Even though I have never been a hardcore YouTube addict, I would often lose myself in the endless sea of entertainment where every ounce of water is a new video, and the shore far away. Sure, I will make it to the shore, but it requires a lot of swimming on my part—a lot of watching "just this one last video." Today, I am in firm control of my YouTube consumption, and I can assure you from my personal experience that there are addictions, even behavioral ones, that are harder to get rid of. … [Read more...]
How to Have Freedom Without Free Will
I know, there's a lot of buzz about "free will" in science and philosophy. I've studied both and all I can say is that the entire debate is ridiculous—nothing but an intellectual's chance to act out his desire for public mental masturbation. Sure, freedom exists, and sure, everyone has a will. But putting these two concepts together doesn't make any sense. As Schopenhauer said, "Man can do what he wills but he cannot will what he wills." That's all there is to it. The whole debate should've … [Read more...]
Kinesthetic Imagery Can Make You Physically Stronger
Although your mind's powers are highly limited, thinking alone can strengthen your body. Mental Imagery —that's the key concept here: the conscious mental rehearsal of movement. If used as a regular practice, mental imagery can improve your physical strength even without performing any actual movement. You can literally sit at home on your couch and grow stronger by merely thinking about lifting weights. Experimental Studies Most studies on motor imagery follow an experimental design … [Read more...]
The Truth About Willpower
What is willpower? Willpower is the self-regulatory strength required for all acts of self-control through which you can either initiate and adhere to novel, boring, difficult, exhausting, or stressful tasks, or refrain from surrendering to unwanted impulses or cravings. In this article you will learn: Why you need willpower How you can understand willpower What science knows about willpower How you can have more willpower 1. Why you need more willpower You need … [Read more...]
Willpower: Lessons in Self-Discipline #1
The first principle in my willpower series states: Your self-discipline increases when you Minimize Distraction! First of all, no! You (probably) don't have ADHD. Do not take this as medical advice (I'm not a psychiatrist), but for some people attention deficit disorder seems to be just a convenient excuse to not take responsibility for their lack of discipline. The truth is, everybody gets distracted. You can do something about it, but not if you hide behind a mental disorder you (most … [Read more...]