👉 Most ‘virtues’ are just mental shortcuts to prioritise the long term over the short term. To prioritise self constraint & self discipline vs instant gratification.
“But wouldn’t that make life boring?” you may ask. To always hold back, to always take a calculated approach to every decision. To quote Mouse from my all time favourite movie, The Matrix: “To deny our own impulses is to deny the very thing that makes us human.”
My tip: 👉 Try to distinguish between the ‘impulse to create’ vs the ‘impulse to consume’. It is good for you and for others, to give into the impulse to create. It leads to the state of ‘flow’, helps you to listen to your subconscious, and is the birth place of truly original art. It can even be the impulse to create an experience or a memory. (e.g. singing in the shower, calling your parents, going on a spontaneous road trip).
The impulse to consume gives only instant gratification that is purely short lived and more often than not, leaves you feeling dissatisfied and craving for more. (e.g eating that extra piece of cake, spending that extra time on social media).
Learning to distinguish between these two impulses can help you jump all in, or practice fully aware self-restraint.