“The addict only needs to change one thing… their whole damn life.” — Ben Hill, Ph.D.

In one way, shape, or form, we’re all prone to some form of addiction or bad habit. Whether it’s food, adrenaline, TV, we all have a psychological or physiological “need” for something that we could probably afford less of.

Every second you spend or decision you make trying to fight that compulsion depletes your ability to say “no” to it the next time. If you want to permanently change your relationship with something … willpower, alone, may not get you there.

That same principle applies to pursuing success or personal progress.  The trick is recognizing that you can create conditions that make your success much more likely.

Benjamin Hardy is a Ph.D. candidate in Organizational Psychology, a bestselling author of "Willpower Doesn’t Work", a top writer on Medium, and a friend from Genius Network.

I spoke with him about his new book, the idea that “willpower doesn’t work” and what the lessons taught in his book can do for you or your organization. Check it out.

 

No matter how much internal resolve you have, changing the story you tell yourself and the environment you create for yourself, are reliable ways to make meaningful and lasting change.

Once you’ve found what you really want and created the environment to support it – willpower is secondary.