6 Ways to Strengthen Your Willpower Muscle

Would you rather be intelligent or disciplined? While most people would probably choose intelligence, discipline -- the ability to forgo immediate gratification in pursuit of a great goal -- is actually a greater predictor of subsequent life success.

“One great thing about self-control is that unlike other characteristics like intelligence, it’s easy to improve,” says Nathan DeWall, a psychology professor at the University of Kentucky who studies self-regulation (he’s also an ultra marathon runner).

Unfortunately, our amount of self-control finite; our reserve depletes over the course of the day, replenishing over night. This explains why people are more likely to lie, cheat or lash out as the day progresses and why, DeWall says, most violent crimes are committed after 10 p.m.

“Self-control is a powerful resource that is incredibly fragile,” he continues. “If I try and control my impulses now, it’s going to make a subsequent attempt at controlling my impulses later in the day a little bit harder.” Say you’re trying to eat healthy and you go out to lunch with friends -- you have to expend energy on both resisting the breadbasket as well as forgoing the burger in favor of a salad. “What's going to happen when I'm leaving the parking lot and someone cuts me off? DeWall asks. “I'm going to have less energy to help me override an angry impulse.”

Like a muscle, willpower can be strengthened. With practice and resistance training, our ability to control our impulses in pursuit of later, greater goals can grow, giving us the energy to easily resist that cookie and promptly file those taxes. Here’s how to increase your reserve.

1. Monitor your behavior.

It’s hard to practice self-control if you aren’t cognizant of your current behavior and routines. Want to lose weight? First you need to be aware of what you eat on a daily basis. Want a healthier bank account? You need to understand your current spending habits. DeWall’s friends who have kids often recount mindlessly eating their children’s leftovers – a Chicken McNugget here, a few French fries there. “Do that for two or three meals a week and you’re adding several hundred calories to your diet which will translate into multiple pounds every year,” says DeWall. Write down what you eat. Monitor your finances. Keep track.

2. Form healthy habits.

At first, going to the gym will require self-control. You may to fight the urge to sit on the couch and watch TV. But over time, as going to the gym becomes a habit, it’s going to require much less willpower. It will start to feel automatic.

DeWall, who frequently runs ultra marathons over 100 miles long, recounts multiple conversations he’s had with fellow competitors. “They don’t believe that what they’re doing requires self-control,” he says. To them, it feels natural. As once hard activities begin to feel routine, they require less willpower; you have to fight yourself less and that frees up valuable energy that can be spent elsewhere.

3. Practice every day.

Just like practicing self-control in one aspect of your day (resisting a brownie, say) depletes the entire well, it also strengthens the entire muscle. “If I'm practicing self control in any domain, it should help me in all the others,” says DeWall. Multiple studies have illustrated that when you exercise self-control in one area of your life -- such as brushing your teeth with your non-dominant hand -- you can exert more willpower in another area, such as suppressing aggressive behavior. The two behaviors may be very different, but they share a common energy source.

4. Control your environment. 

Grocery stores are designed to play off our depleted willpower. “They don’t put produce by the checkout for a reason,” DeWall says. “They know you’ve just made a bunch of decisions; they know you're exhausted, so that’s where they put the junk food.”

You can’t, of course, change your supermarket’s layout, but you can control the environment at your home and at your work. It requires far less energy to resist a cookie if you know it’s not sitting in your cabinet. No solitaire on your desktop? Resisting starting up another game is instantly less of a struggle.

5. Make contracts to avoid arguing with yourself.

Decision-making can be exhausting. Fighting with yourself to go to the gym lots of work. DeWall suggests making contracts with yourself, thus taking the conflict out of difficult activities. “If I do this, then I’ll do that,” he says. “If I get home from work, then I’ll exercise for 10 minutes. It essentially takes you and your arguments with yourself out of the equation.”

6. Achieve balance.

Because on any given day we have a finite amount of willpower, it’s important that we don’t deplete the well too soon. Instead of simply writing down obligations on your calendar, rank them in terms of the energy or self-control they will require. “Become mindful of how much extra energy you are going to have to exert,” DeWall says. Catching up with a well-liked friend won’t require much exertion. But visiting your less-than-welcoming in-laws for the weekend? That may really sap you. If you know that in advance, you can adjust your week accordingly.

