Book Review: "Willpower Doesn't Work" by Benjamin Hardy

It feels strange to call this a "book review" for a book like this.

I bought it because I was drawn to the subtitle, "WILL POWER DOESN'T WORK."
You often find yourself thinking, "I can't stick to a diet," "I can't keep up with self-study," or "I'm just no good at this, am I?" This book's main point is that this is never because a person's willpower is weak, but rather because they haven't placed themselves in the right environment! It then goes on to write about what kind of environment one should place themselves in.

I have also had many experiences where I tried to do something but couldn't keep it up in the end. I would renew my resolve every time I failed, and after repeating that cycle and failing, I realized: "Oh, I have weak willpower."
Since I have that self-awareness, I intentionally incorporate "systematization" into my work and everything else I do.

For example, I have news set to flow in automatically, and I have chats sent periodically with announcements from companies and government agencies that are relevant to us.
Regarding investments, I do the same thing; I have alert emails sent so I don't have to go check the charts myself (though I end up getting curious and checking them anyway).

Because I hold that philosophy, I read through this book while empathizing with its content.
There are four specific points I intend to incorporate into my life.

1. Write a journal every morning

It seems that even just five minutes every morning, writing down your goals, how you are feeling right now, and what you plan to do that day on paper is good. However, even after reading it, I honestly didn't know what a "journal" was, so I will look into that while I get started.

2. Set up "If I do X, then I will do Y."

It is easy to decide, "I'm going on a diet! So I'll cut back on sweets!" but it is difficult to actually resist the temptation of sweets when the time comes.
Therefore, it seems effective to decide on rules in advance, such as "If I feel like eating something sweet, I will do push-ups."
It seems that while desires don't just disappear, they can be replaced by other actions, and I would like to put this into practice as well.

3. Disconnect from devices

This is especially true for the bedroom. If I take my smartphone to bed, I inevitably end up looking at it, and then I can't sleep.
Also, the living room. There shouldn't be anything on the internet more important than playing with my children, so I think I will try not to take my smartphone into the living room or bedroom. I'm even thinking about buying pants without pockets.

4. Create a complete "off" time

I have a bit of a "muscle-brain" side, and I have held the value that it's better to work without any on/off switches, but I think I will try stopping that.
It's difficult to do it every single day (though I suppose it might not be), so I will start by making just Sunday a completely "off" day. I don't think much will change since I don't actually work that much, but it's a fresh start!

I especially want to keep up with 1 and 3. I wonder if this is also relying on the power of willpower?

Points that caught my attention

This is a bit off-topic, but there was a passage that caught my attention while reading this book.
It is the following sentence.

Is this a way of thinking that aligns with Stoic philosophy?
I am not denying this statement; in fact, I think there are parts of my own life that have roughly followed this line of thinking.

However, a thought has recently been emerging that perhaps by making the "now" suffer for the sake of the future, I am not actually living in the "now." To take it to an extreme, since the "future" doesn't exist, isn't it unhealthy to endure the present for the sake of that future?

There is the fable of the ant and the grasshopper, but even looking at that as a result, the grasshopper made fun memories in the summer, while the ant just worked during that time. Winter might have been tough for the grasshopper (some versions even have an ending where they die), but while the ant was able to live an easy life, if you ask if it was "fun," it wasn't, was it? After all, it's snowing outside and there's nothing you can do.

Given that, even if there are timelines where one ends up dying, couldn't it be said that the grasshopper who thoroughly enjoyed the summer is happier because they know what true happiness is?

I am, of course, on the side of the ant, but I also have a sort of self-destructive desire somewhere, and I think that's why I envy the grasshopper, which is what leads to this sense of discomfort.

On the other hand, I feel like this way of thinking is the foundation of capitalism, and in that sense, I was thinking that the grasshopper's mindset might be inappropriate in this society.

I wonder how it really is, though.
I wonder if there will come a time when I realize that 'tomorrow is now!'