#77: IF NOT NOW, WHEN?

Summary: EPISODE #77 IF NOT NOW, WHEN? If I am not for myself, who will be for me? But if I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now, when? If not you, then who? -Hillel the Elder In this week’s episode we’re going to cover: Learn how to embrace the concept of delayed gratification Take delayed gratification as a motivator to accelerate your dreams We live in a world of instant gratification, which is one reason I am convinced that we never take action on the things that really matter to us because we now that instant gratification is impulsive, unrealistic and doesn’t apply to the things that really make our hearts sing. (1). Let’s start by understanding how delayed gratification makes a difference: The Marshmallow Study: The Stanford marshmallow experiment[1] was a series of studies on delayed gratification in the late 1960s and early 1970s led by psychologist Walter Mischel, then a professor at Stanford University. In these studies, a child was offered a choice between one small reward (sometimes a marshmallow, but often a cookie or a pretzel, etc.) provided immediately or two small rewards if he or she waited until the tester returned (after an absence of approximately 15 minutes). In follow-up studies, the researchers found that children who were able to wait longer for the preferred rewards tended to have better life outcomes, as measured by SAT scores,[2] educational attainment,[3] body mass index (BMI)[4] and other life measures.[5] (From Wikipedia) Delayed gratification teaches you that Less is more That you are stronger than you think Increases your willpower It is simple and free Delaying gratification is a pretty simple concept. Simply, it means making a choice which limits the ability of getting something now, for the pleasure of being able to have something bigger or better later. There are actually two ways you can practice delayed gratification: The first is by withholding a pleasure. A smoker may choose not to smoke for a couple of days and then really enjoy a cigarette to the full on the third day, and that cigarette will be so much better than his usual. The second way is by doing something unpleasurable. One may choose to do unpleasurable, tough physical exercises with the knowledge that given enough time he will be able to reap the full pleasure of a healthy, functioning body later on. (2). OK, so you’re bought into the concept, but how can you delay gratification? KNOW YOUR VALUES KNOW WHAT YOU WANT TO ACHIEVE CREATE A PLAN PRIORITIZE REWARD YOURSELF (3). Three steps to training delayed gratification: Step 1: Convince yourself that delayed gratification is worth it Step 2: Start small. Step 3: Identify where you should apply delayed gratification (4). Let’s get to the meat of the matter: how can you apply the tool of delayed gratification to your benefit / towards taking more action in your life. Too often we don’t start on what we want because we fear the length of the journey Too often we don’t start on what we want because we want more immediate results Too often we don’t start on what we want because we worry that it will be too hard ACTION MATTERS! Inaction is scarier Motivation follows action Action creates courage Action beats the odds Action makes you humble

#77: IF NOT NOW, WHEN?

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