Do you make resolutions based on emotions, and then you are unable to back them up with willpower and determination?
Resolutions made in response to emotional triggers are often short-lived.
If you wish to be able carry out your resolutions, you need to think well of them, before making them. Then, you need to back them up with willpower and determination.
Emotional Resolutions Do not Last Long
Making resolutions, such as New Year’s resolutions, is often an emotional act. These kinds of resolutions might be approached with enthusiasm at the beginning but then neglected.
These resolutions have nothing to do with willpower, decisiveness, and inner strength. They are made emotionally, without thinking and deliberation, and therefore, lack power and do not last long.
Sometimes, a sudden desire arises in us to do something, change our behavior, or achieve a certain goal. This desire arises in response to certain situations or events and is not something we thought about deliberately.
We might even start enthusiastically working on those desires. However, the problem is that after a while, the emotions calm down, and we quit what we have started. We might lose our desire and enthusiasm, or discover that we lack enough inner power and strength to continue.
We often make resolutions and promises and then try to change our behavior accordingly. We might begin to study, look for a job, or seek a life partner. Sometimes, we might start acting according to our resolutions, but this goes on only for a short while.
We start with much noise but end in silence. We make resolutions enthusiastically and optimistically, but then we lose our enthusiasm and stop doing what we promised ourselves to do.
This kind of behavior shows a lack of willpower and discipline and makes us lose faith in our ability to follow our resolutions and promises. This might lead us to believe that willpower is just a myth, an unreal thing.
This is an erroneous idea because no real willpower was involved in making these resolutions.
Most Resolutions Are Triggered by Emotions
As said earlier, most of the resolutions we make are triggered by emotions. We make them in response to some strong emotion or thought and rarely because of deliberation, thinking, and common sense.
The driving powers of our resolutions are often feelings and emotions, but feelings and emotions are not stable and not constant. One moment you might feel you can conquer the world, and a moment later you feel weak, lazy and lacking motivation.
Avoid Making Emotional Resolutions
A resolution made on the spur of the moment is usually useless.
The emotion that triggered the resolution might disappear a short while later, and there will be no desire left to carry on the resolution.
Another important point to mention is that subconscious habits are stronger than any resolution, and they usually overcome any decision and desire for change.
All this might lead you to believe that you lack willpower and backbone, but you can strengthen these, like any other skill.
If you could not carry out your decisions, it means that you did not use any willpower or self-discipline.
Willpower is real, not an illusion.
Your resolutions, as said earlier, did not involve any willpower, but only temporary and fleeting emotions and desires.
You cannot expect a physically weak person to lift a heavy weight, but if he or she trains regularly, they will get stronger. It is the same with the strengthening of the power of the will.
Why Willpower Is Essential for Making Resolutions?
Real willpower is not dependent on feelings, emotions, or temporary enthusiasm. This makes this skill strong, stable, and dependable.
1. Willpower turns into a habit
Willpower is an ability that is developed over a period of time and can turn into a habit. After developing it, you will be able to use it whenever and wherever required.
2. Self-discipline
Strengthening your willpower also strengthens your self-discipline, which is another essential component necessary for making resolutions and following them through, without stopping until you accomplish them.
3. Concentration, perseverance, assertiveness, self-confidence
As a byproduct of strengthening your willpower and self-discipline, you also improve your concentration, perseverance, assertiveness, self-confidence.
4. Balanced and calm mental attitude
Willpower enables you to make decisions with a balanced and relaxed mental attitude, and carry them out until their successful accomplishment.
5. A power that is always available
Constant training of your willpower results in attaining a real power, which is always available to you. Then, you will be able to make real and lasting resolutions and follow them through.
6. You do not quit what you start doing
With strong willpower, you will not quit what you start doing. This would contribute to a feeling strength, happiness, and satisfaction.
7. The master key
Real willpower is like a master key, which you can use to open the doors leading to fulfillment and achievement.
Do You Want to Master Your Life?
If you are willing and ready to devote the necessary time to develop and strengthen your willpower, you will be highly rewarded. How far you will go in developing this important ability depends on how much time, effort and earnestness you are willing to invest.
Nowadays, people want immediate results, and lack patience and perseverance. However, every achievement in life, and every skill requires patience and perseverance.
You need to decide, do you want inner strength?
- Do you want to master your life, or let circumstances and other people dictate how you live?
- Do you want to make emotional resolutions, which you will not follow, and then get disappointed, or make real and well-thought resolutions, and follow them through?
With just a little effort you can overcome the lack of willpower. This would affect favorably your life in every area of your life, not just in making resolutions and fulfilling them.
If you truly want to make a real change in your life, learn to carry out your decisions, and possess the inner strength to carry out whatever you set out to do, you need willpower and also self-discipline.
This is not difficult at all and is within your reach.
You can find all the information, guidance and instructions you need to develop these skills in the book Build Up Willpower and Self Discipline.
