How to develop willpower? Test of willpower. Willpower: the psychology of personality development

Surely each of us would like to develop a useful habit, for example, to wake up early in the morning, do exercises, take a morning contrast shower, eat as much fruit as possible ... A familiar situation, is not it? Below we will consider such concepts as willpower, personality development psychology and motivation. These concepts, although close, are not identical.

Test of Willpower

We bring to your attention a simple mini-test of willpower. Read the questions and answer them mentally.

1. Do you immediately do a tedious job?

2. Can you easily do things that you do not like?

3. In the event of a conflict, can you calm emotions and find out who is right and who is not?

4. Can you diet for a long time?

5. Can you get up early if you decide?

6. Do you immediately respond to messages on social networks?

7. Will you take the unpleasant medicine that you are prescribed?

8. Do you always keep your word?

9. Do you easily decide on a trip?

10. Do you stick to the daily routine?

For each positive answer, put yourself 1 point. If you scored more than 5 points, then you have the willpower. If not - then draw conclusions.

How to develop willpower?

To do this is a difficult task, but the result will significantly change the life for the better, because willpower and character are very important things, one can say irreplaceable. The main thing is to ask this question in a timely manner. Willpower, psychology of personality development - these words are very fashionable now, but for most people they are empty.

In taking any action, a person at a subconscious level regards it according to two criteria:

• Is it worth doing this business?
• Is it possible to fulfill it?

As for the first, this is motivation. If the circumstances can be of use to us, of course, we will be happy to take action. The second is beliefs, strength of spirit, ie, whether a person can perform certain actions - whether he has enough perseverance, skills and abilities.

Why can not you rely on just one motivation?

Today, you can meet a lot of psychological literature, which provides tips and advice on how to increase your motivation. However, in practice there is little use from such advice, they do not give an answer to the question of where to get willpower. Motivation is not a personal characteristic of a person. This is, above all, the pleasure derived from a quality work or flight results.

So, that turns out. You want to change life for the better, decide to do exercises on a daily basis, you understand that this is useful, you have a motivation.

You do exercises every morning, with interest learn new exercises, discuss them with your friends. Your motivation is growing.

After a couple of days, enthusiasm burns out. Exercises that just recently were new, boring, gradually you switch to other things. Motivation is coming to naught. As a result, you completely stop doing daily exercises. You understand that this is useful and necessary for the benefit of your health.

For any case, only one enthusiasm is not enough. The internal motivation is influenced by many factors. If you are hungry or tired, respectively, and the motivation will be reduced. Education of will power is not an easy thing. But if you are rested and full of energy, the motivation rises.

How to develop willpower. Four strategies. The first is the promise

Imagine that you had a conversation with friends, colleagues, enemies, and you decided to lose an extra 10 kilograms for 3 months and do your best to achieve the desired result. If you doubt yourself and do not want loud statements, tell your relatives about your intentions to your close friends. Follow the promise to take action. This is one of the options for how to train your willpower.

People who are interested in your initiative will certainly be interested in your achievements, cheer you up, wish you luck. However, on the way there will be encountered enemies, who will only await your failure.

As a result, you do not justify the hopes of the former and give only an excuse for enemies to rot themselves and mud. A ridiculous situation, is not it? It is these actions that are designed for your instinct of self-preservation - the unwillingness to be humiliated will reinforce your motivation for the best achievements. Immediately remember the folk wisdom - the "strategy of death": either you commit yourself and win, or you are defeated - you are destroyed.

Right habits

The first strategy seems quite extreme. But in reality it will give a result. It will help to develop efforts to move in the necessary direction. Strategy # 2 will complement it well.

As a rule, any goal can be achieved if one does not stop and regularly go to it. If you want to test your willpower, force yourself to regularly perform what will in the future benefit you. You can develop positive habits - morning exercises, jogging.

I want to tell you a little story. Hero and researcher of Africa Henry Morton Stanley took the rule every day to shave, regardless of where he is - on vacation, in comfortable surroundings, in the jungle, in a state of fatigue or hunger. Daily shave was not his fundamentally important habit, but she allowed him to keep the "human appearance", youth and authority in front of his companions. This motivated him, recalled that the main task is not survival, but a way to prove that a person should be in perfect shape. This is a challenge to the hostile nature, the desire to prove that even in a difficult situation a person must find the willpower to remain human.

