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Learn how to give up one pleasurable thing for another
Wednesday, 2 January 2008
We humans are funny creatures. We seem to be part animal on one side, and part angel on the other. When I go to the zoo and I observe the creatures there, I'm often struck by how similar their behaviours and motivations are to our own. They act on lust, hunger, power, love and anger, just as we do.
Yet, there is part of us they will never know. Somewhere inside us is the ability to create great works of art, discover new worlds, and understand the universe in ways they could never contemplate.
It is this conflict between our two halves that dominates much of our lives. On one side, we have our base animal instincts pulling at us urgently. On the other, our higher faculties of reason try to motivate us to do the right thing and think long term.
It's these higher faculties that take time and effort to develop. You should put work into allowing them to dominate and control your inner-beast.
And the best way of doing this is to learn the habit of giving up one pleasurable thing for another. Specifically, you should learn to put off immediate gratification in anticipation of an even greater reward in the future.
For your base instinct is to consume whatever comes your way as soon as it arrives. A resource not consumed in the wilderness is usually a resource wasted. Food not eaten or shared straight away will almost certainly go bad or be stolen. The moment is the main thing that matters under those circumstances. You may not be alive tomorrow to enjoy the fruits of your labour.
It's this inner-belief that drives people to consume today and forget about tomorrow. Those who buy things they can't afford on credit are following such instincts.
The classic way to give up one pleasurable thing for another and train yourself is through savings. Rather than spending all your income today, put some aside for tomorrow and invest it. Learn how to sacrifice today's desires for tomorrow's reward.
But there are other ways also. Learn how to eat less and exercise more. Or commit a selfless act to reinforce a friendship. Once again, pleasure postponed leads to a reward.
Learn how to give up one pleasurable thing for another. The more you can control this aspect of your life, the more successful you will become.
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