Hint: It’s all about planning ahead to stay in control.
Rather than waiting for temptation to raise its inevitable head and struggling to resist it, researchers at the University of Wyoming say it’s more effective to plan in advance to manage those temptations with well-thought-out self-control strategies. In their study, published in the October 2019 Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, the researchers found that the following four strategies, when planned ahead, are generally more effective than waiting until you are face to face with whatever tempts you and forced to try to resist in the moment:
1. Situation Selection. Whenever possible, avoid any situations where you know you will confront temptation. For instance, if you’re tempted to eat junk food, stay away from fast-food restaurants (don’t even drive by), and don’t go down the snack or baked-goods aisles of the supermarket (or any other aisle that’s filled with temptation).
2. Situation Modification. If you can’t completely avoid a situation that may involve temptation, do what you can to reduce the pull. If you’re at a party or a club and trying not to drink alcohol, stay as far away from the bar as possible. Try to connect with other non-drinkers.
3. Distraction. Divert your attention away from temptation. For instance, if you’re trying not to overeat or over-drink at a party, stay engaged in conversations and always have a glass of water in hand to sip on.
4. Reappraisal. Change the way you think about the temptation so it becomes less appealing. Craving that double cheeseburger? Remind yourself that if you give in, you’ll be eating ground-up animal muscle and artery-clogging fat.
You can try to neutralize most temptation by exerting self-control, but it’s not always easy. By proactively initiating these self-control strategies—by planning ahead—the researchers say you have a better chance of resisting temptation which, in turn, can help you move more quickly toward reaching your long-term goal of changing bad habits to good, once and for all.
Jeff Thomas
Publisher • Opinion Columnist • Licensed General Contractor • Real Estate Appraiser • New Orleans
Jeff Thomas is the publisher of Black Source Media and one of New Orleans’ most direct voices on civic affairs, economic justice, and Louisiana politics. He writes from the intersection of experience and accountability — as a licensed general contractor,a tech company founder and executive with over 30 years experience, and a businessman who has worked across the city’s civic, media, and construction ecosystems for decades.
His Sunday column covers Louisiana legislative politics, insurance discrimination, housing policy, and the forces shaping Black community life in New Orleans and across the state. Thomas writes in the tradition of Black journalists who hold power accountable without apology — building arguments from data, delivering verdicts from evidence, and speaking to Black New Orleans with the directness the moment demands.
He is also the principal of EA Inspection Services, LLC, a government inspection services company. Black Source Media is his platform for the civic conversation New Orleans has needed and too rarely had.
Selected Articles by Jeff Thomas
Black Neighborhoods Pay the Highest Insurance Rates in Louisiana. Here’s What They Don’t Want You to Know.
They Didn’t Yell the N-Word. They Went to Law School, Bided Their Time, and Rewrote the Constitution Instead.
Vappie vs. Morrell: Why Does Justice Look Different in New Orleans?
The State Has the Money. New Orleans East Just Needs Them to Use It.
The Failure of Mitch Landrieu
Publisher — Black Source Media
Jeff Thomas
Publisher • Opinion Columnist • Licensed General Contractor • Real Estate Appraiser • New Orleans
Jeff Thomas is the publisher of Black Source Media and one of New Orleans’ most direct voices on civic affairs, economic justice, and Louisiana politics. He writes from the intersection of experience and accountability — as a licensed general contractor,a tech company founder and executive with over 30 years experience, and a businessman who has worked across the city’s civic, media, and construction ecosystems for decades.
His Sunday column covers Louisiana legislative politics, insurance discrimination, housing policy, and the forces shaping Black community life in New Orleans and across the state. Thomas writes in the tradition of Black journalists who hold power accountable without apology — building arguments from data, delivering verdicts from evidence, and speaking to Black New Orleans with the directness the moment demands.
He is also the principal of EA Inspection Services, LLC, a government inspection services company. Black Source Media is his platform for the civic conversation New Orleans has needed and too rarely had.
Selected Articles by Jeff Thomas
Black Neighborhoods Pay the Highest Insurance Rates in Louisiana. Here’s What They Don’t Want You to Know.
They Didn’t Yell the N-Word. They Went to Law School, Bided Their Time, and Rewrote the Constitution Instead.
Vappie vs. Morrell: Why Does Justice Look Different in New Orleans?
The State Has the Money. New Orleans East Just Needs Them to Use It.
The Failure of Mitch Landrieu