The Prankster's Closed Hand
The evil inclination, Rebbe Nachman says, is like a trickster who hides an empty hand.
Rebbe Nachman gave a vivid picture of the yetzer hara. He compared it to a prankster who runs through a crowd with a tightly closed hand and asks each person in turn what he thinks is inside. No one can know, and each person imagines that the hand holds exactly the thing he wants most. So everyone hurries after the prankster, each sure that his own desire is waiting there. Only when he has drawn the whole crowd along does he open his hand, and it is completely empty. The lesson is that temptation promises our deepest desire and delivers nothing. Seeing the empty hand in advance helps a person stop running.
Source: Sichos HaRan 6:1-2
The next time you feel a strong pull toward something you know is not good for you, pause for a breath and ask what it is really promising. Picture the hand opening and finding nothing in it. Then do one small, positive thing instead, such as drinking some water, stepping outside or saying a verse of Tehillim. You are not weak for feeling the pull. You are simply learning to look inside the closed hand before you chase it. Afterward, take a moment to be glad you paused.