I think the issue you raise here boils down to that of having a credible commitment to punish in the event of defection. It is very credible that the company you work for will indeed fire you if you don’t do your job. Roland in the comments suggests “Find a romantic partner who is willing to give you a kick in the ass if you procrastinate.” This is another external source of commitment, although it might or might not be credible—will your romantic partner want to inflict enough harm to get you motivated?
The key is to be able to generate a credible commitment with yourself, and from my own personal experience I think this is possible. I take promises very seriously—if I make an agreement with someone, I will fulfill it, which means I don’t make a promise unless I am serious about keeping it. So far, anyway, I have yet to break a promise.
In order to overcome akrasia, I hijack this obligation system for my own use. I can make a promise to myself to do something. But where is the loss aversion? After all, can I credibly punish myself if I decide to break the promise? The reason it works is because if I make this explicit promise to myself and then subsequently break it, I can no longer say I have never broken a promise.
Unfortunately, because the stakes are so high, I only rarely make these kinds of commitments. I still struggle daily with akrasia for small decisions.
I think the issue you raise here boils down to that of having a credible commitment to punish in the event of defection. It is very credible that the company you work for will indeed fire you if you don’t do your job. Roland in the comments suggests “Find a romantic partner who is willing to give you a kick in the ass if you procrastinate.” This is another external source of commitment, although it might or might not be credible—will your romantic partner want to inflict enough harm to get you motivated?
The key is to be able to generate a credible commitment with yourself, and from my own personal experience I think this is possible. I take promises very seriously—if I make an agreement with someone, I will fulfill it, which means I don’t make a promise unless I am serious about keeping it. So far, anyway, I have yet to break a promise.
In order to overcome akrasia, I hijack this obligation system for my own use. I can make a promise to myself to do something. But where is the loss aversion? After all, can I credibly punish myself if I decide to break the promise? The reason it works is because if I make this explicit promise to myself and then subsequently break it, I can no longer say I have never broken a promise.
Unfortunately, because the stakes are so high, I only rarely make these kinds of commitments. I still struggle daily with akrasia for small decisions.