The white bear problem is a phrase that psychologists use to describe the ironic process theory which was popularized by Dostoyevsky in this famous quote:
“Try to pose for yourself this task: not to think of a polar bear, and you will see that the cursed thing will come to mind every minute.” – Winter Notes on Summer Impressions, 1863
The concept is that if you conceive of an idea, or attempt to suppress it, then that is the only thing you will be able to think of. This issue is increased when under stress, or when doing something you would really rather not do. You will remember Ray from the popular movie Ghostbusters. He was supposed to keep his mind blank, but all he could think of was the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man.
This concept explains a challenge that I have experienced with will power. As each day goes on, my will power to keep up my good habits gets impacted and stressed. If I am not careful, my mind might come up with a thought that I do not want – such as “just go back to bed.” I will actually start to visualize what staying in bed would feel like, how warm and inviting, how comfortable. I am amazed at how quickly my mind can formulate a distinct image of what I am trying desperately to avoid. In this case, the desire to sleep in and avoid my morning routine is my white bear problem.
In browsing the Internet for building or improving will power, I see many suggestions – all of them good. One that stood out was the concept of “thinking of something else.” When your white bear thought comes into view – you may want to try the technique of having another compelling thought to think of that will allow you to delay or slow down the visions of what you do not want to think about.
This morning while running, I found myself thinking about quitting. Just stopping, turning around and walking home and spending the morning taking a nice snooze. This white bear thought was hard to escape once it formulated in my mind, and if I allow that thought to become to powerful then I will act on that thought and the progress I have made toward building a good habit will have a major setback. Luckily, I have been working on this visualization technique where I start to think about what I want to become and how I am going to get there.
I started to focus on that thought and pretty soon the white bear was not so much a prevalent thought anymore. I was able to focus on something else, and by so doing my will power was increased. I realize this is a little strange, me comparing my thoughts of going back to bed a white bear, but hopefully you get the point – think of something else and get your mind off of quitting. That will help you build more will power.
Guy Reams (93)
365 Member
