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ThePhilosophizer
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The willpower excersize/challenge 1
#14507071 - 05/24/11 09:42 PM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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Read about this, decided to share, as its definitely something that's helped me become much less lazier than I used to be. I am translating this from Russian, as I could not find an English version, so bear with me, my wording/explanation might be a little rusty.
The purpose is to prove to yourself that you can beat laziness with willpower in any situation requiring physical/mental effort. You will do this through a simple exercise. The challenge only takes 10 minutes. It is very simple and straightforward. If you successfully complete it, then you have just proven to yourself that you have enough willpower to beat laziness in any situation, no matter what task is at hand, achieving any goal you set your mind to.
You stand up, your back straight. Then, you raise your hands, just a little bit above your shoulders. You should be making about a 45 degree angle, something like this: \O/ (the slashes are your hands ). Your hands should be as straight as possible. Now, clasp your fingers into fists and point your thumbs straight down. Challenge: hold this position for 10 minutes, without moving even in the slightest (except your chest when you breathe in and out). Gradually, as the exercise goes on, you will start to feel tired, maybe even to the point of agony. No strength or muscle is required above average strength to complete this challenge, so don't feel like you're physically unable to. What you are feeling is the creeping up of laziness. You shall meditate on this state.
Few minutes into the exercise, close your eyes and pay attention to the two opposing forces within you at the moment. One force, through the help of which you are still holding your hands up, is called willpower. Ultimately, when it comes to making your life's desires a reality, this is the most important force. Then, on the other hand, you have the voice that says "Enough of this, I'm tired, put the hands down already". This is laziness. If you choose to listen to her, you will constantly be stuck in a state of frustration, financial crisis, and uncertain situations.
Now that you recognized the two forces, ask yourself: which force feels more familiar, occurs more during your everyday life, which of these forces do you find yourself submitting to more often: the force that says "keep holding on" or the force that's screaming "Can I be done now"? Look deep within yourself and pay close attention to what you are feeling. Also, remember the feeling with which you will let your hands down after 10 minutes have passed.
Before reading any further, get up and perform this exercise for minimum of 10 minutes, then continue reading.
All right. Did you notice that as your hands got more tired, the tendency to put them down had grown stronger? Perhaps your laziness decided to play sneaky and put into your head thoughts/tendencies along the lines of "Just put them down for a fraction of a second, then put them back up again, it won't count!" Your laziness might even trick you into noticing that some random spot on your body is really itchy. The feeling of itching is so annoying, you can't help but think "Just itch it, then put the hands back up, it's no big deal!" But of course, you stuck with your intent and kept holding on. As you near the end, your laziness might be going ballistic. You might have gotten thoughts like "this is completely pointless and in no way will help me in real life. I can apply willpower if I want to something practical, but this is pointless, so I should just put my hands down". But then, assuming you stuck through all 10 minutes, you feel this extreme sense of relief and achievement.
Now, what's easier: to hold the hands up for the whole 10 minutes or to just let them down after the first minute? To let them down of course! And yet, you managed to force yourself to hold them up all this time. This is exactly what you must do when faced with real-life situations that require strong willpower. You should now know that you have it, so there's no reason to not apply it.
Laziness is a very interesting thing, seeming to have a mind of its own (a very clever, sneaky, and crafty mind, I shall add). If the exercise is performed on a regular basis, you gain insight into how laziness operates within you, so you can recognize its patterns and tricks and not be swayed by them next time you try to achieve something important.
So yahh that's it I hope people on here find this useful. Feel free to share how it went if you decide to give it a try
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 <<<<<<<<---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------->>>>>>>> A game without challenges is boring. It is possible to live a happy optimistic life without being in denial about all the shit that goes on all around. You just gotta get up and dance with the fire instead of moping about it. Be thankful for your problems. Without them, your life would be a fucking bore. But don't make it all about the problems. There are magnificent wonders in this world worth living for
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EternalCowabunga
Being of Great Significance


Registered: 04/04/05
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Good post.
I feel like I am exercizing my willpower when I go jogging. Just like you mentioned there is kinda like a voice that says "just jog slower for a few minutes" or "you've done enough, you can rest now" but I keep going
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c0sm0nautt

