“Willpower is a condiment” not a permanent way of being

Today I interviewed the beautiful Hiro Boga, a business leader, my mentor and someone I respect.

I was captivated by this quote from Hiro. “Willpower is a condiment.” Hiro’s origins are from India…and so it is no surprise that the conversation was spiced with delicious quotes like this.

In the world of business, relentless willpower and drive are often seen as the central thesis of an entrepreneur’s existence. Yet anyone who has tried to live by sheer will will know that there is only one outcome.

Crash and burn.

Burnout…of self and quite possibly the crash of a business. Willpower alone is not enough to craft anything.

As a 20-year early morning runner/swimmer, in the early days, I had to call on willpower to maintain a practice that supported my whole life, and was informed by my desire to stay healthy on all levels. Sure, there were days when getting out of a warm bed in the dark required willpower. I rarely need willpower now…the value I get from my daily practice far exceeds the need for willpower.

And that is the point…if I did not have a clear desire to honour my own body’s need for physical movement, and my intention to stay healthy on all levels, then all the willpower in the world would not have kept me running for 20 years.

This is why so many exercise and diet programs fail…the starting place is not from true and deep desire.

When we start from deep desire, when we connect to the calling of our 2.23am moments, and wrap this desire in a blanket of clear intention…at some point, willpower as a condiment might be necessary and useful.

Photo credit: Tord Sollie via Compfight