From Entrepreneur

7 Sins of Newbie Entrepreneurs

Most entrepreneurs are familiar with the ridiculously high percentage of small businesses that will fail in the first couple years.  The business owners who survived the odds will tell you that they didn’t achieve success on sheer passion alone.  It took hard work, and in most situations, it didn’t happen over night. 

After spending the last decade running my own business consulting for companies and corporations, I have witnessed it all. Here’s seven of the most common mistakes I’ve seen newbie entrepreneurs make with alarming consistency.

1. Not setting aside enough cash reserves to support yourself. I  believe that one of the reasons why so many small businesses fail within the first few years is NOT because the business model isn’t viable or the entrepreneur isn’t “good enough” to make the business work, but it’s the fact the financial ramp up time is a firm reality. Most entrepreneurs simply run out of money to support the business and/or themselves before the business is profitable enough to sustain itself. 

Tip: Proactively set up a special fund intended to support yourself during the business startup phase.  Be conscious of what you put into this fund as you may want to strive for an amount that can fully support you for a year or two to relieve pressure as you ramp up.

2. Using assumptions that are overly optimistic during planning. I see so many newbie entrepreneurs fall into this trap. They have a great idea and convinced their friends and family that it’s a no brainer. They jump into the fray only to realize there were a few not-so-little details that they failed to consider or a few areas where their assumptions were overly optimistic and before they know it, that “no-brainer” business is hanging by a thread.

Be honest with yourself. Are you underestimating the time required to get the first client? Are you overestimating the demand for the product? Are you assuming zero risk by not allowing for what could go wrong?  

Tip: Find three to five completely objective people (not friends or family) and specifically ask them to play devil’s advocate to you to help identify vulnerabilities and then take steps to mitigate those.  

3.  Not properly evaluating your business model. Not everyone incorporates a business model into their planning.  It’s so easy to get really lathered up around the concept of your business, but it’s quite another thing to put pen to paper to help you objectively evaluate your overall business model and its profit potential.  The simple truth is that having a great idea is just a start – it doesn’t necessarily translate into a profitable model.

Tip: Consider SCORE or a small-business development center to evaluate the business model and offer expert advice. Their perspective could identify a more viable structure that makes better business sense than what you’ve already established.   

4. Trying to do everything yourself to save money. If you try to do EVERYTHING yourself, you’ll not only run yourself into the ground, your business will suffer, because you don’t bring sufficient expertise in every area.  Your time is money. Think about where you must personally invest your energies. Should you be developing and refining your content, products and services, cultivating relationships with key clients and stakeholders, developing credibility within your industry?  No one can do this for you. 

That said, others can develop your website, handle your public relations, develop templates for your newsletters, make trips to printers and copiers and perform random administrative functions. Utilize them.

Tip: The key is identifying what to outsource and what to keep.  A good rule of thumb is if it’s not part of the core competency of your specific business, you have little expertise in the area, it’s time consuming and there are many suppliers who can provide the service at a reasonable cost, consider outsourcing. 

5. Not being willing to work like a dog during the early days. I’m amazed how often I run into people who’ve recently launched their businesses, but they seem shocked that they’re not making six figures while working a 25-hour work week.  They seem to have this glamorous view of entrepreneurship where they get to start at the top and skip all the hard work.  The simple truth is if you want to make it, most startup businesses have to hustle early on.  This might mean working another job while you’re starting your business, volunteering or doing some work for free to gain experience and exposure. It also may mean working nights and weekends. 

Tip: Before jumping into the startup world, really evaluate your current lifestyle and realize you will most likely being given up a huge chunk, if not all, your free time.

6. Pricing your product or services too low or high.  In my business I often respond to request for proposals.  Years ago, I’d been submitting proposal responses annually to a large governmental agency.  After about four years of consistent rejections, I got a tip from a colleague that my pricing was too low to be considered seriously. That year I doubled my pricing on the same classes and was selected for the first time. 

On the other end of the spectrum, you don’t want to charge $20,000 a day and expect to get the job. 

Tip: Do your research to see what others are charging. It’s much smarter to offer value pricing initially, prove your value and then raise prices over time.  In many cases asking clients for their budget will not only give you an idea of what to charge, but it could minimize the risk of severely underpricing or over pricing your product or services.  You may also consider providing different pricing options to increase the likelihood that you’re offering something within your client’s price range. 

