As the world is getting faster, gratification also is delivered in a matter of moments whenever you ask for it. However, when looked closer, these instant gratifications are more of a distraction from what truly touches our souls.
So what takes you to seek it in the first place?
Either it is that you don’t know what you want or somehow believe that whatever you want is far away from you to bring the gratification you want from it.
And just like many gaps, we have bridged this gap also. But how?
By opening up never-ending places to grab a bite to soothe your taste buds. By making it easier to grab booze or a pill (you know).
You demand gratification, you get it instantly. Not somewhere in the vague future, but here and now. Isn’t it great?
Not really. Realize that anything worthwhile having isn’t delivered to you on demand. Instead, it calls you to stretch yourself a bit and get it if you want it enough.
So that is the reason #1 why you should be skeptical of instant gratifications. But there are many more.
Why beat instant gratification?
1. It is addictive
Fast food, alcohol, hanging out, etc. may be fun. But the dilemma is each time you have it, you are reinforcing its power unto you.
For example, grabbing your favorite burger may be suppressing your cravings at the moment. But at the same time, it is also giving you a good enough time so that you come back to have it again. And again. And again.
So the need for instant gratification doesn’t go away when you are done having it, it only comes back stronger and ultimately makes you addicted to it.
2. It makes you impatient
It is obvious that anything you get instantly doesn’t make you patient. In fact, you also expect other things to happen that quickly. But that’s only fantasy.
Remember, truly rewarding stuff shows itself only when you practice some self-discipline and patience to have it. However, instant gratification will put an opposite impression on you.
3. Beating it makes you perform better in life overall
There is a popular study that was published in 1972 – The Marshmallow Experiment – conducted by a Stanford Professor named Walter Mischel.
In this, he gathered hundreds of children between the age of 4 and 5. He give each of them a marshmallow and told them that the child who doesn’t eat it while he is gone for 15 minutes will get another one.
In other words, enjoy one now or get 2 marshmallows 15 minutes later.
This put those children in a cute little dilemma of their own. Some gave up immediately, some tried but eventually, the marshmallow got the better of them, and some children were able to delay the gratification.
But this wasn’t it. The experimenters tracked those kids to see how they were doing later in life and the results makes the ultimate case for practicing delayed gratification.
Those children with better self-control were performing much better academically, reported lower levels of stress, and had better social skills.
So, now, do you have anything in favor of being tangled in never-ending instant gratifications? If not, then let’s see how to grab it from its collar and knock it down for your own sake.
How to beat instant gratification?
Here is the good news. Even if you would have fallen into the category of children who instantly ate the marshmallow had you been there, you can rise from it to make yourself better disciplined at any point in your life.
But how? By taking down the demon one small punch at a time.
- Having an urge to check your social media? Delay it to later and keep on doing your work.
- Having a craving to eat junk food? Beat your cravings with something more healthy.
- Getting distracted from your work? Go somewhere else or try building momentum towards it.
I get it. All this is easier said than done. But habits expert, James Clear has cleared the way for you.
He suggests in his blog post to start incredibly small toward the habit you are trying to build. In other words, he suggests improving one thing by just one percent every day.
And to increase its effectiveness, do what comedian Jerry Seinfeld suggests. Track your habit by noting if you followed through with your habit today or not.
So when if you perform your small habit, cross off today’s date in your calendar and keep on building a chain. This gives you visual proof that you are making progress and thus, GRATIFICATION.
Conclusion
Success depends to a huge extent on whether you can delay gratification or not. And you are up against a world where instant gratifications are getting more and more … well, instant.
So will you enjoy the marshmallow now or delay it further to build a better future for yourself?
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