Do It Today

“Long-term, we must begin to build our internal strengths. It isn’t just skills like computer technology. It’s the old-fashioned basics of self-reliance, self-motivation, self-reinforcement, self-discipline, self-command.”

You must believe that we live in an abundant world. There is enough opportunity and riches for everyone. So, never allow yourself to think that you won’t make it. What is that good for

“You get rid of the thought of competition. You are to create, not to compete for what is already created. You do not have to take anything away from any one.”

Self-Discipline: Get better at ignoring the negative voice in your head. Get out of your bed. Go to the gym. Don’t listen to “I don’t want to.”
Personal Effectiveness: Learn how to maximize the results you can get during the 16–18 hours you’re awake. Get more done — effectively.
Communication: We think we’re all master communicators. But the truth is that we suck. Communication is both art and science. And our ability to work with others depends on it.
Negotiation: You negotiate all the time. With your spouse, kids, parents, teachers, friends, co-workers, managers, etc. Learn to get the best deal for all parties.
Persuasion: Learn how to get what you want in an ethical way.
Physical Strength & Stamina: Getting stronger is a skill. Pull your own weight. It’s something every human should be able to do.
Flexibility: Sitting all day long behind your computer or in your car turns you into a stiff being. Learn how to stretch your hips, lower back, hamstrings, and calves — the most common weak points of desk workers

Record All Your Thoughts And Ideas
Similar to computers, we have a Random Access Memory (RAM). Your human RAM stores relevant short-term information. But your RAM capacity is limited. When it’s full, older information that you have stored will be deleted to make room for new information. You want to write down your thoughts to unload your RAM, which gives you more brainpower. Even if you never take a look at that note again, it’s still worth it.
Say No
When it comes to work, I say no to everything that doesn’t support my goals and values. We live in an abundant world — there are always enough opportunities. In my personal life, I say no to everything that doesn’t thrill me. When I think ‘meh’ about something, I always say NO. That eliminates wasting time on shit that I’m not excited about

Always Cut To The Chase
With everything in life, there’s a bunch of crap, and there’s stuff that matters. Chit chat, small talk, delaying, waiting around, not speaking up, is all useless. If you want to get shit done, you have to jump straight into the action

I live by a different motto: Always Be Reading. I read a minimum of 1 hour per day on weekdays and even more during the weekend and holidays.
Find a way to read around your schedule and your life situation. Don’t make excuses like you’re tired or too busy. Always Be Reading means that you:
Read on the train
Read while you’re breastfeeding your baby
Read while you’re eating
Read at the doctor’s office
Read at work
And most importantly — read while everyone else is wasting their time watching the news or checking Facebook for the 113th time that day

Avoid the perfectionist’s favorite sentence: “OMG, this is the worst thing ever!”
Also avoid the slacker’s favorite sentence: “I don’t care.”
But instead, you say: “I’ve got this

exercise my mental toughness every day. I used to neglect my brain. I was mentally weak, thought too much, and didn’t rely on myself. It wasn’t because I lacked skills. It was because I didn’t trust in my ability to figure things out. So I started reading about Stoicism, Pragmatism and Mindfulness; anything that helps you to control your thoughts and improve your mental toughness. I don’t want to be a slave to my thoughts. I want the opposite.
I exercise my body every day. When I don’t exercise, I’m restless, lack focus, energy, and confidence. By exercising my brain and body every day, I’m always war-ready. I learned that overcoming procrastination starts before you fight the war. Soldiers don’t go to war untrained either, right? Be in great shape, mentally and physically. Always.
I have a set of daily habits that help me to be in control of my life. I journal, read, set daily priorities, and don’t consume useless information. I also make sure I interact with my friends and family every day. Human contact is important. This keeps me grounded. I don’t have high expectations of life. And I enjoy my days. I never look beyond that.
I always have a list of small (but important) tasks that I have to complete. Let’s take my new book for example. I often want to escape difficult things like actually sitting down and writing. So I tell myself today is not a good day. But every time I think that, I open my list of small tasks and work on one of those things TODAY.
I study and practice the science of persuasion to get my message across. My mentor taught me: “You can be the best writer and teacher in the world, but if no one knows about it, you can’t make an impact.” The science of persuasion helps you to write better pitches, cover letters, website copy, emails, etc.

Escaping Life

Until two years ago, every time I’d get stressed out, I said stuff like: “I need a drink.” Or: “I have to go on a vacation.”
And when I had issues at work or in my relationship that became too much to handle, I preferred to pretend they didn’t exist. Sometimes I would take some time to talk about it. But there are always deeper issues at play. Back then I didn’t like my job, relationship, and the city I lived in. I basically didn’t like my life.
Did I change it? Nope. I always tried to escape my issues. Escaping problems gives you some stamina to face your shitty life again. But you and I both know that problems never go away until you grab them by the root and extinguish them. I learned that the hard way. These days I deal with problems before they become big problems