7. Not having a growth strategy. We all know of a restaurant that was great when it first opened but after expanding the food or service went downhill. They then developed a bad reputation and eventually closed.  Don’t be that business.  

While most small businesses think the goal is to win as much business as they can, this isn't necessarily true.  Sometimes, you can attract too much business and then have a completely different challenge that could threaten the longer term viability of the business completely. 

Tip: Think about how you want to grow and develop a high-level growth strategy fairly early on (even if it changes as time progresses).  

From Entrepreneur

How to Turn a Hobby Into a Career -- Without Regrets

Not every entrepreneur wants to build a multimillion-dollar company. Some just want to live the dream of transforming a hobby into a career.

It's an idea that sounds great in theory: Take something you love to do in your spare time and make it your sole business focus. And for some it works out swimmingly—it may even finally convince a spouse that there was a method to the madness behind all those bills piling up over the years for what seemed like a frivolous basement activity. For others, making the move from hobby to Hobby Inc. can prove to be a hasty decision and major life regret.

So think twice before betting that your hobby will be your dream job. You might lose both the hobby and your livelihood if it's a transition not thoroughly thought through.

Arthur Lucas, owner of Charleston, South Carolina-based Freehouse Brewery, said he has no regrets about making the jump from home brewer to professional. 

"It's more a vocation," said the former management consultant, who also has a law degree. "I don't really feel like it's a job. It's an overexpanded, all-encompassing hobby now. Everything has challenges—and I prefer these challenges. I'm allowed to do my own thing, even if it's hard, as opposed to being what someone else is looking for. That takes a huge weight off my shoulders."

Passion projects

Turning a passion project into a career is not without its hurdles. Many people find that the day-to-day realities of running a business are a little more difficult than they imagined.

Jay Adan, co-owner of Greenfield Games, experienced that after his business had been open for a short while. 

Adan left a career in public relations to open Greenfield, which is now the largest game store in Western Massachusetts, with two partners—Seth Lustig and Dave Fifield—who had previously run a smaller game store. (All three had met and worked together at the video game company Cyberlore.) When Fifield left to focus on a career in the video game space, it proved challenging.

"It was a critical time," said Adan. "None of us had ever run a retail store before. There really wasn't a full-time business person."

Adan and his partner brought on Joe Minton, a former business associate of theirs from Cyberlore who had experience running a company. He successfully identified where things were going wrong with Greenfield Games—and the team was able to correct them.

"There's always stuff to learn," Adan said. "Passion can only take you so far. I know a lot about games and how they work, but that doesn't translate into how you run a successful business."

"When someone [would] hand me a widget and say, 'I need you to write a release about this now,' I had to force myself to become enthusiastic. ... And that was sucking my soul. Now, even on the worst day at the store, I'm still working at a place that's surrounded by cool games. So how bad can it possibly be?"" -Jay Adan, co-owner of Greenfield Games

The dangers of making the jump from hobbyist to someone who makes a career of that hobby aren't just on the economic side.

"When your dreams become reality, they are no longer your dreams," said Hugh MacLeod, author of "Ignore Everybody: And 39 Other Keys to Creativity."

"When its a hobby, you're doing it for yourself, on your own time. But when you're doing it for a job, it doesn't feel like that," MacLeod said. "What happens is, your hobby, all of a sudden, is a source of major anxiety because you still have bills to pay."

The activities that used to be a source of stress relief can become anxiety-inducers themselves. That can force people to find other hobbies, which might cause their interest in the original field to wander, MacLeod said.

Adan acknowledges that his game-playing time has been limited lately, but he's making an effort to correct that.

Lucas said he is yet to experience a downturn in his own private brewing. "I still like to do small batches and throw out a 5-gallon batch now and then to remember how simple beer really is," he said. (The benefit of those small batches? They can also give him ideas to try on a larger scale at Freehouse.)

Adan and Lucas said their decision came after weighing their satisfaction with existing jobs against the potential problems of one based on their hobby.

"I was going in a very different direction," Lucas said, "achieving the things I was setting out to do. But at the end of the day, I always thought I wanted to run my own business—and with the field I was in, it felt like there wasn't any way to do so."