If you systematically perform the same actions, they will necessarily become a habit, and you do not have to force yourself. If you regularly stimulate yourself to action, you will notice that difficulties are overcome more easily.

Forced inclusion

A good way to increase motivation is to prioritize tasks that you need to accomplish, but least of all you want. Suppose that before you the task is to make a difficult project for work or study, you will meet with a rude and unpleasant person, eventually wash up a bunch of dirty dishes or put things in order in the pantry. As a rule, such lessons bring us little pleasure. However, they are interesting to us from a different perspective. What exactly is able to strengthen the will power in this situation?

If the case for us is complex and interesting, of course, we are happy to proceed with its implementation. In this case, we are motivated by interest, it is he who prompts us to act. If the matter is of no interest to us, then, accordingly, we should make volitional efforts. The question is asked: "Why then wait until" will "turn on the will power under adverse conditions, if everything can be fixed in advance?" Initially, it will be a burden to do things that mean little to us, but this is the main criterion by which one can judge a weak will.

Sport

A great way to educate yourself in will power is to do sports. By sport we mean not just some training, but also successes. Remember the long-forgotten slogan: "Faster! Higher! Stronger!". Sport is not only a match with your opponent, it is also a test of your will, aspirations. It does not matter what kind it is: football, tennis, heavy or light athletics - in any case, you make for yourself an installation aimed at achieving a positive result, and in every way aspire to achieve them. However, success can be prevented by fatigue, extinction of interest, failure. The result can be achieved only by making every effort, including willpower! But imagine what a long-awaited victory will be! It is better to overcome failures and disappointments in competitions than in realities - by trial and error.

Do not postpone for later!

Pay attention to yourself, go in for sports! Start with the morning jogs, they will allow you to record your achievements and set new goals! And finally: before you make a promise to yourself, think about the question whether this work is feasible for you. Once I said to myself: "I can" - be sincere in front of you, stick to your promise, without breaking the word!

How to develop willpower? Do not postpone for later - take action now!
As a rule, fighting with their bad habits - stop smoking, eat less, play sports, we always postpone for later, tomorrow, the day after tomorrow. Quite often we say to ourselves: "I'll start from tomorrow, etc.". And day by day we ourselves are deceiving ourselves. Many are concerned with the question of how to develop willpower in oneself. Let's look at some of the recommendations that will actually help to cope with this difficult task.

Do what you wish!

However strange this attitude may seem, it can actually help overcome apathy and develop strong-willed qualities. Recall the less desirable cases - get out of the house, wash the dishes, take out the garbage. Do not pull until tomorrow, otherwise tomorrow's worries will double. Learn to solve problems with small, and after a few months you will notice positive results.

Running will allow you to keep yourself not only in good physical shape and will positively affect your health, well-being, besides it will be a wonderful answer to the question of how to train willpower. For jogging, you need to wake up early, gather, go to the park or to the stadium, run about 8 kilometers, and this, believe me, is worth the effort. Whatever sidelong glances and mocking smiles passers-by you have not met in your address, do not pay attention. They understand what tremendous work you are doing.

Think about self-development

Any hobbies: needlework, learning foreign languages, astrology - only contribute to strengthening the willpower. People who succeeded in any business, made a lot of strong-willed efforts. Why do not you start with your favorite business?
You can not? Find someone who will support you.

Self-organization is not an easy task, but the strength of man's will is developed precisely with its help. If you can not coordinate yourself in the activities, get yourself to run around in the morning, try to visit the gym or fitness center. Classes will unite like-minded people, they will develop special skills, and this is the first step to success! Find people with strong will, communicate with them, ask for support, and you will be equal to whom!

"Moscow was not immediately built!" - for sure, each of us had to hear the old Russian proverb. In fact, it speaks for itself. Do not exaggerate your opportunities, do not build grandiose plans at once. Their failure can tremendously shake the faith in themselves. Achieve the goal consciously and gradually. We hope that in the article we were able to answer the question of how to develop willpower.