Episode 67 - Self-Control - Four Techniques that beat Will Power

<h2 data-pm-slice="0 0 []"><strong>Summary</strong></h2> <p class="">Self-control is a core part of being an effective leader. And when it comes to self-control, planning beats will power.</p> <p class=""> </p> <h2><strong>Transcript</strong></h2> <p class="">Hello and welcome to episode 67 of the Leadership Today podcast where each week we tackle one of today’s biggest leadership challenges. This week we look at planning for self-control versus using will power in the moment. </p> <p class="">We are all faced with situations that require self-control. It might be that new diet, avoiding distractions while focusing on some detailed work, or that colleague that drives you crazy. We often find ourselves needing to fight those impulses that take us away from our goals. This management of our emotions and responses is a crucial part of emotional intelligence, allowing us to be individually productive, and also to form effective working relationships with others.</p> <p class="">When it comes to self-control we often leave it up to our will power in the moment. With this “in the moment” approach we’re hoping that we will demonstrate restraint and control our impulses, but don’t really have a strategy to achieve this.</p> <p class="">Williamson and Wilkowski from the University of Wyoming recently undertook some research to see if there was a better way. They found that planning ahead for self-control is markedly better than techniques focused on self-control in the moment. We can effectively plan ahead to reduce the will power we need to exert in the moment, leaving our responses less to chance.</p> <p class="">Their research looked at five self-control strategies in total - four that involved planning in advance, and one that involved self-control in the moment. They were able to measure the effectiveness of each strategy.</p> <p class="">Here are the four techniques that worked well:</p> <ol data-rte-list="default"> <li> <p class="">Situation selection: This is effectively an avoidance strategy. For example, if you’