Hey, happy New Year!

The episode you are about to hear, which comes from the Freakin'omics Radio Archives,

is pretty much the perfect New Year's episode, because if you're like most people, you make

a New Year's resolution, and then you're pretty good about it for a week or three, and then

you think, eh, I think I'll stop now.

But wouldn't it be nice to find a way to keep going?

This episode will tell you how.

It's called When Willpower Isn't Enough.

I hope it helps.

So, I struggle at the end of a long day to get myself to the gym, even though I know I

should go.

And at the end of a long day, I also struggle with the desire to watch my favorite TV shows

instead of getting work done.

And so, I actually realized that those two temptations, those two struggles I face, could

be combined to solve both problems.

That's Katie Milkman.

And I'm an assistant professor at the Wharton School, where I study behavioral economics

and how people make choices.

Okay.

Which might lead one to think that you are an economist by training, which would make

one wrong, correct?

That's right.

...