Take Baby Steps and Improve Your Self Control

Tuesday, March 20, 2007 at 05:46pm by David Askaripour in Life

Last night before you went to bed you made a list of things to do:

1. Fax Carolina the W9 tax forms
2. Call Joe at 9am and talk about upgrading his service
3. Email your hosting company to increase your server capacity
4. Meet your mom for lunch
5. Read 15 pages from your new favorite book, The Alchemist

You woke up today and this is what happened:

1. You filled out the W9 form but never faxed it to Carolina
2. You called Joe 3 hours late, at 12pm, and weren’t able to reach him
3. You totally forgot to call the hosting company
4. You met your Mom at the wrong restaurant for lunch
5. You ended up reading only 5 pages of The Alchemist

We young entrepreneurs are notorious for not following through. Sometimes we make excuses, other times we totally forget because we weren’t that interested in the first place, and other times we outright decide “we’ll do it when we feel like it.”

This is all good and well – I’m totally with “doing what we want, when we want.” In fact, that’s how I live my life and it’s one of the luxuries of going into business for yourself.

But there’s a thin line between “doing what you want” and “not following through” on the goals and tasks that you set for yourself.

That’s ok, we’re not perfect and improvements can be made. We can adjust our habits and get with the program. If you find yourself losing control of your plans and falling behind on everything, then take baby steps towards getting back on track.

We all become complacent and get “lazy” from time to time. No doubt. But if you continue to slip-up and disregard the responsibilities that you have set for yourself, then you are doomed.

Just like anything else in life, you can gain strength by practicing. When you go to the gym and hit the weights, your muscles gain strength. The same works with the brain.

Richard Restak, a neurologist at George Washington Medical School states:

If self-control can be depleted like a muscle, then it can also be built up, too.

Everyday, take measures to improve upon the day before. Make conscious efforts to get things done. Don’t set impracticable goals and try to accomplish the world in one day, take small steps and do things little by little.

Instead of having to fax 5 people, schedule 2 faxes for the day. Instead of inking in 4 meetings, plan for 2. The more feasible your goals, the better the chances of you getting them done.

Here’s a quiz, designed by Kathleen Vohs, to help you asses your self control:

never = 1

sometimes = 2

frequently = 3

almost always = 4

___ How often do you hit the snooze button on the alarm clock?

___ Do you find that even when you try to control your emotions, others can tell what you are feeling?

___ On days when you feel tired and lethargic are you unable to get yourself to the gym or exercise class?

___ Do people say you have no patience?

___ At the end of a party, how often do you regret some of the things you’ve said?

___ Do you have a problem controlling your urges? For instance, have you found you can’t control your desire to drink alcohol or to gamble?

___ How often do you act on the first impulse you have?

___ Do your friends tell you that you’re bad with money and unable to manage your finances?

___ TOTAL

Scoring: How muscular is your restraint?

* 26-32: Weak. Start flexing today. You need to bulk up.
* 19-25: All right. Nice tone, but a few problem areas.
* 8-18: Strong. You could put the world on your shoulders.

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