regardless of your dislike.

Fortunately, willpower isn’t an innate skill that one is simply born with. Sure, some have a greater capability than others, but that doesn’t mean that it’s impossible if you’re on the other side of the scale.

Read also: How to Use Highly Influencing And Positive Affirmations for Success?


Can Willpower be Trained?

Absolutely. While there is still some debate regarding this phenomenon, several studies have shown that willpower is actually a muscle that you can train.    

Just like when a workout strengthens your muscles, certain mental exercises can strengthen up your willpower.

It’s recommended to start small and scale up as your self-control techniques improve. Your willpower ‘skills’ will eventually become stronger with consistent use. 

So which exercises can you do to build willpower into a trained muscle? You can read more about that in the paragraph below.


Tips on How to Build Willpower

Contrarily to the popular belief, building willpower is not about pushing yourself to extreme limits.

Here is a list of viable actions that you can take to strengthening these mental muscles.


1. Workouts Works! (Exercise Daily)

I know, I know, it’s a bit of a cliche. But there’s actually a lot of truth connected to this statement. Not only does exercise boost your serotonin levels, it also gives you a first-hand experience with the potential influence of the repetitive application of willpower.

Few feelings can transcend above the accomplishment of excessive weight-loss or the incredible building of muscles. It’s the slow reward of building your willpower into a daily behavior you no longer think twice about before executing.

The trick is to start small and build it up gradually as you go. In a few weeks you will start noticing positive changes in both your self-discipline and consistency.

Note that in almost all failing situations, there is a lack of self-discipline to blame. Dedication towards sports – or basically anything – requires consistency and action, which makes the physical sport a perfect way to become accustomed to it.


2. Reward Yourself – Incentives are Important

The psychology behind this one is simple: if you give yourself something to look forward to, you’ll work harder to get it.

If you split your main target into a few smaller goals – and assign a meaningful reward for every small goal that you achieve – your willpower will get stronger. 


3. Maintain a Healthy Sitting Posture

In a study, the researchers asked a group of participants to focus on their sitting posture for a duration of 2-weeks. The participants had to correct themselves by sitting up straight every single time they found themselves slouching.  

And guess what? This easy exercise slowly built their general willpower skill and greatly strengthened their perseverance on various tests.  

So, one way to build your willpower is to start correcting your sitting posture every time you find yourself slouching at home or work. You’re literally doing ‘one willpower rep’ every time you do this.

These little steps can definitely make a difference!


4. Put Deadlines and Stick to Them

I was never a fan of using deadlines, but they can be quite effective regarding building your willpower.

Just pick a task from your to-do list that you might have been putting off for a long time. Put a deadline for completing it and stick to it.

Those who pursued this method for a minimum of two weeks not only had their old to-dos done, but also bettered their diet and routine like more exercise, and decreased smoke and alcohol intake. 


5. Keep Track of Your Spending

Not only is this method nice to your wallet, but cutting back on your spending is also a great way to build your willpower.

By reviewing your budget on a daily basis, you”ll discover every little thing you’re spending money on, including unnecessary purchases that you can prevent or decrease in the future.

The whole process of this kind of budgeting takes a lot of time and effort, but you will see an improvement in your concentration and willingness to avoid unnecessary temptations in the future.

You could use a good Budgeting Guide or a financial app to manage your finances.

Read also: 7 Best Self Hypnosis Audio for Unlimited Wealth & Success


6. Carry Your Craving and Resist It

This is a tough one, as it involves resisting something extremely tempting to you. This could be anything from fast-food, chocolate, cigarettes to alcohol; whatever makes your mind go crazy.

The idea revolved around purposefully confronting yourself with your biggest craving and at the same time focusing on resisting it.

By repeatedly saying “No!” to your favorite treat, you increase your capacity to avoid such temptations and ignore distractions as a consequence.

Especially the latter is one of the key components of becoming successful in any given area.


Parting Shot: How To Build Your Willpower

Just like other muscles in the body, you can build your willpower with the right exercises.

Consider building your willpower like a marathon training. Your first practice run will not be 26 miles or even close to it.

You’re going to start small and build up steadily as your muscles grow stronger. So only pick 1 of these exercises to add to your everyday schedule.

By simply following the steps laid out above, you will increase in the mental strength and willpower needed to fulfill all of your dreams.


Questions About How To Build Willpower?

Do you have any questions about how you to build your willpower?

I’m here to help. You can send an email to [email protected]


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