by

 Dr. Prafulla Ranjan *

What is Will Power ?

First and foremost question is what is will Power? We often get confused by relating will power with only mental strength, whereas will power is defined as:

Will power is the inner strength to make decisions, take action and handle and execute any aim or task, regardless of inner resistance, discomfort or difficulty. It is inner firmness, decisiveness, determination, resolution, persistence and the power of pushing towards any goal.

Or in simple words we can define will power as--The trait of resolutely controlling your own behavior.

Here are some tips for improvement of will power.

Keep on trying

I can not stress this anymore. No matter how long it takes and how beaten you may feel, you must try and try again. You’ll never know how much you can handle if you don’t put your limits to the test.

Overcome negative thoughts

Ask for help from close people

You may think you have achieved great willpower, but nothing can push it ever higher than surrounding yourself with those who are similar to you. In times of sheer doubt, they can fish you out of your pit of despair. When you achieve the little goals, they will join w you in your glory. When they are down for the count, it will be your job to push them back up. What you can accomplish alone will be amplified when you put great minds together. To have someone always there to drive you forward makes you feel as if you’ve promised them to endure what lies ahead.

Understand defeat, but do not leave fighting.

Those who know defeat are the ones that have the most willpower. After their long line of defeats they will always say, “But the day I was about to quit, I decided to try one more time”. There will always be days when defeat rears it’s head, but that doesn’t mean you should accept it. Even when it seems as if you are making no headway, stop and think about how far you’ve come. The effort you put in beforehand has made you who you are now. Learn from your defeats, but act immediately afterwards to redeem yourself.

It has been said that confidence cannot be faked; that you must fake it until you make it. This is not the case with willpower. You cannot fake effort or will. All the hardships, all of the constant forward trudging: it’s all real.

As long as you keep acting positively, you can be sure to achieve anything you put your mind to. Respect your own decisions

Take action on whatever you decide. Do not keep it pending.

Try different Things..

When you are sick of one thing try something different. 

Give up. Quit. Impossible, These words should not exist in your vocabulary.

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*       Dr Prafulla Ranjan is a qualified banker with more than 20 years of banking experience (worked in Syndicate Bank, ICICI Bank and Indusind Bank) and has Ph.D. in Management to his credit, in addition to his qualifications of MBA and CAIIB.    He is Dy Director in Institute of Environment and Management Lucknow since February 2011.

(October 2012)