The secret life of people with high self-control (it’s easier than you think)
Research suggests that people with high self-control are good at avoiding temptation — not resisting it
“If only I had more self-control.”
“I don’t have such an iron mind.”
“I want to enjoy life, too — not just suffer.”
These are comments I might get when people learn about my lifestyle.
I’m one of those annoying people who eats lots of fruits and vegetables, exercises five times a week, saves a portion of their salary, and writes or reads every morning before work — I have good self-control. What’s more, retaining this lifestyle doesn’t feel particularly difficult to me; I don’t grit my teeth to avoid unhealthy foods, the warmth of the couch, or Black Friday deals.
That’s why I’ve often wondered why some people succeed at resisting temptations while others struggle.
To find some answers, I decided to peek into the science of willpower. A peek turned into a deep dive, and I ended up reading over 25 academic papers over the course of two months.
Now I want to share with you what I learned. Consider it a story about how researchers learned what good self-controllers knew all along.
