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  • Published: 24 October 2012
  • ISBN: 9780141049489
  • Imprint: Penguin Press
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 304
  • RRP: $24.99

Willpower

Rediscovering Our Greatest Strength



The science of self-control, and how everyone can master it

Can you resist everything except temptation? In a hedonistic age full of distractions, it's hard to possess willpower - or in fact even understand why we should need it. Yet it's actually the most important factor in achieving success and a happy life, shown to be more significant than money, looks, background or intelligence. This book reveals the secrets of self-control.

Here Roy Baumeister, one of the world's most esteemed and influential psychologists, and journalist John Tierney, turn this notion on its head. They show us that willpower is like a muscle that can be strengthened with practice and improved over time. The latest laboratory work shows that self-control has a physical basis to it and so is dramatically affected by simple things such as eating and sleeping - to the extent that a life-changing decision may go in different directions depending on whether it's made before or after lunch. Based on years of psychological research and filled with practical advice, this book will teach you how to gain from self-control without pain, and discover the very real power in willpower. The results are nothing short of life-changing.

  • Published: 24 October 2012
  • ISBN: 9780141049489
  • Imprint: Penguin Press
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 304
  • RRP: $24.99

About the authors

Roy F. Baumeister

Roy F. Baumeister is the author of Willpower and a social psychologist who explores how we think about the self, and why we feel and act the way we do. He is especially known for his work on the subjects of willpower, self-control, and self-esteem, and how they relate to human morality and success.

John Tierney

John Tierney is the author of Willpower and writes the 'Findings' science column for the New York Times. His writing has won awards from the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Institute of Physics.