Willpower, the workhorse of the conscious mind, is relatively tame compared to instinct and habit, the twin engines of the subconscious mind. Yet without willpower, you and I become nothing more than passengers riding along a predetermined course. The subconscious, the unthinking part of the mind, controls our thoughts and actions under times of great stress, fatigue, hunger, insecurity, and fear. If you are driving and a car comes barreling at you unexpectedly, there is no time to think about your speed, the other driver’s speed, whether to veer to the right, veer to the left, stop, or even how to brace for an impending collision. All of this is weighed and determined instantaneously by the unconscious mind.
It is an indispensable motor in times of crisis, but on a typical day it often conflicts with our best interests. When you are overworked, your instinct guides you to fill up on carbs, rather than go to the gym (when you know you should). When you are downcast from sleep deprivation, rather than sleep early, a habit of staying up late will steer you toward the stimulation of booze, drugs, or online media (when you know you shouldn’t). You will seek immediate gratification over enduring contentment.
If you aspire to long-term success, then you have to align your subconscious mind with the desires of your conscious mind. Through repeated and consistent action, an unhelpful instinct will be weakened and a new habit will form in its place. Once the subconscious has internalized a change, your willpower will be freed up to take on another one. The more remarkable a behavioral change, the more your willpower will be taxed, so you need to keep it in tip-top condition. And to do that, you must continually revitalize it on a daily basis in one of 3 ways:
Revitalize your essence. Lean meats, whole grains, and truckloads of fruits and vegetables. The quality of the food you take in directly correlates with the quality of your mental and physical output. Aerobic exercise. It will dissipate the mental smog that is symptomatic of stagnating blood. Adequate shut-eye. You will never find your willpower more feeble as when you are lacking enough sleep.
Revitalize your soul. Everyone wants to maximize their productivity, but not making time for friends and family will lead to emotional volatility, distress, and neediness.
Revitalize your spirit. You must make it a habit to read. Just because the information on the internet is free or the information contained within a book is but a few dollars, that does not mean it is not valuable. When someone writes, they are distilling the best part of their mind for your consumption. Treat the information as if it were difficult to obtain and you will find yourself relating to it better and applying it to your life in a much deeper way.
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An Engine of Success
I split energy between potential (will to work) and the kinetic (work). Since energy starts from a potential source, then to build up the potential energy through healthy means as you suggest is good.
That’s a similar concept to Covey’s P/PC balance between production and production capacity. My take on it is that the PC should be worked on (even if only for a short while) daily to make it second nature. IOW, working on PC also feeds into even more PC through formation of habits.