Barrier Breach #2 : The 3 Determinants

Hey guys!

Barrier Breach is a series I started to effectively counter urges and triggers by creating and focusing on barriers. This will help you not only to stop your addiction, but also helps in developing self-control. This results in not only beating your addiction, but, also in productivity in various other aspects of your daily life.

Right, so, today's post is going to be on something that I'd like to call the "3 determinants". This refers to the 3 most important factors that you have to think about before you start a daunting task, as to motivate you to continue whenever you're feeling down, or just plain understanding why you're doing that particular task.

Remember how I mentioned in the introduction that the methods I write about will help you not only stop your addiction, but, also increase productivity in other aspects of life? well, this is a prime example of the statement.

Right, let's get straight to it. The three determinants are Rewards, Consequences, and Distractions. So, what does this all mean? Let's run them down one by one.

Rewards are what you gain or benefit from a task. These benefits are usually long-term, so, we don't do the particular task because our human nature is quite used to getting the things we want quick and easy.
To give a better understanding, I'm going to refer to 2 examples for each determinant. First, let's take the situation of studying for a test. The reward you obtain is pretty easy to guess. You ace the test, and you obviously get better marks at the end of the year. You obtain these benefits after a long time, so you tend not to study.
The 2nd example is NoFap. You obviously know what not fapping does to your body, mind, and soul. Yet, these benefits come much later, so you keep on fapping anyway, as you get short-term pleasure.

Consequences are the effects of not doing a particular task. The consequences also come much later, so you usually don't give a rat's arse about what's going to happen. Let's take the exact same situations once again.
First, if you don't study for the test, the consequences are again, pretty obvious. You flunk the test, and get a less-than-average grade at the end of the year.
Second, if you continue fapping, there are a plethora of physical, mental, and spiritual issues that come along with it.
Once again, these consequences come long-term, and once again, you do not pay attention to it.

Distractions are what deviates you from the task you should be doing. This is often the very essence of procrastination, and becomes an issue in the long-term.
Again, taking in the 2 examples, the distractions are quite similar between the two. In our time and age, one major distraction is the internet. Other distractions vary from individual to individual.

So, now, what are you going to do that you're armed with this essential information? I obviously wouldn't talk about all this without a suitable solution, wouldn't I?
Well, the great thing about the 3 determinants are that you can tweak them to your advantage.

If we take both Rewards and Consequences, There is one common element to both, which makes us ignore them in the long run, which is the long-term element. So, the way you can change it to your advantage is by converting the long-term rewards and consequences into short-term ones.
Let me explain how it works. We'll start with rewards. Suppose you finish studying for a test, or you go a whole month without fapping. Then you can reward yourself by watching an episode of The Flash, or by hanging out with your friends. Whatever your fancy.
If we take the example of consequences, one effective method is monetary loss. You can donate a set amount, like $20, for example, every time you don't study, or you relapse.

Another thing you should know is that you're in complete control of your distractions. If you find that you cannot do your work properly, just remove the distractions.

So, finally, if you're aware of the 3 determinants, and you take effective steps to tweak them, it can lead to a better chance of success. Be sure to utilize it in all walks of life.

And that's the end of Barrier Breach #2 : The 3 Determinants. I'm a 15 year old fighting hard against addiction, and the methods I learn, I talk about in the series. Your likes would help me a lot and would help others to know about it.
If you have any comment, contribution, or question, don't forget to leave it below, and I'll try my level best to keep these series updated. Until next time, have a good one.

Cheers,
Hyperaktiv

 

You're welcome!