In the book Willpower Doesn’t Work, Benjamin Hardy shares ways you can live your life in the most efficient ways possible. Relying solely on determination and persistence is not enough to become your best self. Hardy explains the importance of identifying your environment and other factors that will affect your productivity. The reality is that there are several hardships and obstacles that will get in the way of your success. Self-discipline isn’t always enough to achieve all your goals.
3 Key Points
-
First, Hardy advises his readers to stop working on self-discipline and to work towards changing your environment instead. Finding the grit to push through all your challenges isn’t always realistic. However, designing the environment around us for better productivity is feasible. For example, rather than relying on solely your willpower to eat healthier, you should adjust your surroundings to fit your goal. You should fill your fridge and cabinets with healthy food that will allow you to eat healthy.
-
Second, Hardy says that your environments should be differentiated between work and play. Productivity has been proven to be much more difficult when you work and play in the same location. When you separate one environment as play and one as work, it is a lot easier for you to be productive in your work space. There have even been studies that show if you do work in your bed, it becomes a lot harder for you to fall asleep there because there is no separation between your work and rest environment. Many have also felt these effects from the Covid-19 Pandemic. Working from home can be difficult when you’re used to resting and playing in that environment.
-
Third, Hardy explains that you need to rid your life of things that make it difficult to reach your goals. You shouldn’t have things in your life that require your willpower to exist, it’s better to completely eliminate it. When you are designing your surroundings for success it’s important not to make things harder for yourself. For example, if you’re trying to eat healthier, you should throw out all of your sugary junk food. You shouldn’t rely on your willpower to prevent yourself from eating unhealthy foods. You need to design your environment for the most successful outcomes.