Registered: 05/19/08
Posts: 10,303
Loc: The Astral Realm
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My arms started to hurt a lot after a few minutes so I put them down. I'm sure my condor-like wingspan wasn't helping my cause.
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OneU
Registered: 03/19/11
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Re: The willpower excersize/challenge [Re: c0sm0nautt]
#14507319 - 05/24/11 10:33 PM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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Oh man I just got home from rigorous exercise. I did 5 minutes then it became almost unbearable so I started to chant. I got to minute 11 but I felt like the ego was helping this cause "do it you will be better/stronger/tougher/blah blah" 
Cool post, thanks.
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husmmoor
Invitro


Registered: 04/17/11
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Thanks, I will try this after work.
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jivJaN
yes


Registered: 08/09/08
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Just got done doing it. 10 minutes and then 20 more seconds of painful glory. Is this the part where i convince myself i can do anything ?
" I can do anything with these hands now ! "
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--------------------- All my posts in this forum are strictly fictional. They are derived from an acute mental illness , from which i am forced to lie compulsively. I have never induced any kind of mind altering substance in my life and i have no intentions whatsoever of doing anything illegal. If I have ever suggested such a thing it would have most likely been , due to my personality disorder and i probably do not remember it at all..
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Kickle
Wanderer


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Re: The willpower excersize/challenge [Re: jivJaN]
#14508621 - 05/25/11 06:53 AM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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I did not take the challenge but I did read the post.
When I was young I had my school's gym teacher as my homeroom teacher. He was ex-military and he used to love challenging kids to take a pencil between two index fingers and hold it straight in front of them for as long as they could. I took the challenge more than once to be the center of attention.
With proper motivation I can do all sorts of things but I've never really seen the willpower aspect. Challenge vs. motivation to complete challenge, that's what I see.
-------------------- Why shouldn't the truth be stranger than fiction? Fiction, after all, has to make sense. -- Mark Twain
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jivJaN
yes


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Re: The willpower excersize/challenge [Re: Kickle]
#14508745 - 05/25/11 07:57 AM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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Not really sure what you're trying to say there kickle. Your posts have been somewhat vague as of late
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--------------------- All my posts in this forum are strictly fictional. They are derived from an acute mental illness , from which i am forced to lie compulsively. I have never induced any kind of mind altering substance in my life and i have no intentions whatsoever of doing anything illegal. If I have ever suggested such a thing it would have most likely been , due to my personality disorder and i probably do not remember it at all..
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husmmoor
Invitro


Registered: 04/17/11
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 "Meet Sadhu Amar Bharati a man who has kept his arm lifted for over 38 years." http://izismile.com/2011/04/27/uncanny_factoid_peace_in_arms.html
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ThePhilosophizer
Musical Gear Head



Registered: 02/27/11
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Re: A kindred spirit that didn't stop at 10 mins. [Re: husmmoor]
#14510062 - 05/25/11 02:10 PM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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Quote:
husmmoor said:
 "Meet Sadhu Amar Bharati a man who has kept his arm lifted for over 38 years." http://izismile.com/2011/04/27/uncanny_factoid_peace_in_arms.html
that's crazy!!
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 <<<<<<<<---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------->>>>>>>> A game without challenges is boring. It is possible to live a happy optimistic life without being in denial about all the shit that goes on all around. You just gotta get up and dance with the fire instead of moping about it. Be thankful for your problems. Without them, your life would be a fucking bore. But don't make it all about the problems. There are magnificent wonders in this world worth living for
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Kickle
Wanderer


Registered: 12/16/06
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Last seen: 1 hour, 6 minutes
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Re: The willpower excersize/challenge [Re: jivJaN]
#14511351 - 05/25/11 06:40 PM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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Quote:
jivJaN said: Not really sure what you're trying to say there kickle. Your posts have been somewhat vague as of late 
re-read the original post and look at how it might be playing on motivations. If you can't see anything that looks like it is designed to get one motivated to attempt and complete the challenge, let me know.
-------------------- Why shouldn't the truth be stranger than fiction? Fiction, after all, has to make sense. -- Mark Twain
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ThePhilosophizer
Musical Gear Head



Registered: 02/27/11
Posts: 160
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Re: The willpower excersize/challenge [Re: Kickle]
#14511531 - 05/25/11 07:29 PM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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Quote:
Kickle said:
Quote:
jivJaN said: Not really sure what you're trying to say there kickle. Your posts have been somewhat vague as of late 
re-read the original post and look at how it might be playing on motivations. If you can't see anything that looks like it is designed to get one motivated to attempt and complete the challenge, let me know.
Funny you bring that up, actually. The book that I took the challenge out of plays a lot on motivations and the author is pretty good at it.
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 <<<<<<<<---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------->>>>>>>> A game without challenges is boring. It is possible to live a happy optimistic life without being in denial about all the shit that goes on all around. You just gotta get up and dance with the fire instead of moping about it. Be thankful for your problems. Without them, your life would be a fucking bore. But don't make it all about the problems. There are magnificent wonders in this world worth living for
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c0sm0nautt

