Last week, we started a discussion on the topic of conscientiousness. If you missed Part 1 of this discussion, it might be helpful to catch up before reading today’s blog.
First of all, thank you for the great
feedback on this topic. This subject seemed to resonate with several of you. Like me, some of you even saw the benefit of
forwarding this to your sons, daughters and other family members as well as
your agents and staff.
After making the case for hiring conscientious individuals as new agents, we left an obvious question unanswered:
Can individuals improve their level of conscientiousness?
Again, we’ll let Erik Barker answer that question based upon research that he collected on the topic.
Note: I adapted the excerpt below to fit the WorkPuzzle environment by shortening it significantly. The original blog is much longer, but worth reading if this topic intrigues you.
“Conscientiousness is the fundamental [character] trait most closely tied to self-control and it tracks with nearly every type of success across your lifespan.
…So maybe you’re not the most conscientious person. Maybe you can be impulsive and often lack self-control. Me too.
This does not mean either of us should be shopping for a cardboard box on skid row. Unlike IQ, self-control (and in turn, conscientiousness) can be increased. Here’s how.
Like a muscle, exerting willpower makes your self-control ability stronger over time. However, willpower is like energy — using it burns it up, and you have to replenish it. Anything that involves self-control draws on that one willpower fuel source. For example, dieting takes energy away from your ability to hold your tongue in a conversation — and vice versa.
I’ve posted many scientifically supported willpower tips over the years but I’m just going to focus on my favorite ones here.
1. Use willpower to build willpower.
Just a little bit of practice every day can increase self-control and improving self-control in one area of life tends to improve all areas of life.
2. Automate your behavior.
When something is a habit and you don’t have to make decisions or even think about it, it doesn’t use much willpower. The more you can make something habitual, the less self-control you burn.
And you can further improve your self-control by planning. Decide ahead of time how you will respond when willpower is taxed and you’ll be much more likely to default to that. Without a clear plan in your head you’re more likely to succumb.
3. Pre-commit to good behavior.
How can you use pre-commitment to keep yourself from giving in to unwanted desires? Use “precommitment devices” to rein in desire. For example, by asking your significant other, on the way to a restaurant, not to let you order dessert when you get there, you’ll most likely be successful in avoiding dessert.
4. Replenish your willpower regularly.
Need to quickly replenish willpower? Eat something. Yes, it’s that simple.
One research study demonstrated kids who skip breakfast misbehave more than kids who eat their Wheaties. Give them a snack and they’re little angels again. The experiment was conducted by telling all the children in a class to skip breakfast one morning, and then, by random assignment, half of the children were given a good breakfast at school. The others got nothing. During the first part of the morning, the children who got breakfast learned more and misbehaved less (as judged by monitors who didn’t know which children had eaten). Then, after all the students were given a healthy snack in the middle of the morning, the differences disappeared as if by magic.
5. Develop and maintain good relationships.
Self-control is not selfish. Willpower enables us to get along with others and override impulses that are based on personal short-term interests. It’s the same lesson that Navy SEAL commandos learn during their famous Hell Week (continual running, swimming, crawling, and shivering that they must endure on less than five hours’ sleep).
At least three-quarters of the men in each SEAL class typically fail to complete training, and the survivors aren’t necessarily the ones with the most muscles, according to Eric Greitens, a SEAL officer. In recalling the fellow survivors of his Hell Week, he points out their one common quality: ‘They had the ability to step outside of their own pain, put aside their own fear, and ask: How can I help the guy next to me? They had more than the ‘fist’ of courage and physical strength. They also had a heart large enough to think about others.’'
Summary
Back to the original question:
Can individuals improve their level of conscientiousness (and experience all the great benefits described in our last discussion)?
Yes. But, it’s not easy and doing so requires an understanding of the connection that conscientiousness has to self-control and willpower.
In essence, conscientiousness is the character trait of saying “no” to our own selfish desires and “yes” to the meaningful desires of others. Once we’re convinced this is the right thing to do, it takes self-control to make it happen (especially the saying “no” to ourselves part).
Finally, our self-control becomes stronger when we become successful at managing our wills. Surprisingly, exercising willpower has a lot to do with tactics (not just desire) as described above.
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Editor's Note: This article was written by Ben Hess. Ben is the Founding Partner and Managing Director of Tidemark, Inc. and a regular contributor to WorkPuzzle.
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