What is willpower, and why does it so frequently fail us when we attempt to alter our habits, achieve personal goals, or overcome stubborn challenges? From the perennial struggles of losing weight, stopping procrastination, or quitting harmful substances to more everyday aspirations like exercising regularly, meditating, eating better, or getting sufficient sleep, people repeatedly run up against a wall of resistance. We make these efforts with the best of intentions, yet we inevitably seem to fall short. As the Apostle Paul famously lamented centuries ago, "I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do."
This enduring human dilemma raises fundamental questions about what goes wrong inside the human mind. When we are unsuccessful in our efforts to change, we typically attribute the outcome to an absence of willpower. Society and individuals alike tend to view this apparent weakness as a lack of moral fiber, inner strength, or self-discipline. People readily blame themselves, experiencing guilt and self-reproach that gradually erodes self-esteem, personal integrity, and a sense of agency.
However, psychological experts suggest that this phenomenon is far more profound than a simple shortage of grit. Rather than a character flaw, the inability to execute willpower stems from an inner conflict between conscious intentions and deeper, often unconscious, intentionality. The real underlying problem is that human beings are rarely of one mind on these matters; instead, we function as a house divided against itself.
Will vs. Willpower
The concept and experiential discovery of the human will has long been central to successful psychotherapy. Yet, when therapeutic literature refers to the "will," it describes something distinct from the colloquial definition of willpower. Pioneering psychoanalyst Otto Rank understood that the human will cannot avoid being expressed in some form or another. It is communicated either constructively or destructively, positively or negatively. According to Rank, when the will cannot be expressed productively or creatively, it inevitably turns neurotic or psychotic, manifesting negatively as "counter-will."
To understand this distinction, it helps to examine Rank’s definition of the will. As described by psychiatrist and biographer E.J. Lieberman, the will represents the "life center of the human being, something primal and ultimate." Another biographer, Jessie Taft, noted that the will is not merely the drive of a predominant instinct or combination of instincts, but rather the central integration and expression of an individual’s forces that exceeds the sum of its parts.
So-called willpower, by contrast, is merely an expression of what people believe to be their true intentions. In reality, it typically stems solely from what the conscious ego, persona, or personality desires, because this is the aspect of the self with which most people most strongly identify. Unfortunately, this superficial willpower is regularly undermined and sabotaged by what individuals do not know—or consciously refuse to know—about themselves: the unconscious. This hidden realm is what renders conventional willpower weak, impotent, and frequently ineffective.
In his groundbreaking work on "Will Therapy," Rank sought to cultivate in patients the capacity to express their authentic will rather than relying on mere willpower, guiding them to channel those forces constructively and creatively in the world.
Intentions vs. Intentionality
One way to untangle this common psychological conundrum is to differentiate clearly between "intentions" and "intentionality." Intentions consist of what people more or less consciously want or choose to do. Intentionality, however, is a broader construct that includes both conscious and unconscious intentions.
Discerning and determining true intentionality is essential for anyone hoping to freely assert their will in a constructive manner. This process remains a fundamental goal in contemporary existential therapy. As renowned psychotherapist Rollo May observed, therapy should serve as a primary space for experiencing intentions and their implied actions and meanings, allowing individuals to explore these dynamics without having to instantly transform them into overt behavior.
Patients need opportunities to explore, experience, and verbally express both their conscious intentions and their unconscious intentionality within the safe container of a therapeutic relationship and the structure of consciousness. Discerning this deeper intentionality is a necessary prerequisite to determining how to handle it in outer reality.
The Reality of Conflicting Desires
The psychological significance of the old adage "The road to hell is paved with good intentions" points directly to this internal divide. While conscious intentions are typically direct expressions of the ego or persona, broader intentionality incorporates the primitive, primal desires, impulsions, urges, and wishes described by Sigmund Freud as the id, by Carl Jung as the shadow, or by Rollo May as the daimonic.
Frequently, this deeper intentionality initially surfaces as counter-will—a form of resistance or opposition to conscious desires. A person may want to say yes to an opportunity or a person, yet find themselves saying no instead. They intend to act one way, but behave entirely differently. Cognition is overruled by emotion, or vice versa, leaving the individual performing the polar opposite of what they consciously and conscientiously thought they wanted, often with disastrous consequences. Afterward, they are left scratching their heads, wondering what just happened.
While this experience is exceptionally confusing, frustrating, and humbling, it marks the beginning of true psychological wisdom. It forces individuals to acknowledge that they are not entirely the masters of their own internal domain. Powerful forces operate beneath the surface, transcending and overriding conscious intentions, proving that the human psyche is far more complex than previously assumed.
Exercising the Will of the Whole Person
Although human will is innate, it must be discovered, discerned, refined, and creatively exercised like a muscle. For Rank, neurosis, counter-will, and the perceived lack of willpower are simply the consequences of failing to know, accept, and direct one’s will constructively and consistently.
To discern intentionality is to experience and discover what a person truly wants, rather than what they merely think they want, feel they want, or think they ought to want. It speaks to the will of the whole person. Intentionality underpins—and frequently undermines—conscious intention because it taps into the inherent, holistic, organic, and instinctual wisdom residing within the body and the unconscious.
Regardless of whether true intentions and underlying intentionality align with a person’s idealized self-image, those competing forces must be acknowledged and accepted as legitimate parts of the self. Reconciling them demands both courage and integrity. In psychological terms, integrity represents the unity of the personality, requiring brutal honesty about the motivations driving behavior and what those motivations reveal about personal identity. While this pursuit is neither easy nor always pleasant, engaging with it provides a capacity for genuine personal achievement and self-mastery that simple willpower can never attain.