Impulse Control
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Impulse Control
This week, I am going to be brief. I feel like I have been bringing up some rather meaty topics lately, and the slogan I was raised around echoed in my head: you deserve a break today!
The topic of impulse control is, of course, not simple, shallow, or unimportant. On the contrary, it might be the greatest aptitude of them all. So, don't take the length of this post as any indication of the importance of the topic.
We live in a world with an abundance of choices. We make thousands of micro-decisions every day without blinking. And since we are what we repeatedly do, the ultimate destination for our lives will depend on the quality of all those decisions.
Our brains are programmed to basically say: “yes” or “no.” There is very little room in the middle, sadly. This is something we all need to work on. When we say “yes,” it does mean we also say “no” to something else. The same is true when we say “no.” I often ask: what is a “no” a “yes” to?
We don't have to make decisions just because we are presented with options. Technology has become very good at begging for our attention. It's hard to resist those red alerts, vibrations in your pocket, or comments from people around you.
People that achieve a great deal of success are often very disciplined in how they spend their time. I admire that. Oftentimes, they are animated by a purpose. A big purpose. They are what we call cathedral builders. And when you have a big vision in front of you, it is easier to say no to everything that doesn't take you there.
I am going to work more on my own impulse control. This is an area where I can use a lot of help. When I have a lot of food in front of me, I tend to overeat. When I am confronted with too many choices, I am not so good at saying “no.” But every time I don't say “no,” I also have less time for the things I have already said “yes” to. There are opportunity costs all around.
This is NOT easy at all. But really important.
There were two sources of inspiration these past weeks that got me thinking of the incredible importance of impulse control.
The first was a podcast with Shane Parrish at the Knowledge Project where he interviewed Professor Andrew Huberman. Professor Huberman is a Neuroscientist at Stanford Medical School where he focuses primarily on neural plasticity, which is the ability of our nervous system to rewire and learn new behaviors, skills, and cognitive functioning.
You can listen to the wide-ranging interview here that covers many life hacks around the science of small change. They cover topics like the impact on our health from habits such as ice baths, light exposure, supplements, sleep, alcohol consumption, exercise, and, of course, impulse control. Definitely worth a listen. If you like Dr. Huberman I can recommend his own podcast series Hubermanlab, which is often ranked as the #1 podcast in the field of science, health, fitness, and nutrition.
The second was a "graduation speech" that Daniel Pink posted. I had posted earlier about his new book on regret. While most of the speech is around that very topic, it has a very powerful beginning around the point that we are bombarded with so many messages and we become what we pay attention to. Which is, I guess, the entry point to future regrets.
I am now going to work on my "no go" brain capacity by resisting touching my phone 10 times a day, not eating what is in front of me, and creating more room for saying “YES” to more love, more life, and more joy!
Have a great week!
