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The Art of Not Thinking
- Wandfarbe 6y agoI think the art is in actually finding yin/yang. At the end you oscillate in-between. I don't think you can really get away from it.
- tmatthe 6y agoThat's true nothing ever follows a straight line from where you start to where you want to end up. You can't get away from the oscillating, but I do believe you can minimize it through practice and techniques.
- kanobo 6y agoFor the main example given (exercise), I think for people like me there really is no thinking involved. It's purely an emotional aversion to discomfort and disenjoyment of physical activity. I think the better advice is to search for physical hobbies you enjoy rather than to 'just do it' (tm).
- bluntfang 6y agoyou won't find a physical hobby you enjoy because you never "just do it" enough to find out if you enjoy any of it. It's a bit of chicken and egg. People who think they have "emotional aversion to discomfort and disenjoyment of physical activity" should probably seek therapy if they really want to change.
- kanobo 6y agoI had no problem thinking about what I might enjoy and finding hobbies. Sorry to disappoint you that I don't go to therapy for trivial things and can't "just do it" and start running for no reason like forrest gump.
- bluntfang 6y agoNot being able to exercise is no trivial. That sounds like a good topic to discuss in therapy. Why do you think physical activities are trivial? What makes you feel like you're better than others?
- Tade0 6y agoI tried yoga, cycling, going to the gym - none stuck with me. I did try though. I only really enjoy swimming - but it's too much work to prepare yourself for the pool - and carrying things - the other day me and a few frineds helped my other friend move ten station wagons worth of stuff - but that isn't a particularly healthy activity.
- bluntfang 6y agoExcuses are a dime a dozen when it comes to exercise.
- watwut 6y agoI used to have swimming stuff in bag all the time when not wet, so getting ready meant just picking it up.
- chepaslaaa 6y agogo swim every other day you'll get more fun out of life
- bob1029 6y agoI feel the other extreme is more acceptable. For me, the biggest barrier to getting started on something is all the boilerplate and ceremony around actually doing the thing. Right now, I can go from a resting state in bed to sitting on my rower or running outside within 90 seconds. The same cannot be said for most other physical hobbies. I rationalize it along lines of "If I start right this second, I can be done with cardio before 8am". For me, the time cost is way more painful than any physical cost. This ideology allows me to squeeze exercise into time windows that would otherwise be impossible if I had to travel somewhere or meet other people to engage in the activity. Ultimately, I feel that physical fitness is about recognizing the benefits and engaging them at any cost until you are at a point where the cost becomes relatively negligible. The physical and emotional aversion are a temporary thing, and it will ultimately boil down to how much time you want to spend on your own health.
- generallee5686 6y agoThis is identical to how I feel. My advice to people who want to get in a routine of exercising is to minimize the barrier to entry. For me it was running. I leave my house and can immediately start the thing I don't want to do without having all this overhead to start doing the thing I don't want to do (going to the gym etc).
- zwieback 6y agoI feel like that as well. Running isn't great for me but biking works - I can commute or shop and also get a workout all at once.
- cryptozeus 6y agoProblem with this theory is that you may not always find hobbies that are equivalent to good workout. I.e. walking will not get your heart rate up.
- musicale 6y ago> walking will not get your heart rate up. It will if you walk up hills. Even walking a few miles a day in flat areas is still good exercise; getting yourself outside and moving is a very good start. I think walking to work or class is also good for thinking and getting your brain working. Walking/hiking in nature is also great if you are near a trail of some sort.
- kanobo 6y agoRunning is bad for the knees and isn't really a great substitute either for most people. It depends on the person. The point I was making is that not thinking and blindly doing exercises you don't like is not the best argument to make the case in the article.
- Kirth 6y agoRunning badly is bad for the knees*.
- jonpurdy 6y agoThis is particularly hard during quarantine. As much as I dread lifting weights because of the difficulty, I love the feeling during and after. But now that gyms are closed (I wouldn't go if they were open anyway), I don't have a good substitute. And bodyweight exercises take significantly longer to get the same "pump". At the gym, I'm forced to get through the workout. At home, it's so easy to hop on the laptop during breaks between sets and get distracted.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- stoops 6y agoTL;DR: Discipline beats motivation
- BenoitP 6y agoI'd say habits beat motivation
- antepodius 6y agoWhat's the difference between 'habits' and 'discipline'?