Adan said PR was something he did to promote something he loved, but PR itself wasn't interesting to him. "When someone [would] hand me a widget and say, 'I need you to write a release about this now,' I had to force myself to become enthusiastic. ... And that was sucking my soul. Now, even on the worst day at the store, I'm still working at a place that's surrounded by cool games. So how bad can it possibly be?"

From CNBC

4 HABITS OF PUNCTUAL PEOPLE

THOSE PEOPLE WHO ARE ALWAYS ON TIME? HOW TO THEY DO IT? IF YOU ARE PART OF THE 20% OF AMERICANS WHO ARE CHRONICALLY LATE, GET READY TO CHANGE EVERYTHING.

Plan any event and chances are one in five of the people you invite will be late.

A study done at San Francisco State University found that about 20% of the U.S. population is chronically late--but it’s not because they don't value others' time. It’s more complicated than that, says lead researcher Diana DeLonzor.

“Repetitive lateness is more often related to personality characteristics such as anxiety or a penchant for thrill-seeking,” she says. “Some people are drawn to the adrenaline rush of that last-minute sprint to the finish line, while others receive an ego boost from over-scheduling and filling each moment with activity.”

In her book Never Be Late Again: 7 Cures for the Punctually Challenged, DeLonzor says our relationship with time often starts in childhood and becomes an ingrained habit.

“Looking back, you were probably late or early all of your life--it’s part physiological and part psychological,” she says. “Most chronically late people truly dislike being late, but it's a surprisingly difficult habit to overcome. Telling a late person to be on time is a little like telling a dieter to simply stop eating so much.”

DeLonzor says the majority of people have a combination of late and punctual habits--usually on time, but with a frantic rush at the last minute--but we can all learn from those who are chronically punctual. DeLonzor shares four traits that always on time share:

1. THEY’RE REALISTIC THINKERS.

Punctual people know how long things take. Chronically late people, however, engage in what DeLonzor calls “magical thinking.”

“If once, 10 years ago, they made it to work in 20 minutes, they believe that’s how long it should take,” she says. “They forget about the 99% of the times that took 30 minutes.”

To develop realistic habits, DeLonzor suggests relearning to tell time. Write down how long you think it takes to shower, get ready in the morning and drive to work. Then for a week, track how long those things really take. Chronically late people are often off of their time estimates by 25% to 30%, says DeLonzor.

2. THEY GIVE THEMSELVES BUFFER TIME.

Punctual people are usually early, says DeLonzor. “Being late makes them stressed out and they don’t like feeling rushed,” she says. “Late people get stressed out from being late, too, but they don’t strive to be early; they tend to time things to the minute.”

For a 9 a.m. meeting, for example, a punctual person would try to arrive by 8:45 a.m. or 8:50 a.m., allowing enough time for an unexpected delay, such as traffic or a full parking garage. A punctual person reviews directions online, checks traffic reports before leaving, and some will even drive to an new location the day before to understand the route. To be punctual, plan to arrive early.

3. THEY’RE ORGANIZED.

DeLonzor says that 45% of everything we do on a daily basis is automatic: “Our lives are filled with habits--from the way you brush teeth to how you get dressed and leave for work,” she says, adding that they’re necessary. “If we didn’t do things automatically, it would take us forever to get through our day.”

The habits of people who are always on time are highly structured. They analyze their daily activities, set routines, and stick to them on regular basis. Chronically late people, however, don’t have structure and often fall on the attention deficit disorder spectrum, says DeLonzor.

“Instead of thinking about why their routines don’t work and trying something different next time, chronically late people simply hope that tomorrow will be better,” she says.

To become punctual, DeLonzor suggests putting more routines and structure into your life. For example, do everything you can to prepare for the morning the night before.

4. THEY’RE COMFORTABLE WITH DOWNTIME.

Being punctual often means getting to meeting or an appointment early. Punctual people use the extra five or 10 minutes as a chance to catch up on emails, read over notes, or simply enjoy the solitude.

Chronically late people, however, hate downtime. They enjoy the thrill of that last-minute sprint to the finish line and crave stimulation. To be more comfortable with downtime, bring along something to fill those spare moments.

“Knowing that you have something to occupy your time will help,” says DeLonzor.

From Fast Company

6 SIMPLE HABITS THAT CAN SAVE YOU HOURS

From shortcuts and life hacks to proven productivity methods, we’re all looking to save time and get more done. If you want to be even more successful, it’s time to tap into your super powers: your habits.

