One of the most important things about GTD is willpower.. Without it, you will not bring things to completion., any system you choose will not work. The first bout of laziness will not allow you to look at the to-do list.. GTD, todo list, kanban board is all tools. We read a lot about them., learning to use them, even programming. Only the most important tool, who is always with us, this is willpower.
Until recently, I did not understand, how willpower works, didn't know, at what point in time will my composure leave me. One book changed it. I recommend every IT specialist to read it., especially for freelancers. We, usually, weak external control, so you only have to rely on the internal. That is why it is so important to set it up.. Why I recommend this particular book as a guide under the cut.
Name Books and links at the end of the article
1. The book is based on scientific research in the field of psychology.
When I was reading the book, то был удивлен, that the tenth chapter is so short. The last 15% books are references to used literature. It is dominated by scientific journals.
2. There are explanations at the level of physiology of self-control processes
I liked the effects of dopamine the most.. It became clear, why i love online games so much, poker and so on. Understand, means, могу управлять.
3. Founded, on the self-control course.
The author leads courses on the development of willpower at Stanford University. Therefore, the book contains practical experience., exercises and assignments to develop your self-control ability. By the way, it was a discovery for me, that the author is a woman. The book is written in a very structured way. It can be read in full at once., so read a chapter a week, doing experiments.
4. The book invites you to experiment, not take my word for it.
You may already know many things from the book.. But knowing and understanding are two different things. We know, what to do exercises, but why don't we? For that, to better understand yourself in the book, there are experiments in each chapter. Thanks to them, can be checked, how does it work for you?. В конце-то концов, we are all different, psyche is different, therefore, not all methods will work for everyone.
5. The book is written in a simple and understandable language.
Popular science genre. There are no abstruse words, but only clear examples. And examples from different areas: marketing, description of scientific experiments, animal world, personal relationships, politics, bad habits and so on. And all this fit into 200 pages.
My personal experience:
I read the book at the beginning of May. Changes since reading it:
- established small household habits, type of cleaning, which often scored
- achieved regularity in work at the level of desired 40 hours per week, not as usual: "Working 12 hours, then we can't force ourselves to work for a week "
- dropped 6kg, established a healthy diet and regular sports
- started not only planning, but also achieve goals
Selected ideas from the book:
- Willpower consists of "I will" - the ability to do, what you don't want. "I will not" - the ability to avoid temptation. "I want" - the ability to move towards your goals.
- Willpower is like a muscle. It can be overstrained, can you train. Moreover, the brain is really overgrown with gray matter in a certain area..
- Self-control is not just a matter of psychology, but also physiology
- Willpower is needed to protect us from ourselves.
- We overestimate ourselves for tomorrow, that's why we suffer from procrastination
I will probably stop at this point., otherwise you will get a summary of the book.
Resume: read the book, it's worth it. Она называется или в первоисточнике «The Willpower Instinct» Kelly McGonigal
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