Have you ever thought why do we say, “Where there is will there is way”? Will to survive? Are you willing?
Why is “will” always associated with power – Will Power
What is this “Will”?
Let us look at our life pattern. We all have goals and aspirations that we want to achieve in our personal and professional (ProPer) lives. Whether it be getting in shape, climbing the corporate ladder, or finding inner peace, we all have something that we are constantly working towards. The Cart-Wheel is running non-stop and we continue to challenge ourselves trying to achieve something. Sometimes it takes our whole life to achieve something and still feel, we haven’t. Achieving these goals can be a real challenge. Sometimes it can feel like we are constantly being pulled in different directions, and it can be difficult to stay focused and motivated. Do you know why?
Because of our Will and its strength. Defined as, “Will power is the ability to exert self-control and resist temptations or distractions in order to achieve a desired goal or outcome.” It is believed to be the foundation of self-discipline and self-motivation, and it is essential for achieving success in both our personal and professional lives. But there is much more to it.
As human beings we are driven by two forces/sources of energy, (1) Physical Energy & (2) Cosmic Energy. His Divine Master, Shri Parmahansa Yogananda very beautifully explained why life becomes a challenge in the absence of WILL. According to him, Cosmic Energy and Life are directly linked. The suction pump of Cosmic Energy into our body comes directly from our Will. The moment man loses his will, he releases the control on his energy reservoir and death occurs.
Bodily Life energy can sustain us only for that limited period, the real energy is the Cosmic Energy and Will is the suction pump that can help us draw this energy into body to sustain life and vitality. We often think that will is a “trait” and we all possess it. Yes, that is true, but the power of the suction pump differs from person to person. Not just that, human Ego & Maya (delusional power) ensures that the suction power is at the lowest so that they can survive. They ensure that we get caught up in our own thoughts, to be swayed by temptations, and lose sight of our goals. He said and I quote, “Temptation is the voice of Satan whispering within your mind.” This is where Will comes in. It is the ability to exert self-control and resist the satanous temptation or distractions in order to achieve a desired goal or outcome. It is this foundation of self-discipline and self-motivation is what we call WILL.
It was like a DeJa’Vu. I could practically relate to each and every word, while reading the article, as if it was written about me. I am sure it will resonate with many of us, but we tend to ignore or self-convince ourselves and stay in that delusional state driven by temptations.
The good news is, will power is something that can be developed and strengthened by developing “won’t power”. Power to say “NO” to temptation. It’s not something that you’re born with or without, it’s something that can be cultivated over time. The key is to understand the underlying causes of our lack of will power and to take steps to overcome them. If I can do so, so is you.
One of the biggest obstacles to developing will power is our ego. It flares jealousy, fear and anger and corrupts our mind that is responsible for our sense of self, and on the other hand it is the source of all our temptations and distractions. The ego is always looking for validation and approval, and it often seeks this validation through external means such as material possessions, status, and power. These desires can often pull us away from our true goals and aspirations, and they can make it difficult for us to exert self-control and stay focused on what truly matters.
Another factor that has an extremely strong influence on our will is our external environment. Our will power is highly susceptible and gets easily influenced based on our tendencies and inability to say “no”. Our environment plays a huge role in this. If we surround ourselves with people who inadvertently bring these tendencies out, then we are distracted, tempted, and influenced negatively. On the other hand, if we surround ourselves with positive influences, such as supportive friends and family, healthy habits, and a clean and organized living space, it can be much easier to develop and maintain will power.
One of the most important things we can do to cultivate will power is to become more self-aware. I have been a strong proponent of this and talked about this in my previous blogs and posts as well. For the sake of repeating, I will repeat it again that Self-awareness is the key to understanding our own Thoughts, Behaviours, and Habits, and it is the key to identifying the things that are holding us back. By becoming more self-aware, we begin to recognize when our EGO is leading us astray, and we take steps to resist its influence and stay focused on our goals and aspirations. In our lives we stray into the world driven by our corporate identity and we forget that we have a personal identity as well. Our will is at the mercy of our managers and our corporate culture. Our thoughts and emotions most of the times are slaves to our corporate success and our ego takes over so that we can compete in the rat race and succeed. From my own corporate experience, I would advise to have a balance and use will power to your advantage and resist the temptation.