- naringas 6y agodiscipline is like keeping promises you make to yourself and habits are just things you do cyclically and sometimes even without thinking but which you had to learn to do at some point (washing hands after using the toilet, brushing your teeth, etc..)
- bob1029 6y agoDiscipline and habits are one in the same as far as I am concerned. One builds into the other.
- bluntfang 6y agomaking habits requires motivation and discipline.
- d--b 6y agoSomething also that I noted is that it is somewhat easier to do the task you don't want to do when you're tired / sleep deprived - mostly because effectively, my brain is too tired to argue against doing the thing.
- jjordan 6y agoThis actually worked really well for me after a hell week and a presentation at the end. Often I get self conscious and freeze up at some point, but I was so wiped I just powered right through without a hitch. It was kinda weird.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- bradstewart 6y agoThis is how I got though college classes I found boring or tedious. I'd just stay up all night doing "interesting" things, then about 6am I would actually do the homework assignments, studying, etc I didn't want to do. I'm sure it wasn't an effective strategy for information retention, and I developed pretty terrible sleep habits which plagued me for years after. But the homework got done...
- tmatthe 6y agoInteresting, I've never had that work for me. I would just go to sleep.
- muzani 6y agoThis works, which is why many code and study late at night. But it has the side effect of trying to do things with the inefficiency of a tired brain, plus being too tired to resist other temptations.
- darkerside 6y agoIf you are in a similar boat, it's likely that when you consider an upcoming dreaded task, there is at least a small part of you that admits the possibility that you will not do the task. And because there is, and because your brain realizes it, it expends mental energy trying to convince you not to do it. Once you are actually doing the task, or it's done, or you realize that you must start doing it immediately, you suddenly find that while plenty of physical energy may be required, there is almost no mental energy required at all. A trick I've learned is to lie to yourself. Say you're excited to do it, that you can't wait, and that you enjoy it. Your brain is easily convinced if you're willing to let it be. Sometimes this is not the case, because your brain entertains the idea that it can stop doing the activity it doesn't want to do. Once you are able to convince your brain that is not an option, this mental energy is returned to you as well. i.e. Pain is mandatory, but suffering is optional.
- sillysaurusx 6y agoAnother mental trick is to repeat to yourself "I'm an interesting person and people like me." It's usually true. Lots of social anxiety evaporates. And sure, sometimes you put yourself in an embarrassing position because of it. But the benefits are worth it.
- adamsea 6y agoAmen. Fake it til you make it. Key life skill.
- jonathanliu 6y agoVonnegut had a great quote along the lines of "we become who we pretend to be".
- psb 6y agoI think this was pretty much the topic of one of his books
- 6y ago
- emptyparadise 6y agoIt's very difficult for me to do anything like this because I end up forgetting things so much - good old ADHD, not something funny pills alone can solve. Creating a routine and sticking to it works best for me, but I've never been unable to stick with it through more turbulent times. Everything is fine until something, say, an unexpected family visit or a worldwide pandemic, disrupts my everyday life and routine and then I just fall back to my old ways.
- zentiggr 6y agoI've found that 'something' always at hand and with the absolute least cost of usage has helped enormously. Paper and Fisher pen, PalmPilot, Treo, now todo program on my phone. Whatever is the quickest to get me to a list of reminders that I can choose from. And I do best when I can sort those by effort required to complete. Refill cat food bowls, minimal effort, QED. Find contractor for back porch rework, not as simple. So I break it down and find a smaller step I can do and list that. Even if I get knocked out of my list, I always have it to get back on track. Tasks.org is my current tool, after trying many many others. On my worst days I set a repeating alarm to get my attention and look at the list again. Sometimes exhaustion, sometimes lack of desire, but I have a wife and animals to provide for so one way or the other I make it happen.
- bradstewart 6y agoI feel you. Two things I've picked up that may be helpful: First, as a sibling comment said, having a notebook always on hand is a huge help to me (I like Field Notes as they fit in my pockets and hold up to abuse well). Writing things down with a pen avoids all of the possible distractions of picking up your phone, and frees you from any structure imposed by task apps. I write stuff down constantly--sometimes I write down tasks, random ideas, or just doodle. Later (ideally in the evening or first thing in the morning) I read my ramblings and organize the ones worth remembering into a more permanent place. Tasks go into a digital todo app, notes and ideas into OneNote, etc. While this scribbling thoughts and organizing them later is barely a routine, its proved to be enough to get me through crazy times and back into a "real" routine. The second thing: don't worry about your routine collapsing. It happens, it's natural. Accept it, write down the crazy business in your head, and slowly start building a new routine.
