The Value of Delaying Gratification

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“Tomorrow is the day when idlers work, and fools reform.” ~ Edward Young.

Are the words “Delayed Gratification” four-letter words to you? Do you understand the value of delaying gratification in order to achieve your goal?

Can you put off immediate pleasure in order to get greater pleasure later on? Students in particular are faced with this dilemma on a daily basis. There are always several different things they would rather be doing than studying.

Party or Study?

To illustrate let’s compare partying to studying? Partying is certainly a more pleasant enjoyable fun-filled experience than studying. So why would any student study instead of party? Because they understand what studying will do for them in the long-term. If they study, they will pass their courses, graduate and eventually get the career that they want to spend the rest of their lives working in. By delaying gratification they will gain financial independence and possibly even financial abundance.

Do not Procrastinate

Work now, gain later. Sacrifice now, win later. A dieter also must use the concept of delaying gratification. In order to lose the weight, look great, be healthy, feel fit and energized, the dieter must give up the unhealthy fattening foods. Faced with the choice of enjoying the pleasure of eating a delicious ice cream now or enjoying the pleasure of looking and feeling fabulous in a few months from now, a decision must be made either to delay gratification or to experience instant gratification.

Very young children who do not yet have a fully formed conceptualization of consequences and time find it difficult to delay gratification because they do not understand it. As adults we do not have the excuse of not being able to understand the consequences of our immediate actions on our future life. Most of us fully understand the importance of delaying gratification in order to achieve our goals and get what we want out of life.

Exercise Discipline

So why do we so often give in to instant gratification thereby sabotaging our dreams and goals? We simply refuse to be disciplined. We quite simply make the easier choice. Discipline is self-taught. It is not a quality you have or do not have. It is a quality you cultivate. Discipline is a matter of making the goal-achieving choice at every opportunity. Discipline grows with practice. The more disciplined you are the easier it becomes to exercise self-discipline at the next opportunity.

Visualize success and failure

One way to promote the ability to delay gratification is to imagine how you will feel once you achieve your goal. If you want to lose 10 pounds, imagine how proud you will feel, how great you will look. Imagine all the compliments you will receive. Imagine it in detail. And conversely, imagine how disappointed you will be in yourself if you give in to instant gratification. Then make your choice.

If you want to convince yourself to study instead of party, imagine yourself graduating. Imagine the pride on the faces of your loved ones. Imagine getting the job you want. Imagine getting the home you want. Imagine the consequences of your success. Then imagine the consequences of your failure. You will become a drop out. You will become a bum, possibly selling fast food and making minimum wage for the rest of your life. Now make your choice. Choose to delay gratification and thus, create the life you want.

In order to successfully delay gratification and achieve your goals, in every situation, always ask yourself:

“Will this action take me closer to or further from achieving my goals?”

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Related Articles:

• Leading a Deliberate Conscious Life
• Achieving Your Goals Part I – Goal Identification
• Who said life was meant to be easy?
• Optimism & Resilience
• The Power of Realistic Positive Thinking
• Your Capacity for Change

Posted in Choices, Goals, Motivation, Self Discipline |   1 Comment »

This entry was posted on Friday, October 13th, 2006 at 6:53 pm and is filed under Choices, Goals, Motivation, Self Discipline . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.