A Duke University study found that 40% of the decisions we make each day are habits. While bad habits can derail you, good habits can put minutes back on the clock because they put you in a proactive mode and help eliminate wasted time.

WHEN YOU CHECK YOUR TO-DO LIST IN THE MORNING, YOU’VE ALREADY WASTED TIME.

We reached out to three productivity experts who offered six ideas for implementing habits that save time and improve your workflow

1. PLAN YOUR DAY THE NIGHT BEFORE.

When you check your to-do list in the morning, you’ve already wasted time, says Julie Morgenstern, professional organizer and author of Never Check Email in the Morning (Touchstone; 2005)

“If you’re overscheduled or end up with gap in your day, you don’t have the distance you need to correct it, and you go into pure reactive mode,” she says. Instead, take five minutes at the end of each workday to check your calendar. Decide ahead of time how to fill free time or handle overlaps.

“You will buy back two or three hours a day of focused productivity instead of wasting a half hour sorting through all of your options,” she says.

2. LOG OUT.

If you're easily tempted by social media or email, make a habit of logging out before you start a project or important task, says Emily Schwartz, author of The Time Diet: Digestible Time Management (2012).

DISTRACTED WORK TAKES FAR LONGER THAN FOCUSED WORK.

“The extra step of having to enter in your password will buy you enough time to realize that you're distracting yourself and shouldn't,” she says. “Distracted work takes far longer than focused work.”

3. PREPARE FOR MEETINGS.

While meetings can be vehicles for wasting time, Morgenstern says establishing a pre-meeting routine can help improve their effectiveness. If you’ve called the meeting, send an email to the other participants telling them what to expect. If you’ve been invited, ask the organizer how to best prepare.

“Proactively engaging people before meetings could save an hour of wasted time trying to get everyone on the same page,” she says.

4. FOLLOW UP.

After you delegate a task to a person, make a habit of writing a confirmation via email, clearly defining what’s expected, says Schwartz.

“This extra minute of follow up can save hours of hassle later if, for example, a deadline has been miscommunicated,” she says.

5. CLEAR OFF YOUR DESK.

When you put everything away at the end of your day, you can jump right into work in the morning, says professional organizer Janine Adams of Peace of Mind Organizing.

“If you have papers all over your desk, you’ll waste time finding what you need,” she says. Tidying up each afternoon takes just minutes because you only have one day’s worth of stuff to handle. If you wait until you have a pile, it could take a whole afternoon, Adams says.

6. ESTABLISH A CHARGING ROUTINE.

Dead cell phones can be inconvenient, causing you to waste time searching for an outlet. Instead of freaking out over the power left on your battery, Adams suggests creating a habit of charging your electronics.

“I plug in my phone, iPad and Kindle every night before I go to sleep,” she says. “The charge usually gets me through the day and I don’t have to waste time worrying about my battery dying.”

From Fast Comapny

10 Opening Phrases to Use in Your Next Email

I process email for a living, or at least it seems that way on most days.

Hundreds of new messages arrive on a daily basis, some of them so dull and uninformative they make me want to go find a pencil and jam it into my spleen. Others start with something a little juicier, a little more attention-grabbing, and a little more helpful. And, when the message starts off with an interesting phrase it usually means the rest of the email is worth reading all the way to the end.

Try these lead-ins when you really need to get a response--and not just get a bunch of crickets chirping on the other end.

1. "Good news..."

Everyone likes to read about good news. Why not let your recipient know you are the bearer of it right away? As they say in journalism, don't bury the lead.

2. "I have an answer for you..."

Go ahead and lead with a confirmation that you have found the answer. Maybe it dates back to our days in grade school, but we all perk up a bit when someone has answers.

3. "I'll be honest with you..."

This phrase implies that you are going to get right to the point and won't hold anything back. It's helpful because too much opening chatter can confuse people.

4. "We have lift off..."

Apart from the fact that I like any space-related terminology, this opening phrase is positive and is a good precursor to any explanation about a project or business endeavor.

5. "Urgent..."

It's an old-school tactic, and make sure what you are about to say is actually a pressing matter, but leading with the word "urgent" can nudge someone into paying attention.

6. "Let me start with an apology..."