- meh206 6y agoI'm now chanting "I am not thinking" as I finally clean my home office xD
- LVB 6y agoI regularly end up pushing through drudgery by repeating "Don't think just do. Don't think just do..."
- Poc 6y agoFor things like textbooks, I'll start easily but then, when I reach a new point or new chapter, I will rationalized my self to stop it there and call it a done work, when in reality I worked only 30 minutes instead of and hour. it's like my mind is rationalizing itself to settle for a sub goal.
- Apocryphon 6y agoThat's where the Pomodoro technique might be useful. If one adheres to it, it does what the article describes as "making the decision in advance." After you take a break after the stopping point, the technique makes you continue on. But of course, that means you have to embrace the plan and not resist against it, either.
- karmakaze 6y agoAnother great trick is when you don't have the energy to do something, do miscellaneous things only to get ready to do the thing at another time. Once you have the idea that you're explicitly not doing something the prep part is incremental, trivial/negligible units of effort. Often I find once all the prep is done, I'm actually psyched to start and will start on the spot or at the very next opportunity.
- swagasaurus-rex 6y agoMise en place - "Everything in its place," a french phrase for food preparation where you ensure everything is ready before even starting the act of cooking.
- Bloggerzune 6y agohttps://www.bloggerzune.com/2020/04/good-content-marketing.html https://www.bloggerzune.com/2020/04/good-content-marketing.h... This is how I got though college classes I found boring or tedious. I'd just stay up all night doing "interesting" things, then about 6am I would actually do the homework assignments, studying, etc I didn't want to do. I'm sure it wasn't an effective strategy for information retention, and I developed pretty terrible sleep habits which plagued me for years after. But the homework got done...
- unabst 6y agoFear also works. That's why cramming for exams is so easy. Not the act, but getting yourself to do it. You can also barter with yourself. Have a list of harmless splurges to reward yourself with. Kyoto cold brew, a Sapporo black beer, or a few hours of gaming are on my list. I recon the most professional approach is to clear your schedule, remove all distractions, and simply give yourself enough time or even unlimited time to do it. I often find they get done faster than expected, since most of these tasks aren't particularly difficult. Like taxes. The problem isn't that they're hard or challenging. They disgust me :/
- LordGrey 6y agoMy trick is to delay the task to a specific day and/or time. I use a reminders app to create a schedule of sorts, and I've trained myself to do the task right when the reminder pops up. The presumption here is that I've already thought about how long the task will take and what I'll need to complete it, plus I'm aware of what else is going on and taken that into account, so I have no real excuse for not doing the task right when the reminder pops up. It's a bit of moderated procrastination, but it works for me.
- tmatthe 6y agoThat's a good technique for removing all possible excuses. It might take some effort in the beginning to actually follow the reminders, but as you said, after some training it becomes easier.
- bitwize 6y agoFor me, motivation is like a car engine. Once the crankshaft is turning, the pistons are moving, and the fuel is igniting, motivation is self-sustaining and can keep me going on a particular task. But it has to be started. Something external has to turn the engine over a few times until the self-sustaining process kicks in. Usually, this takes the form of forcing myself to work a tiny bit on the task. Once I get that tiny bit done, I'm in a headspace to where getting a bit more done is much easier, and I can keep going like that.
- SubuSS 6y agoI usually attach something fun to the tedious tasks: if I am to walk our dog in the rain, I am going to listen to armchair expert: I never listen to it in the regular day - so that acts like a treat. For biking - it is my fascination with being outside and so on. Eventually it becomes into a habit too!
- ChrisMarshallNY 6y agoThanks for sharing that Tiffany. This has been the way I've worked for decades. I've found that stuff gets done, once it becomes habit. It doesn't always become enjoyable, or even effortless, but it does get done. There's a saying: "Just for today I will exercise my soul in three ways: I will do somebody a good turn and not get found out. I will do at least two things I don't want to do, as William James suggests, just for exercise." I usually have the second part down by 7AM. The first is not always guaranteed, each day, but I pull it off, every now and then. Getting Things Done has been my pattern since I was eighteen years old. This being HN, I have also learned to "think less" while coding. I've established coding habits; often with the help of LINTers[0], and now produce a lot of good code, at a blistering pace. My designs are almost fluid; often reconfiguring in the middle of implementation, as I take a "JIT" approach to design[1]. That's not something that can be taught. It only comes with a great deal of experience. In my experience, the less thought I have to give stuff, the better. [0] https://littlegreenviper.com/miscellany/swiftwater/swiftlint/ https://littlegreenviper.com/miscellany/swiftwater/swiftlint... [1] https://medium.com/chrismarshallny/evolutionary-design-specification-a2a459f63020 https://medium.com/chrismarshallny/evolutionary-design-speci...
