Who Is Charles Duhigg's Willpower?

Willpower is the distinguishable characteristic many strive to command, yet slips from our hands, like clutching at water.

Every human endeavour requires willpower, from the moment we wake until we retire to bed in the evening. Willpower demands our attention and tests our resolve when we least expect it.

If we want to improve our health, willpower tries our commitment when we pass by the confectionery section at the supermarket. Some people claim they have little willpower when in fact they don 't understand how to use it effectively.

Popularised in the late 60 's and early 70 's, the Marshmallow test was conducted by American psychologist Walter Mischel at Stanford University 's Bing Nursery School using four-year-old children.

Acknowledged as Emotional Intelligence (EQ), the test sought to gauge children 's capacity to delay gratification. Mischel claimed the results can accurately

For this reason, don 't keep yourself in a constant state of willpower depletion. The president of the United States wears the same suit every day, because he doesn 't want to deplete his willpower making choices on what to wear or what to eat. Vital decision-making is best left for more pressing matters.

Charles Duhigg author of The Power Of Habit affirms, "Willpower isn 't just a skill. It 's a muscle, like the muscles in your arms or legs, and it gets tired as it works harder, so there 's less power left over for other things."

To overcome this restriction, develop strong habits to lean on when your willpower is low or exhausted. Sound habits are automatic resting points to fall back on. When you 're most tired, hungry, anxious, thirsty or uncomfortable, knowing you can shift to automatic behaviours helps you navigate a drop in willpower.

Similarly, meditation or self-reflective activity is helpful in calming the mind during anxious periods when willpower is called upon. Meditation activates the parasympathetic nervous system which helps calm the body and