Willpower for Dummies

Willpower For Dummies shows you how to train, strengthen, and improve your willpower in seven easy steps! Written by a clinical psychologist and cognitive therapist, the book proves that willpower can be learned like any other skill, and provides tons of practical exercises and strategies you can start using today. You'll learn how willpower works inside the brain, and how choosing goals and identifying challenges can affect your success. The book stresses the importance of patience, rewards and being kind to yourself, and walks you through the techniques that will keep you on the right track, even on your worst days.

The mind works in two different ways: the long view and the short view. Controlling which aspect wins out is the key to willpower. Willpower For Dummies breaks this complex science down into easily digestible bits, written in plain English with a dash of humour. You'll find scientifically robust guidance toward strengthening your willpower just like a muscle, and expert advice on training your brain to work with you instead of against you.

• Discover the most important factors in building self-discipline
• Learn how to set goals and how to train your willpower
• Practice simple willpower-strengthening exercises
• Employ coping strategies for when you're about to break

Whether you're trying to lose weight, quit smoking or just work harder, rest assured that you can do it—regardless of past failures and false starts. Willpower is not a trait, but a skill. Everyone can learn it, and everyone can make it stronger. Willpower For Dummies walks you through the process, teaching you the skills you need for lasting success.

Frank Ryan is a clinical psychologist and cognitive therapist, specialising in cognition and impulse control. He is also the author of Cognitive Therapy For Addiction, published by Wiley.

Introduction 1

Part I: Getting Started with Willpower 5

Chapter 1: All About Willpower 7

Chapter 2: Willpower and You 21

Part II: Taking Seven Steps to Improved Willpower 35

Chapter 3: Training Your Willpower: The Willpower Workshop 37

Chapter 4: Zeroing in on a Single Goal 53

Chapter 5: Recognising that Change is a Journey that Takes Time 67

Chapter 6: Know Your Triggers! Forewarned is Forearmed 79

Chapter 7: Be Kind to Yourself When You Fail 93

Chapter 8: Rewarding Yourself along the Way 105

Chapter 9: Maintaining Your Progress 119

Part III: Following Up for Success 133

Chapter 10: Developing and Maintaining Realistic Optimism 135

Chapter 11: Creating a Lifestyle That Promotes Willpower 151

Part IV: The Part of Tens 163

Chapter 12: (More Than) Ten Things to Know about Willpower 165

Chapter 13: Ten Ways to Support Your Willpower 179

Chapter 14: Ten (Plus) Willpower-related Websites and Apps 185

Index 195

The New copy of this book will include any supplemental materials advertised. Please check the title of the book to determine if it should include any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

The Used, Rental and eBook copies of this book are not guaranteed to include any supplemental materials. Typically, only the book itself is included. This is true even if the title states it includes any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.