- tmatthe 6y agoNice to see it works for others as well. And thanks for sharing how you code while thinking less, it's interesting to see how this can be applied to different areas in life.
- tomxor 6y agoA more specific tactic I have discovered to avoid thinking and start straight away is to make a very quick promise to myself: That I can quit as soon as I get too bored or hit a block of some kind - this relieves me of all the concerns that I might need to worry (think) about upfront, I waved those requirements when I allowed myself that quick exit. Most of the time you just end up persevering, and due to the nature of these unimportant tasks - not planning just doesn't make any meaningful difference.
- tmatthe 6y agoOh that's a good one, thanks for sharing!
- aprdm 6y agoOn top of this I also like to think that if I ended up doing anything it was better than doing nothing. Just trying to make yourself a little better every day can go long ways
- trilinearnz 6y agoI really like this one. It's similar to another one I've used: Just commit to doing the task for an extremely small amount of time (e.g. five minutes or even one minute). That dramatically reduces the perception of pain in your brain associated with the task, since you're containerising it down to a level where it cannot possibly not be achieved. For particularly anxiety-inducing tasks I have been known to use a 30 second time box ;) Safe to say, this always tends to build the requisite momentum to follow through with a much greater bracket of time, even if it's not a conscious decision to do so (this is probably the key point - the mental shortcut). Another tactic which can be useful when the procrastination is driven by perfectionism: embracing the notion of "wrong action". Simply by initiating some kind of action in the interests of the task at hand, and it doesn't matter how "wrong" you think that action might be. Obviously, since you have a base level of expertise, even your so-called "wrong" action will in fact be a useful step towards the goal. This is a bit like the "beginners mindset": stripping preconceptions that are obstructing any kind of progress.
- pier25 6y ago> Do the easiest part first Yes. Once you've started it will be easier to keep going. Also, it's harder to not to finish something the more time you've spent on it.
- atdixon 6y agoSimilarly I tried to get myself to exercise for years and years. I must have discovered the same approach as this author. I stopped any kind of thinking about it and focused on observing myself drive to the gym, get in the pool, do the strokes, etc. If my verbal ("thinking") centers of my brain needed to say something I would only let them describe what I was doing ("You are driving to the gym", "you are putting your swimsuit on", etc.) Never did I let any other "thinking" or "reasoning" enter the picture. It was all observation. I was able to keep an exercise routine for years this way. --- I think her post fails in the last section "Do the easiest part first". This is too much thinking, reasoning and I think will backfire. She should delete this section. I think this idea is hard for people to understand. You want ZERO REASONING to come into the picture when the time comes, not even a shred. Only pure observation of you doing the task.
- tmatthe 6y agoI see your point. I meant it more as a method to quickly get started on a task without having to think too much, but I realize that having to select the easiest part might be too much thinking already. I'll add a footnote for that.
- mopierotti 6y agoI've also recently started trying to do this: to try to have my conscious mind be in charge of observing/understanding only. It works, but it kind of scares me. It scares me because it feels similar to the mindset I have when watching a movie. What if I become more interested in the plot than the well-being of the main character?
- atdixon 6y agoYour engagement of the plot in any manipulable way can only come if you are not simply observing. So if you find this happening, you're doing it wrong.
- duopixel 6y agoThis resonates a lot with the ancient wisdom of the Tao Te Ching: https://www.taoistic.com/taoquotes/taoquotes-05-non-action.htm https://www.taoistic.com/taoquotes/taoquotes-05-non-action.h...
- TrackerFF 6y agoWhen I was younger, I could work out just fine, off nothing more than pure motivation and drive. I did that for a solid 5 years - lost 70 lbs, gained weight and muscle, and transformed my body. Good times. But then around my mid 20s, working out just got boring. My body started deteriorating, which made working out even harder. Sad to say, these days I can't even do a light jog without something to distract me from the jogging itself. Either music in my ears, or some TV-screen on the treadmill. But once I can focus on something else, I can work out just fine.
