Try this the next time you feel a self-destructive urge
If you’re already struggling with your resolutions, this may be the fix
It’s nearly the end of January, and, statistically speaking, most of us have already bailed on our resolutions.
So today: a simple (but deep) hack for preventing your self-destructive urges from derailing your goals.
Here’s how it works:
Next time you feel the desire to, say, eat when you’re not hungry or stay on the couch when you’d be better off taking a walk… just pause and get curious.
Pay attention: What does the urge feel like in your body? What kind of thoughts accompany it?
If you sit with it long enough, you’ll see that the urge comes and goes. And on the other side of the urge is an incredible feeling. You can call it self-awareness or self-mastery. You can call it freedom.
The neuroscientist Dr. Jud Brewer calls it the “bigger, better offer.” Your brain might think it wants that next Dorito or the next few moments of mindless scrolling, but actually curiosity, mindfulness—and the resulting spaciousness and freedom—feel way better.
Dr. Jud is on the pod today. Click to listen or watch. Paid subscribers get a cheatsheet of the episode below, with key takeaways and a full transcript.
And—Dr. Jud is going to be in the paid subscriber chat today, answering your questions. Big thanks to him for that. You can join the chat here.
Episode cheatsheet
The big takeaway
Dr. Jud Brewer says that we can use our innate mindfulness and curiosity to overcome everyday addictions and bad habits. Rather than relying on willpower, his MindShift method focuses on becoming aware of our habit patterns, exploring what we're really getting from them, and finding a "bigger, better offer" to replace addictive behaviors.
Hacking your brain's reward system: a mindful approach to breaking bad habits
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