Resisting versus Savoring

There is a popular topic that emerges out of self-help material. During a day, we make many decisions. As we progress through the day making decisions, our mental energy is slowly eroded. At the end of the day, we have no more energy left. As a result, our decision making grinds to a halt. To avoid this situation, most of the self-help authors urges to make these decisions easy for you. For instance, if you have trouble going out for a jog, keep the jogging shoes closer to you like near you bed. So when you get up, you can quickly put it on. The easy reach to your jogging shoes will reduce the time you grapple with the decision cycle.

On a similar line, the effort spent on resisting pleasure drains us out of energy. Eventually, we succumb to having an excess of what we have deprived ourselves. A study of French parenting shows this phenomenon by taking the example of how children are taught to eat. The French teach their children the pleasure or plaisir of eating instead of extolling the virtues of healthy food and the key things to avoid. This approach results in the kids growing up to savor food versus resisting and then succumbing.

Tags: Parenthood, Resist, Savor

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