Transcription
Rome wasn't built in a day. We all know that. Everyone's hears that. But Rome also didn't fall apart overnight either. It took hundreds of years for Rome to reach its peak, but it also took time—hundreds of years—for Rome to decay and fall apart. And that is representative of life, because you don't achieve worthwhile goals quickly or easily. They take time. They take struggle. They take relentless pursuit, day in and day out. That's what it takes.
But also, things don't usually fall apart quickly either, at least at first. It's a slow process: a little slip here, a little setback over there, a little wearing down of discipline and will over time. That's the thing: success and failure are generally slow processes—either slowly building things up or gradually tearing them down. And that's why I say you've got to pay attention. You have to watch. You have to watch every single second, because those seconds, they turn into minutes, and minutes turn into hours, and hours turn into days, and days turn into years. And so that second—that second that just went by—that counted. And so did that second, and so did that one. And in those precious seconds, you're either building or you're decaying; you were either gaining ground or you were losing ground in that second, and in every second. Every second counts. So make every second count.
How do you stop making excuses? This is actually pretty simple, and I said it the other day: you have to realize, you have to know, you have to accept that all your excuses are lies. They are lies—all of them. Think about the things that you tell yourself, the lies you used to rationalize taking the easy road, leaving discipline behind. Think about them:
You don't have time—that's a lie.
You don't have support—that's a lie.
You don't have the equipment or the gear—lies.
You don't know the best way—who cares? That's a lie.
Or you're too old, or you're too young—of course you're too old or too young—lie.
And there's: you're too busy—sure you are—that's a lie.
And you're too tired, or you're too sore, or you're just plain not feeling it—lies, lies, lies.
And the list goes on and on and on—then it doesn't stop if you don't make it stop. So recognize: the excuses are not valid; they're trumped up, they're conjured up, they're fabricated—they're lies. And how do you stop the lies? You stop the lies with the truth. The truth. The truth will set you free. The truth will stand, and the truth will deliver you from procrastination and laziness and the downward spiral that comes with a lack of discipline. So don't believe the lies; believe the truth. Then the truth is: you have time, you have the skill, you have the knowledge and the support and the willpower and the discipline to get it done. So cast out the lies, burn them down, and listen to the truth, and live the truth, and go out and get it done.
Self-help, or self-management, or self-improvement—I don't really like what those words have come to mean these days, because there's a lot of people out there that are constantly trying to improve themselves by looking for the one change—the one change, right—the one change in their life that's gonna make their dreams come true. And even worse, on top of that, there's a lot of people out there—a lot of self-help gurus and these hyperactive motivational speakers and these other self-appointed modern Zen yoga warriors—that they're trying to sell the one thing; they're trying to sell the nine steps or the enlightened path that's gonna allow you to unlock all of your human potential and fulfill the dreams so you can live the life that you've—you've always wanted to.
If no—I'm no guru, and I definitely don't claim to be. I'm just a man. But I will tell you this: it isn't one thing, and it isn't ten things, and it isn't a hundred things. It isn't a quick path, and there are no shortcuts. The meditation won't get you there, and neither will a miracle drug or an organic supplement or some superfood. Getting better isn't a hack or a trick or one change that you need to make. Getting better is a campaign. It's a campaign. It's a daily, a weekly, it's an hourly fight—an incessant fight that doesn't stop against weakness and against temptation and against laziness. It's a campaign of discipline, a campaign of hard work and dedication. It's waking up early and going to bed late and grinding out every second in between, every single day.
So you want to get better? You want to self-improve? Stop looking for a shortcut and go find your alarm clock, and find your discipline, and find your guts and your passion and your drive, and find it—you will [Music]—and then—and then you will find your freedom.
