Limits of Willpower: Resource Depletion and the Role of Mindset
What you believe about willpower matters for how you much you have, but belief may not be enough to get you through
My personal experience has taught me that self-control, or willpower, is somewhat of a limited engine of achievement. Getting my body fat levels from 18% to 15%, for example, has so far proven to be an impossible task despite my will to the contrary. Or am I misreading my own motivation? Are there other factors at play in all of this? No doubt there are, and research I have been reading lately has offered me some clues as to why I have consistently failed in the pursuit of my goal. This week, I’m taking a closer look at the limits of willpower and offering some research-informed tips for how you and I may improve our chances of success. Get this Free Resource and gain insights into the mental skills of peak performance.
Self-control is widely regarded as a cornerstone of personal and professional achievement. It enables individuals to delay gratification, manage emotions, sustain effort, and persist through adversity. If you want something, it’s up to you to make it happen, and if it doesn’t happen, it’s because you didn’t try hard enough. You’ve got to want it badly, or so the old adage goes. But I have always had a slight problem with this idea. It assumes that everyone possesses the same resources and resourcefulness, and the absence of success merely means you gave up too soon. Maybe that is true in certain circumstances and for some people, but the truth is often not so simple or convenient. As we will see, our beliefs about the limits of willpower matter.
Evidence from psychological science indicates that the capacity for self-regulation is not infinite. The theory of ego depletion, initially proposed by Baumeister and colleagues (1998), suggests that acts of self-control rely on a limited resource akin to mental energy. Once depleted, this theory suggests, subsequent efforts to self-regulate are likely to be impaired. Seems reasonable, but emerging research has introduced important qualifications to this model. Most notably, research by Job, Dweck, and Walton (2010) has demonstrated that our beliefs about personal willpower (implicit theories) can moderate the effects of depletion. In this essay, I refer to several important papers on the nature and limits of willpower and explore how dual perspectives may explain the limits of willpower and the implications for achievement.
Baumeister’s original ego-depletion model of willpower asserts that in self-regulation, we draw upon a finite resource. Engaging in a task requiring self-control impairs performance on subsequent self-control tasks (Baumeister et al., 1998). This “resource” model was inspired in part by biological accounts of energy expenditure, such as the idea that self-control depends on glucose availability (Gailliot & Baumeister, 2007). Over time, the theory evolved into a conservation model, which proposes that our brains manage limited resources by reducing further exertion after an initial period of effort (Muraven et al., 2006; Baumeister et al., 20241).
There is a compelling explanation here for diminished performance in the real world. In workplace contexts, for example, decision fatigue—understood as a form of ego depletion—in the studies of parole judge decision-making has been shown to reduce judicial lenience (Hemrajani & Hobert, 2024). In sports, studies have shown cognitive exertion impairs endurance, slows reaction time, and reduces motor accuracy (Van Cutsem et al., 20172; Brown et al., 2020). Interpersonal conflict has been shown to both cause and result from depleted self-control, creating potential feedback loops that reduce well-being and productivity in subjects (Baumeister et al., 2019).
However, these depletion effects are not inevitable. A significant challenge to the resource model emerged with the introduction of implicit theories about willpower. Job et al. (2010) found that individuals who believed willpower is a limited resource (limited theory) were more likely to show classic ego depletion effects—such as declining performance on subsequent tasks—than those who believed willpower is non-limited (non-limited theory). In a series of experiments, participants’ beliefs about willpower predicted whether or not they exhibited depletion effects after a demanding task. This research suggests that ego depletion is, at least in part, a product of individual mindset. What you believe about the limits of willpower, in other words, matters to how much you can access.
Subsequent studies have reinforced this view. For example, Job et al. (20153) demonstrated that the non-limited theory of willpower predicted sustained self-regulation over demanding academic and occupational tasks. Other research shows that endorsing a non-limited theory is associated with increased persistence, less fatigue, and improved affective outcomes (Savani & Job, 20174). These findings challenge a purely physiological explanation and highlight the importance of intrinsic motivation and cognitive factors in self-control.
In their 2024 meta-analysis, Baumeister et al. acknowledge these developments, integrating implicit theories into their broader ego depletion framework. While they maintain that self-control relies on a limited resource, they also suggest that beliefs about the limits of willpower influence how quickly and under what conditions we use of conserve this resource. For example, those of us who believe our willpower is non-limited may be less likely to engage in energy conservation behaviours, thereby sustaining performance. This integration represents a move towards a more subtle and complex biopsychosocial model of self-control.