This one works on me because it's probably going to be a little juicy. It also lets the recipient know the message is not about his or her screw-up. It's about yours.

7. "Your day is about to improve..."

I'm guessing there are hundreds of ways to relay positive information, and this is one of my favorites. Work can be tedious, so if a message promises to improve it, that's a good thing.

8. "I've completed my research for you..."

If you use this phrase, I'll pay attention because I know the e-mail is going to give me good information, it will probably get right to the point, and it will be helpful.

9. "The rumors are true..."

You might think, what rumors? But that's a good thing. You are hinting that something special and worthwhile has spread around and now you are confirming it.

10. "Just getting back to you..."

It's a simple technique and maybe overused, but it works. My first thought is, getting back to me about what? Oh--that thing I was really waiting to hear about!

From Inc. Magazine

Why Most Companies Never Hire the Perfect Person for the Job

Want to hire superstars?

Trying to find the “total package” is the last thing you should do. Literally (and not in the teenage use of literally) the last thing.

Why? Think about the typical hiring process. You work hard to find and select the right candidate. You evaluate skills and experience and then ask interview questions to determine if the candidate possesses qualities like attention to detail, interpersonal skills, leadership ability, problem-solving skills....

Your process is exhaustive and, well, exhausting.

Still, while many of the people that get hired turn out to be good employees, few of them turn out to be what every company really needs: great employees.

Why? Those companies -- and the people making the decisions -- took the job description approach to hiring.

Think about job descriptions. They list a wide variety of qualifications the employee should possess. Typically attributes like “self motivated,” “able to work with minimal supervision,” “able to prioritize and handle multiple tasks,” and “able to work well alone or as a member of a team,” are included.

So what happens? People evaluate candidates with those requirements in mind. The candidate that ticks the most boxes is usually selected—and the company winds up hiring good when they really need great.

Now think about the truly great employees you know. Some are well rounded, some are not, but all possess at least one incredible skill. They all do at least one thing, one critical thing, so well that people are willing—even happy—to overlook some of their deficiencies.

They may not “take a collaborative approach to problem solving,” but wow do they make your fulfillment facility sing.

In short, a great employee has what you really need. All other attributes on the job description, while important, pale in comparison.

Next time you hire an employee, set the job description approach aside and take this approach instead.

1. Determine what you really need.

Forget about finding a “well-rounded employee” (whatever that is). If you could only pick one or two attributes, what are the most important skills or qualities you need?

Keep in mind those attributes will often change depending on your current needs and the skills your other employees possess.

So ignore the job description. Forget the position; think about the job. Decide what you really need the new employee to do.

As Dharmesh Shah says, "You don't need a VP of anything... you need a Doer of Things That Need to Get Done."

2. Decide what you really don’t need.

When you’re ticking off boxes on a list of qualifications it’s easy to forget that you simply can’t live with some attributes, regardless of how solid the candidate otherwise appears.

Complete this sentence about a theoretical employee: "I don't care how great she is, I would still let her go because she ________."

Those are your no-go attributes. Never lose sight of them.

3. Do a first pass.

Set aside every candidate that doesn’t have what you really need. Don’t be tempted by the, “Wow, she really has a wide range of skills,” candidate. If she doesn’t bring the one or two attributes you really need she may turn out to be a good employee, but she’s not likely to be great.

Then set aside every candidate with an attribute on your "no way in hell" list. She won't be great either.

4. Conduct highly focused interviews.

Spend 10% of your time assessing general qualities and 90% of your time ensuring the candidate truly has what you need. Dig in. Ask for examples. Ask lots of follow-up questions. Write everything down.

Then check references and use your notes to help you ask specific questions. Sure, some companies won’t provide any information, but many -- especially small businesses -- will.

Many will say they are not allowed to share information about previous employees. When that happens, try saying, “I understand. I’m just really worried I might a mistake. Can you just say, if you were me, whether you would hire him?”

You'll be surprised by how many people will want to help you out with a whispered "yes" or "no."

Then you can...

5. Assess the “total employee.”

If a few candidates seem relatively equal in terms of what you really need, then decide which one best meets your more subjective criteria. Conduct a second interview if necessary. Or let other employees interview the remaining candidates.

At this point you can afford to evaluate “nice to have” qualities because you’ve done everything possible to identify candidates that have the attributes you truly need.

Written by Jeff Haden