Will vs. Willpower And the Winner Is

Will vs. Willpower And the Winner Is…

When you think of will or willpower what comes to mind?

Dragging your bum out of bed to go to the gym when you would rather sleep? Or maybe that piece of ‘Death by Chocolate’ cake that you have resisted every day for a month? Maybe it is having to stay at the office late to do the bookkeeping instead of meeting friends for a drink?

We say that someone who can resist really tempting human desires or someone who can resist desires for long periods of time has ‘great willpower’.

We most often think of will or willpower as the mental strength that we use to force something to happen or to resist doing something.

Using willpower in a forceful way generally returns mixed results and often negative results. It is like holding a beach ball under water…. we can do it for so long, then we either get tired or distracted. And even if we do it for a while, it is difficult and not so fun.

There is a much less understood aspect of The Will, which when understood and exercised, is an entirely different level of power.

The Will is the mental facility that gives us the ability to hold one idea in our mind at the exclusion of all other ideas or thoughts. It is our ability to concentrate on that which we desire even when ideas and thoughts of what we do not desire are strong.

Using The Will in this way is far more powerful than using willpower to force or resist. When we allow the real power of The Will to flow through us we are able to concentrate…to remain focused on what we desire. The energy is completely different: with Willpower we are forcing or resisting what we want in the short run in hopes of getting something we want in the long run or in the bigger picture. With The Will, we are focused on what we want in the bigger picture which is fun and enlivening.

For most people the ability to use their WILL in this powerful way, has become weak…like a flabby muscle. The good news is that; like a muscle it can be strengthened with practice. Try this exercise: Put a pencil mark on the wall. Spend 60 seconds focused on that mark. When you get to where you can focus on it without any other thoughts entering your mind, increase the length of time. Repeat until your ability to focus is as strong as you desire.

Cheers,

Tracy
* Success Coach * Results Expert *
Your Partner in Believing

PS. – There are many Forgiveness Practices. I would love to know yours. Share yours on my Facebook page.