The ability to discipline yourself to delay gratification in the short term in order to enjoy greater rewards in the long term is the indispensable prerequisite for success.
Maxwell Maltz
1899 – 1975
Would you rather be a king or a slave? That might seem like a silly question; I think we all dream of having total control of our lives, of ruling our own small world. I don’t know anyone who wants to be a slave. The idea of being a slave is frightening.
If we want to be a king in our own world and we fear or hate the idea of being a slave, what are some things we can and should do to advance the former and avoid the latter?
I think a good first step is to look to Cato the Elder (234 B.C. – 149 B.C.) for some advice. Here’s what he had to say about the subject: “If you are ruled by mind you are a king, if by body, a slave.” That statement sounds fairly definite, but exactly what does it mean and how do we apply it to our lives?
Modern neuroscientists have made great strides in explaining how the brain works and why we do what we do. They can explain that the limbic system (the emotional part of the brain) is responsible for what Cato termed “being ruled by the body”. The thinking part of the brain, the prefrontal cortex, is what he called the mind. Cato understood that if we allow our impulses to rule our lives, then we become slaves to those impulses.
Here are some behaviors that spring from impulses and develop into life controlling habits: addictions such as smoking, drug or alcohol use, and gambling; poor exercise and eating habits; and the major one: inability to delay gratification. When we put off doing the things we should do for those things which promise immediate pleasure, we become a slave to those pleasures. We trap ourselves economically and socially.
We all like to claim that we have freedom of choice, that we are a free society. But if you look at your life, you’ll find that by the time you reach adulthood, your actions have imposed severe limits on what you can do. You are, in effect, a slave to your habits.
The good news is that you have the power to change. The more ingrained the habits, the more difficult it will be to break them. But realize the truth in Cato’s message and become aware of those situations where your impulses — the desires of the body — are overriding the mind. Recognizing the areas that need change is the first step toward improvement.
Make a list of the changes you desire in your life. Decide why you want to change — that is, identify the value to you from making these alterations. Then start gradual action, taking small but consistent steps to develop new habits. Become aware of the benefits of following the mind and the pitfalls of letting your body rule your world.
Cultivate only the habits that you are willing should master you.
Elbert Hubbard
1856 – 1915
Copyright © 2011 John Chancellor