Sunday, January 27, 2008

Self Control is a Limited Resource

Being out of my element is definitely not making me a better person. I just want to go home and have a life. For some crazy reason, I thought that going to Nova Scotia and getting away from my life would prevent burnout and rejuvenate me. My natural element works for me. Going somewhere else is always harder, more energy draining and health robbing. At home I have a great bed - here I'm sleeping on a futon cushion on the floor. Here there is nothing to graze on so I thought I'd lose weight. Well I've eliminated a pile of bad eating habits but I've gained weight. Don't ask me why but my body is ballooning with lean cuisine. This living like a monk definitely supports the idea that self-control isn't all it promised to be. I want to go home.

http://calnewport.com/blog/?p=253
This link leads to Study Hacks posting on Motivation & Will Power" which is based on research by Dr. Roy Baumeister, a psychologist from Florida State University.
"—Self-control is a central function of the self and an important key to success in life. The exertion of self-control appears to depend on a limited resource. Just as a muscle gets tired from exertion, acts of self-control cause short-term impairments (ego depletion) in subsequent self-control, even on unrelated tasks. Research has supported the strength model in the domains of eating, drinking, spending, sexuality, intelligent thought, making choices, and interpersonal behavior. Motivational or framing factors can temporarily block the deleterious effects of being in a state of ego depletion. Blood glucose is an important component of the energy."

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