Ninja Will Power
Added Monday 03.08.2009
I have been lately toying with the concept or idea of having a robotic like 'iron' will, whether it is possible to achieve such a trait. The idea basically revolves around turning your mind into a very clinical, systematic and calculation operating machine. Most of us normally have a firm grasp on what's right and what's wrong, and what's good for us and what isn't, but we will often do whatever we find easiest even though we know it's not good for us or the best option.
Imagine if you could transform your mind into an agile ninja or super processing Arnold Schwarzenegger like terminator - calculate what the best decision to make for us is and just doing it, almost cold without emotion. Don't feel like getting up in the morning for a job, emotion gone, you go for a jog. Chips, cheese and gravy teasing your taste buds and looking sooooo tasty but not the most healthy, emotion gone, you go and eat some fruit, vegetables or a grilled chicken. Imagine the most healthy choice or most financial beneficial choice, and just doing it, no indecisiveness, just doing it (just like the Adidas saying!). As straight forward as the idea sounds, it's not quite as easy to put into practice.
It certainly takes a lot of will power to make decisions in this manner. It normally takes a strong internal drive or at least somebody pushing you along (in a positive encouraging way, or kicking and screaming!). I think will power comes down to motivation. First you need the reason, but you also need a strong appetite or driving force to go after it. Psychologically speaking motivation falls into two types, internal (intrinsically motivated) or externally (extrinsically motivated). Often people can fall predominantly into one or the other. Examples of intrinsically motivated people are self motivated people fulfilling a personal belief or taking satisfaction in the task itself, where an example of a extrinsically motivated person could be striving to win a trophy or to receive a prize at the end. Knowing what effects and motivates you could be used to your advantage, in a way planning to win or strategically battling against yourself (and taking the upper hand).
Sometimes we obverse people with strong wills or resolve who have often come through hardship or extreme situations. Much in the same way we can be motivated to achieve positive goals we can also be motivated to avoid pain or further hardship. What makes it different for people that have already experienced pain or hardship to act so decisively? It is often they have a clear visual image or strong feeling from a past experience that is a clear reminder and motivator. Most people will choose to avoid pain rather than seek a pleasure, but you can have a strong positive experience that will also motivate, if strong enough.
So, motivation and hence will power can be affected by past experiences. The key is the strong visual image or feeling as the driving force. You can prepare your mind or train you mind to make decisions easier, hence building will power. Entering the right frame of mind or visualising your objective beforehand can make a lot of difference. So, even if the task or decision is a 'big' one you can improve you chances of taking the better (long term) decision by making a smaller decision to prepare yourself, getting in the right mental state to tackle to bigger decision. Of course, people do this differently. You can try simply meditation techniques to clear your mind of negative thoughts (eg. focus on your breathing and listen for your heart beat). Visualise yourself achieving your goal or task, visualise doing the task, then visualise completing and even exceeding your expectations. There are many other simply things you can do also - try eliminating any distractions, make sure you are full of energy and are physically running on all cylinders. You can also set smaller goals - each small goal leading down the road to a much bigger goal while giving you positive feedback after achieving each one.
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