- FactCore 6y agoBeen doing this for a few years without assigning a name to it. It works wonders for someone who is a chronic procrastinator like myself. I'd also like to add: If you can set a schedule to "just to it" for a reoccurring task, that helps immensely in reducing brain strain.
- bingobongo1 6y ago>After years of feeling guilty about not wanting to do everything... Has the author asked themselves why they feel guilt about not wanting to do "everything"? Is it possible that the form of discipline being promoted here under the tag "Productivity" is entirely unnecessary for a satisfying human existence, and that it is primarily caused by cultural forces? Is it possible that such a focus on this relentless productivity, caused by our society, is related to the feeling of guilt that comes with perceiving oneself as 'undisciplined'? Anyone who is commenting on how this opposes the nature of zen or other mindfulness lineages is on the right track and anyone who is still justifying cramming as much activity into every moment of their lives in the name of productivity is doomed to repeatedly feel the guilt and shame that comes along with not living up to these cultural standards.
- trilinearnz 6y agoI agree with this, and know people who have an unhealthy ambition for "doing productive things" with no time set aside for compensatory energy recovery through relaxation. I see these people fall into de-facto relaxation through exhaustion. They end up relaxing, but will feel guilt during it. This kind of audience would not benefit from productivity advice, as they are already operating on an extreme level. On the other end of the scale are people like myself, who have a real problem motivating themselves to do tasks which really do objectively need to get done (e.g. mowing the lawn, cleaning the bathroom). Why do they need to get done? Because if they don't they would have a net negative effect on your quality of life / even basic hygiene. It's people closer on this end of the spectrum that I think benefit from advice like this. Certainly there is no absolute law that says you "have to" do anything. That's freedom of choice which we all ultimately have. In practical terms though, unless you are willing to accept an extremely low standard of living, certain basics do need to get done. People with depression will probably be able to understand where I'm coming from with this :)
- bingobongo1 6y agoI agree and have been there in terms of looming depression preventing you from getting the basic human activities done, but I can't separate that depression from the spirit of my comment either. It was largely related to feeling trapped by our western work culture. In terms of the basic activities of living, it can still help to address the aversion to the task head on by realizing the actual nature of the task. The task isn't what it appears, but is in fact just a concept we impute to aggregate phenomena. Is washing dishes standing at the sink? No. Is washing dishes the running water? No. Is washing dishes holding a single plate and sponge? No. Is washing dishes dispensing soap onto the sponge? No. Washing dishes is the combination of several interdependent causes. Tasks that we're averse to are simply aggregations of various other imputed concepts, and so the unified activity that triggers our sense of aversion isn't actually based on anything substantial. Speaking personally, aversion arises for me a lot of the time as a sense of lost time to one activity or another, but the concept of 'just being' suggests that whatever activity you do is perfectly fine on a fundamental level. No time is wasted because every activity you do is 'of one taste' essentially - it's all the same in terms of being aggregate phenomena wrapped up into a unified concept by humans that triggers aversion based on our individual conditioning. So realizing that the aversion isn't real and substantial, reflect on the positive nature of completing the task and the positive effects it will have. Instead of repressing your negative thoughts (forcefully not thinking), see them as insubstantial. Thanks for your reply :)
- cdperera 6y agoI've found planning ahead to work, to great success. Almost ridiculously so. It's come to the point where I don't really need my usual distraction blockers. I've found: 1. I can fit a lot of things into my day, than I assumed. 2. I often overestimate how long things take, on top of that. Point 2 is particularly interesting, since I know if I just bang out my tasks, I'll keep find "free time" that I over-planned for. By the end of the day, I get a couple free hours to do whatever I want, and it's lovely.
- anoffvu 6y agoWould you mind going into a bit more detail about the systems that work for you? Is it just like a checklist at the beginning of each day or?
- bearer_token 6y ago“Once you've got a task to do, it's better to do it than live with the fear of it.” -- Logen Ninefingers https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/logen-ninefingers#:~:text=%E2%80%9COnce%20you've%20got%20a,with%20the%20fear%20of%20it.%E2%80%9D https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/logen-ninefingers#:~:te...
- _emacsomancer_ 6y agoBut also "You have to realistic about these things".
- minkowski 6y agoThis rather reminds me (very inexactly) of Behavioural Activation Therapy [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Behavioral_activation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Behavioral_activation] although in that case the task intended isn't necessarily inherently disagreeable, simply overwhelming to a person with depression.
- FatDrunknStupid 6y agoMad as a badger.