Those days when I'm tired or worn out or just basically sick of the grind—well, what do I do on those days? I go anyways. I get it done, even if I'm just going through the motions. I go through the motions. I don't really want to work out—I work out. I really don't want to hammer on a project—I hammer on the project. Don't really want to get up and get out of bed—yeah, I get up and get out of bed. Now these could be signals that you need some time off, and those signals might be right; they could be correct. But don't take today off—not today. Wait until tomorrow? Nope. Don't give in to the immediate gratification that is whispering in your ear—shut that down. Do not listen to that little voice. Instead, go through the motions: lift the weights, sprint the hill, work on the project, get out of bed.
Now, as an overall rule, I do not like procrastination. You need to get things done. But if you are going to rest, that is one thing that you should procrastinate on—that's the one thing I want you to pull it off until tomorrow. And if, when tomorrow comes, you still feel like you need to rest or you need to take a break, then okay. But the chances are you won't—you won't need that rest. Chances are you will realize that the desire to rest was just weakness; it was just the desire to take the path of least resistance—that downhill path, the easy path. And by simply going through the motions, you overcame that path, and you stayed on the righteous path, the disciplined path; you stayed on the warpath, which is right where you know—but you cool.
I keep getting asked this type of question: How do I get discipline? Or how do I want discipline? Or how do I maintain discipline? And the answer—it's a simple answer, but obviously it's not easy. And there's all kinds of little tricks and methods that people talk about, and you know, they have some merit—you know, maybe they do work—these these things: you know, do the little things people say: wake up early—I say that—and write things down, and take cold showers, and tell everyone what you're going to do—so broadcast it—and make promises or or make bets with with your friends of something that you don't want to lose. And those things—those ideas—they're cool. I'm sure they're gonna have some impact, and if they work for you, that's—that's awesome. But but the fact of the matter is that the reason discipline is hard to maintain is because it is hard to maintain. That's what makes discipline hard: it's hard. And if you hear me claim that discipline is easy for me, then straight up, that's just my ego talking—that's what that is—because I'm unfortunately just as human as everyone else, and it is work to maintain the discipline. That's what it is: work—holding the line, maintaining the standard, giving no slack—none. That's the discipline. That's the discipline, and it is hard. And if there's one thing I would say that does make it easier, it's to envision what it feels like when you're done—what it feels like after you've worked out, or you've held the line on your food intake, or you've pushed through some monotonous project that you have to do—in all those things, when they're done, that they feel good. And contrary to that, envision what you will feel like later when you let the discipline slack—you know the feeling [Music]—feeling weak and defeated, and you know that you're falling behind. So get to know those two different types of feelings, and ask yourself which one you want to feel in ten minutes or in a half an hour, when—when the thing is done, when the discipline has been implemented. Remember what that feels like, and then remember that those minutes and those hours, they turn into weeks and months and years. And holding the line in those critical minutes will put you in an infinitely better place physically and mentally if you maintain the discipline.
If things go wrong, they always seem to happen at once, and they just compound on top of each other, and it's—it's pretty easy sometimes to—to feel beaten when you're faced with all those issues and all those problems, and they all hit you at the same time. But let me tell you that that doesn't mean give up; in fact, it means the opposite. It means it's time for you to fight harder, to dig in; it means it's time for you to go on the warpath. And that starts with one of the fundamental laws of combat leadership: prioritize and execute. What's the biggest problem? What's causing the most stress? Family? Okay, sit them down, explain where you are at, be blunt, be upfront, and then give them the simple plan of how you're gonna get things back on track. Don't sugarcoat it; you give it to them straight. Next, you've got some—some late payments. Call those creditors up, explain to them what's going on, set up some kind of a—of a minimum payment plan so you can start making some progress and get them off your back. And then you got your job, right? You're falling behind at work. Okay, talk to your boss, face it, tell him that you're gonna step up your game, tell him you're gonna be at work early, you're gonna be at work late, you're gonna be at work during lunch, you're gonna be wherever you need to be whenever he needs you to be there. Tell him you're gonna get after it, and tell him that you're a hundred percent committed to supporting him and the company and the mission. And then you get started.