There are a few different terms I would like to talk about today. The first is a topic I have touched upon quite a bit this week: Delayed Gratification.
What is "delayed gratification"? It is the ability to resist the temptation of an immediate reward and wait for a better one later. I have previously spoken about how this concept relates to situations like the marshmallow study, but how can we transfer this idea to make use of it in our personal lives? Everyone experiences his or her own wants. We live in an extreme consumer-based society where we see something that we want, and we have to have it. This habit becomes an issue as we progress because we no longer have our parents around to give us what we want. When we transition into adulthood, we realize that we now have to put in a significant amount of work and effort to receive the things that we desire. There is no one waiting to fulfill your every wish in the real world. If we want a promotion at our job, we cannot expect it immediately. We have to toil and prove ourselves worthy, and if we succeed, we will be rewarded somewhere down the line. Having a need for immediate gratification is similar to having a fixed mindset. We expect something to occur at the snap of our fingers, and when it doesn't we become frustrated. Changing our mindsets to encompass delayed gratification will give us more drive and motivation. When you have a foreseeable goal to work for, you work harder to achieve it. If you delay your gratification, the reward will only be that much sweeter when you earn it.
Another term I encountered often this week is "procrastination". Of course this is not an uncommon word to anyone, but it is a disease which even the best of us succumb to at times. I don't know about everyone else, but I fairly regularly perform this action of putting off or delaying an activity for a later time. It is a terrible habit. When we wait until the last minute to get a task done, our to-do list piles up on us leading to a domino effect of anxiety and stress. Procrastination is also a cause of the final phrase I would like to discuss...
Ego depletion: This occurs when you completely exhaust your mental energy. It has no physical symptoms, but you tend to respond strongly to every struggle and feel immensely overwhelmed. This loss of will power and self-control comes from the previously mentioned effects of procrastination and can be cured in multiple ways such as improving your diet, being proactive, and working on your self-discipline.
If you take anything from this post and apply it to your own life, let it be that delaying your gratification and working hard toward your greater goals will get you much further in life than if you procrastinate leaving you overwhelmed and your ego depleted. Take initiative because you only have one life, and you should do everything you can to make it a successful one.
If you take anything from this post and apply it to your own life, let it be that delaying your gratification and working hard toward your greater goals will get you much further in life than if you procrastinate leaving you overwhelmed and your ego depleted. Take initiative because you only have one life, and you should do everything you can to make it a successful one.
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