When Willpower Isn't Enough

You know you shouldn’t procrastinate but you do.

You know you should be more (or less) assertive but you aren't.

You know you shouldn’t overeat. But you do.

There is such a gap between what we know we should do and actually do.

The most realistic answer is to accept your basic self. Increasingly, scientists are learning that lack of discipline is heavily in our genes. According to a recent metaevaluation, which synthesized the results of 31 studies, 60 percent of the variance in self-control is genetic.

While we may need to accept that we’re unlikely to transform from procrastinator to superproducer, meek to magisterial, overeater to mousy eater, we can, ahem, nibble around the edges. The key is to identify a realistic baby step. I offer some likely candidates in my PsychologyToday.com article today.

Top Apps for Your Mental Health

Apps may never replace a therapist...or maybe they will. Good efficacy data isn't yet available but it's unarguable that an app is available 24/7 instead of 50 minutes a week, is more patient than a human therapist, there's no stigma to using an app, and it's dramatically less expensive.

Of course, for some people, therapy will be a better choice. But, for cost and convenience alone, in my PsychologyToday.com article today, I describe seven apps and two YouTube channels that deserve a look for anyone dealing with anxiety, depression, addiction, OCD, making or breaking a habit, or suicide. They all incorporate well-established psychological principles and have high user ratings across many reviewers.

Making and Keeping a New Habit

Make a new habit and keep it and it could change your life. 

In my PsychologyToday.com article today, I discuss how to do that, based largely on Gretchen Rubin's new book, Better than Before.