Registered: 05/19/08
Posts: 10,303
Loc: The Astral Realm
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It's kind of like the whole "mind over matter" idea. When I'm working out I really have to push myself through pain to get those last 2-3 reps. I play tricks in my head to motivate myself through the pain.
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jivJaN
yes


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Re: The willpower excersize/challenge [Re: Kickle]
#14513446 - 05/26/11 02:01 AM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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Quote:
Kickle said:
Quote:
jivJaN said: Not really sure what you're trying to say there kickle. Your posts have been somewhat vague as of late 
re-read the original post and look at how it might be playing on motivations. If you can't see anything that looks like it is designed to get one motivated to attempt and complete the challenge, let me know.
So you're making a difference between being motivated to do something and simply performing a task with nothing but willpower ? I reckon they kind of go hand in hand. Theres always a motivator.. in any circumstance. Its the potentiator of action, but to see it through entirely requires willpower.
Fat people watch commercials that say YOU CAN DO IT ! YOU CAN BE SKINNY ! So they get all fired up but then they tell themselves they CAN'T as soon as the exercising starts
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--------------------- All my posts in this forum are strictly fictional. They are derived from an acute mental illness , from which i am forced to lie compulsively. I have never induced any kind of mind altering substance in my life and i have no intentions whatsoever of doing anything illegal. If I have ever suggested such a thing it would have most likely been , due to my personality disorder and i probably do not remember it at all..
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auxiliary
Mr.



Registered: 05/03/09
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Re: The willpower excersize/challenge [Re: jivJaN]
#14514513 - 05/26/11 10:39 AM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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I just got soo tired.
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Kickle
Wanderer


Registered: 12/16/06
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Re: The willpower excersize/challenge [Re: jivJaN]
#14514814 - 05/26/11 11:39 AM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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Quote:
jivJaN said:
Quote:
Kickle said:
Quote:
jivJaN said: Not really sure what you're trying to say there kickle. Your posts have been somewhat vague as of late 
re-read the original post and look at how it might be playing on motivations. If you can't see anything that looks like it is designed to get one motivated to attempt and complete the challenge, let me know.
So you're making a difference between being motivated to do something and simply performing a task with nothing but willpower ? I reckon they kind of go hand in hand. Theres always a motivator.. in any circumstance. Its the potentiator of action, but to see it through entirely requires willpower.
Fat people watch commercials that say YOU CAN DO IT ! YOU CAN BE SKINNY ! So they get all fired up but then they tell themselves they CAN'T as soon as the exercising starts 
"Challenge vs. motivation to complete challenge, that's what I see."
If the motivation to complete the challenge, or in your example lose weight, is less powerful than the motivation to avoid the difficulties brought on by the challenge, then the person will not lose weight. Do you think that the contestants who go on the TV show "The Biggest Loser" have an a-typical amount of willpower? I personally don't. I think that the environment they are placed into provides a lot of motivation that was not found in their lives prior. They have 2 trainers trying to motivate them. They have a national audience watching and judging them. They have a lot of the mental labor taken care of for them, such as creating a workout and diet plan. Everything is geared towards maximizing what motivates and minimizing the negative pulls of being overtaxed.
I just do not see willpower in the equation. I'm open to having it pointed out to me though.
-------------------- Why shouldn't the truth be stranger than fiction? Fiction, after all, has to make sense. -- Mark Twain
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weshroom



Registered: 11/19/06
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Re: The willpower excersize/challenge [Re: Kickle]
#14518225 - 05/26/11 10:28 PM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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Thanks, I did it but I didnt stay completely still. I will continue doing this. Its alot like what you encounter when you try to set a time for yourself and do some meditation for the first time or after a long break of not practicing. I have this one meditation cd i got from my yoga school, its 20 minutes of humming followed by 10 minutes just focusing on your heart chakra. But yeah it kinda makes you confront that lazyness too, so maybe you might wanna give that one a try. And the humming for 20 minutes really does open you up
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