The practical implications of these findings are significant for goal attainment and success in work and sport. Where a sustained effort is required, such as in education, elite sports, or high-stakes business environments, our beliefs about willpower can determine how effectively we cope with demands. Interventions that promote non-limited theories of willpower, such as brief psychoeducation, may help buffer against the adverse effects of depletion (Job et al., 2010). Additionally, several studies have shown meditation and mindfulness training, physical fitness, and motivational incentives reduce or eliminate ego depletion effects (Shabbani et al., 20205; Tai et al., 20216; Tang et al., 20247).
Nonetheless, there are boundaries to these effects. Even among those with a non-limited theory of willpower, extreme demands and prolonged cognitive exertion may lead to declines in performance. From a neurophysiological perspective, research suggests that intense use of the brain’s control systems leads to the accumulation of metabolites like adenosine (a building block of DNA), which inhibit further effort and simulate sleep-like brain activity (Baumeister et al., 2024; Wiehler et al., 2022). And so, while mindset matters, it may not entirely override the biological constraints on mental and physical performance.
What you can do about it
Challenges present themselves at every turn, and achievement seems constrained by the limits of our willpower. However, we may influence the extent of these limits not only by biological resources available to us but also by our beliefs about the limits of willpower. Based on the research by Baumeister et al. (2024) and the work of Veronika Job (), several evidence-based actions can help mitigate or overcome the limits of willpower. These actions fall into three main categories;
Belief-oriented strategies
Behavioural interventions
Environmental modifications
Adopt a Non-Limited Theory of Willpower
What it is: Believing willpower is not easily depleted and can be sustained with effort or purpose.
Why it works: People who view willpower as non-limited are less likely to exhibit ego depletion effects and more likely to persist on tasks (Job et al., 20108; Job et al., 2015).
Individuals with a non-limited belief sustain performance on cognitively demanding tasks.
These beliefs can buffer against performance declines even after initial self-control exertion.
Use Strategic Recovery Techniques
Psychological Detachment from Work
Temporarily disengaging from work-related thoughts and tasks helps replenish self-regulatory resources.
Detachment improves vitality and reduces evening depletion (Gombert et al., 20209).
Mindfulness and Meditation
Short mindfulness exercises reduce the effects of prior depletion, restoring accuracy and focus (Shabbani et al., 2020).
Adequate Sleep and Breaks
Sleep and structured breaks allow the brain to recover from sustained effort (Baumeister et al., 2024).
Enhance Physical Fitness
Regular physical activity is associated with better self-control and reduced susceptibility to ego depletion.
Fit people show lower antisocial or impulsive behaviour rates following mentally demanding tasks (Tai et al., 2021).
Optimise Task Timing and Order
People often perform better when demanding tasks are scheduled when their willpower is higher (e.g., in the mornings - although some people are better in the evening).
Baumeister et al. (2024) noted that proactive efforts in the morning led to more fatigue, whereas similar efforts in the afternoon were less depleting or even energising, depending on perceived control.
Baumeister, R. F., André, N., Southwick, D. A., & Tice, D. M. (2024). Self-control and limited willpower: Current status of ego depletion theory and research. Current Opinion in Psychology, 60, 101882.
Van Cutsem, J., Marcora, S., De Pauw, K., Bailey, S., Meeusen, R., & Roelands, B. (2017). The effects of mental fatigue on physical performance: A systematic review. Sports Medicine, 47(8), 1569–1588.
Job, V., Walton, G. M., Bernecker, K., & Dweck, C. S. (2015). Beliefs about willpower determine the impact of glucose on self-control. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 112(10), 3010–3015
Savani, K., & Job, V. (2017). Reverse ego-depletion: Acts of self-control can improve subsequent performance in individuals who hold a nonlimited theory of willpower. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 113(5), 703–716
Shabbani, F., Naderi, A., Borella, E., & Calmeiro, L. (2020). Does a brief mindfulness intervention counteract the detrimental effects of ego-depletion in basketball free throw under pressure? Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology, 9(2), 197–215
Tai, K., Liu, Y., Pitesa, M., Lim, S., Tong, Y. K., & Arvey, R. (2021). Fit to be good: Physical fitness is negatively associated with deviance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 107(3), 389–407.
Tang, J., Tian, X., Li, R., Liu, Z., & Liu, P. (2024). Financial incentives overcome ego-depletion effect in the waste separation task. Current Psychology. Advance online publication.
Job, V., Dweck, C. S., & Walton, G. M. (2010). Ego depletion—is it all in your head? Implicit theories about willpower affect self-regulation. Psychological Science, 21(11), 1686–1693.
Gombert, L., Rivkin, W., & Schmidt, K.-H. (2020). Indirect effects of daily self-control demands on subjective vitality via ego depletion: How daily psychological detachment pays off. Applied Psychology, 69(2), 325–350.