Executive Summary
Imagine yourself at a restaurant, trying to decide between two desserts: a chocolate cake and a fruit bowl. You’ve been trying to eat healthier, but the cake just sounds so tasty… What do you do? As it turns out, your decision is likely to be influenced by how busy you perceive yourself to be. Researchers have found that mere perception of oneself as a busy person — what we call a busy mindset — can actually increase people’s self-control, via a boost in self-importance. In other words, a busy mindset may make you more likely to choose the fruit…
