Personal Promise-to-Oneself

A Personal Promise-to-Oneself is a promise made by a cognitive agent to themselves.

• AKA: Personal Commitment, Self-Pledge, Internal Commitment.
• Context:
  • It can typically establish Inner Accountability through self-monitoring processes.
  • It can typically strengthen Personal Integrity through promise fulfillment actions.
  • It can typically reinforce Self-Identity through value-congruent decisions.
  • It can typically enhance Self-Efficacy through successful promise completion.
  • It can typically guide Personal Development through deliberate growth directions.
  • ...
  • It can often be made to achieve a Personal Goal.
  • It can often involve Internal Dialog through self-negotiation processes.
  • It can often require Self-Discipline through temptation resistance efforts.
  • It can often operate outside Social Visibility through private intention setting.
  • It can often generate Intrinsic Motivation through autonomous choices.
  • ...
  • It can range from being an Undocumented Promise to Oneself to being a Documented Promise to Oneself, depending on its formalization level.
  • It can range from being a Momentary Promise to Oneself to being a Lifelong Promise to Oneself, depending on its time horizon.
  • It can range from being a Simple Promise to Oneself to being a Complex Promise to Oneself, depending on its component count.
  • It can range from being a Flexible Promise to Oneself to being a Rigid Promise to Oneself, depending on its adaptability.
  • It can range from being a Low-Stakes Promise to Oneself to being a High-Stakes Promise to Oneself, depending on its perceived importance.
  • ...
  • It can have Promise to Oneself Reminder for commitment recall.
  • It can have Promise to Oneself Reward for self-reinforcement.
  • It can have Promise to Oneself Consequence for accountability enhancement.
  • It can have Promise to Oneself Tracker for progress monitoring.
  • It can have Promise to Oneself Rationale for motivation maintenance.
  • ...
  • It can be Promise to Oneself Broken during personal weakness moments.
  • It can be Promise to Oneself Renewed after self-forgiveness processes.
  • It can be Promise to Oneself Modified during circumstance changes.
  • It can be Promise to Oneself Fulfilled upon target achievement.
  • It can be Promise to Oneself Forgotten without adequate reminder systems.
  • ...
• Examples:
  • Health-Related Promise to Oneselfs, such as:
    • Dietary Promise to Oneselfs, such as:
      • Sugar Reduction Promise to Oneself for metabolic health improvement.
      • Hydration Promise to Oneself for physiological function optimization.
    • Exercise Promise to Oneselfs, such as:
      • Daily Walking Promise to Oneself for cardiovascular health enhancement.
      • Strength Training Promise to Oneself for muscular development.
  • Productivity-Related Promise to Oneselfs, such as:
    • Time Management Promise to Oneselfs, such as:
      • Morning Routine Promise to Oneself for day optimization.
      • Digital Detox Promise to Oneself for attention protection.
    • Work Quality Promise to Oneselfs, such as:
      • Deep Work Promise to Oneself for focus enhancement.
      • Skill Development Promise to Oneself for professional advancement.
  • Relationship-Related Promise to Oneselfs, such as:
    • Self-Relationship Promise to Oneselfs, such as:
      • Self-Compassion Promise to Oneself for inner critic management.
      • Self-Care Promise to Oneself for burnout prevention.
    • External Relationship Promise to Oneselfs, such as:
      • Boundary Maintenance Promise to Oneself for psychological safety preservation.
      • Authentic Communication Promise to Oneself for relationship depth enhancement.
  • Personal Growth Promise to Oneselfs, such as:
    • Learning Promise to Oneselfs, such as:
      • Reading Promise to Oneself for knowledge acquisition.
      • Skill Practice Promise to Oneself for competence development.
    • Character Development Promise to Oneselfs, such as:
      • Patience Cultivation Promise to Oneself for emotional regulation improvement.
      • Gratitude Practice Promise to Oneself for positive mindset development.
  • Financial Promise to Oneselfs, such as:
    • Saving Promise to Oneself for future security establishment.
    • Spending Limitation Promise to Oneself for budget adherence.
  • Temporal Promise to Oneselfs, such as:
    • New Year's Resolution for annual renewal opportunity.
    • Birthday Promise to Oneself for life milestone reflection.
  • ...
• Counter-Examples:
  • Legal Agreement, which requires multiple parties.
  • External Promise, which involves promise to other entity.
  • Social Contract, which requires communal consensus.
  • Imposed Obligation, which lacks voluntary self-initiation.
  • Vague Intention, which lacks specific commitment elements.
• See: Commitment, Broken Promise, Self-Contract, Goal Setting, Self-Regulation, Implementation Intention, Psychological Commitment, Motivational Strategy.

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References

2002

• (Koestner et al., 2002) ⇒ Richard Koestner, Natasha Lekes, Theodore A. Powers, and Emanuel Chicoine. (2002). “Attaining personal goals: self-concordance plus implementation intentions equals success.” In: Journal of personality and social psychology, 83(1).

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