- throwawaynothx 6y agowaking up at 4am to get that sunrise photo.
- ziroshima 6y agoTL;DR - Don't think about it, Just Do It. Nike had it figured out all along.
- kristianov 6y agoDon't make decisions just anytime/anyday/anywhere. Make decisions when you are thinking clearly and rationally. And follow through.
- BurningFrog 6y agoOne dumb trick I've had success with when it comes to exercise is to just put on my gym clothes. It may be several hours before I actually go on that run, but now the task of running needs to be executed before the clothes can be taken off.
- LouisSayers 6y agoI do this as well - if doing a task seems too overwhelming I’ll say to myself “well I’ll just do this small subtask instead”. It starts small. “I’ll just stick on my shoes” “I’ll just walk to the gate” “I’ll just run to that post” ... Before you know it you’ve completed the thing you didn’t feel like doing.
- _emacsomancer_ 6y agoFor certain tasks, of course, you can also make them enjoyable, or have a built-in (immediate) reward: you have a podcast or audiobook you want to listen to, but you only do it while exercising/cleaning/whatever.
- danaliv 6y agoThis reminds me of when I did my master’s thesis. At a certain point I had the distinct experience of being forced to turn off part of my brain to get through it. I described it as “mashing the keyboard while screaming through the feelings.”
- sourabhforu 6y agoMy advice- do the thing you dont want to do as the first thing in the morning. You will end up having a great day
- l8rpeace 6y agoEating the frog is what it's called.
- shabuta 6y agoMy trick I perfected in college is to set my alarm for a couple hours earlier than I would normally wake up and start doing the task right when I wake. My mind isn’t awake enough to come up with any resistance so I start the day with momentum. This worked for studying or projects. It continues on in the work world where if I have tasks I’m low-key avoiding, I’ll set it for first thing in the morning. The more I’m avoiding it, the earlier I have to start in the morning to make sure I tackle it.
- bonoboTP 6y agoAnything you do consistently for a long time will have to become part of "who you are" not just "what you do". If you can't find a way to make it mesh together with your self conceptualization it won't last. You have to come up with a background, a connection to your past and your being, a story that makes sense why this is who you are. How this looks can be entirely personal. It may be a rugged individualistic stubbornness story to learn to face adversity, a story of family, about health and treating your body as a temple, or whatever else. If you have a stronger competing story for your identity (eg my kind of person doest jog, that's some silly Instagrammer avocado soyboy thing, my kind of person drinks beer and watches TV) then you'll not keep doing it even if you successfully force it for some days or weeks. Stories carry and propel us through life to a large extent.
- 082349872349872 6y agoAN Whitehead, on separating data and control planes: "Operations of thought are like cavalry charges in a battle — they are strictly limited in number, they require fresh horses, and must only be made at decisive moments." To understand this, one must realise that a horse can only go full out (<20 HP) for a minute or two, and even at 80% will be exhausted in under 15 minutes. Infantry may, and does, grind, but cavalry relies on timing[1]. (Why use cavalry then? Because, properly deployed, they turned minor routs into decisive victories. Consider Guagamela.) [1] There is a nice anecdote about von Seydlitz and Frederick the Great. Von Seydlitz is waiting with his cavalry squadrons for opportunity to ripen. Frederick sends a messenger to him to attack. Von Seydlitz responds, "later." A new messenger comes, "you are ordered to attack." Von Seydlitz responds, "in due course." Finally a messenger arrives, "the king says if you do not attack instantly you will be beheaded." Von Seydlitz responds, "please inform his Excellency that my head will be at his disposal after the battle, but during the battle I still need to use it in his service."
- blueterminal 6y agoJust stick to something for a few months without exceptions and it'll become who you are.
- newusertoday 6y agoMy trick is to tell my brain to do whatever is comfortable so for e.g. don't tell it you want to run 5km say you will run 100m or whatever is comfortable. Once you put on your shoes and go on track half the battle is already won and may be you won't run 5km but you may run say 3km slowly as you keep on doing it you will find achieving your goal.
- chansiky 6y agoDon't you think there's too much thinking involved in an article about not thinking? I just watched Joe Rogan's interview of David Goggins[1], and he lives the essence of what this article is trying to express. I think his perspective is far more succinct and sharper, its sort of an anti-motivation motivation. Its definitely worth a watch if anyone is interested. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tSTk1083VY&t=4s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tSTk1083VY&t=4s