I thought I should spend some time coming up with strategies for achieving some of my New Year’s Resolutions. I’ve come across many articles and books that discuss that we only have so much willpower. Instead of putting myself in a situation where I have to use willpower to make a correct decision, I want to come up with a system, or hack, where I don’t even leave myself a decision.
For example, consider the Less Sweets resolution. Suppose I’m at home and I get the sudden urge for a snack. In the kitchen, I have the choice between some fruit or some chocolate snacks. Instead of leaving myself in a situation where I have to use willpower to choose the fruit over the chocolate, I should avoid having chocolate in the kitchen to start with. It’s much easier for me to avoid purchasing chocolates when grocery shopping than it is to turn down chocolates in the kitchen in that moment of weakness when I’m craving a snack.
Hack #1: Don’t purchase sweets or sugared beverages while grocery shopping.
Garret Bonnema 