3 Substitutes for Willpower: Strategies to Stay on Track

When it comes to achieving goals and sticking to healthy routines, many people rely on willpower to make the best choices. But let’s face it—willpower isn’t always reliable. It fluctuates with stress, fatigue, and even the time of day. Fortunately, you don’t need an endless reserve of willpower to succeed. Instead, you can implement smart strategies that act as substitutes for willpower, helping you stay on track even when your motivation wanes.

Here are three practical and effective substitutes for willpower:

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1. Habit Stacking¹

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Building new habits can feel overwhelming and challenging, but habit stacking simplifies the process. This method involves attaching a new habit to an existing one, making it easier to integrate into your daily routine without too much extra effort and thought.

How it works:

• Identify a habit you already do consistently: brushing your teeth, making coffee, or checking emails.
• Pair the new habit with the existing one. For example:some text
  • After brushing your teeth, you might do 10 push-ups or squats to help meet your daily movement goal.
  • While waiting for your coffee to brew, you could practice deep breathing or meditation for stress management.
  • Before opening your computer/emails for the day, you might finish one cup of water to increase your daily hydration.

By anchoring the new habit to a well-established one, you create a mental trigger, reducing the need for willpower to remember or initiate the behavior.

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2.  Designing a Favorable Environment

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Out of sight, out of mind. One of the most effective ways to avoid temptation is to eliminate it from your environment. This strategy reduces the need to make decisions, which can deplete your willpower over time.

Examples:

• Have off-plan foods in the house for other family members? Keep them off the counter and hidden in drawers or pantry. Place nutritious pre-portioned snacks on the counter or front and center in the pantry so you can reach for something on-plan first.
• Struggling with endless scrolling and sedentary activities? Put your phone in another room or set a timer so you know when it’s time to get up and moving instead of sitting.
• Want to avoid buying off-plan foods at the grocery store? Choose an online shopping option where you can fill your cart without being tempted in the grocery store by foods that are on display or sale.

By removing temptations, you create an environment that supports your goals, so you don’t have to rely on willpower to resist.

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3.  Creating a Schedule

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When you schedule tasks or activities, you make decisions in advance, reducing the need for willpower in the moment. A schedule provides structure and ensures that your priorities are accounted for in your day.

How to do it:

• Plan your day the night before, identifying when and where you'll tackle your key tasks.
• Block out specific times for important habits, like exercising, meditating, or meal prepping.
• Stick to your schedule as closely as possible, treating it as a commitment to yourself.

The key is to make your schedule realistic and aligned with your goals. Once something is on your calendar, you’re more likely to follow through because you’ve already committed to it.

Why These Strategies Work

Each of these substitutes for willpower works by minimizing decision fatigue and additional mental load as you work on behavior change. Instead of relying on motivation or self-control, you’re building systems and routines that make success inevitable.

The beauty of these strategies is that they’re sustainable. With habit stacking, removing temptations, and creating a schedule, you can set yourself up for long-term success without the constant battle to "stay strong" or “try harder.”  Remember, success isn’t about having unshakable willpower—it’s about creating an environment and habits that do the heavy lifting for you.

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_{1. Clear, J. (2018). Atomic habits: tiny changes, remarkable results : an easy & proven way to build good habits & break bad ones. New York, New York, Avery, an imprint of Penguin Random House.}

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