Why discipline fails (and what you can do instead)

Did you ever notice that you never crave a chocolate bar for breakfast?

You don't need to be very disciplined to avoid sugar for breakfast. In fact, even if you love sugar, if I were to tell you: "I want you to go on a diet where you avoid sugar for breakfast", you would probably find it relatively easy.

Discipline requires mental energy, and when you have plenty of it (when you first wake up), it's easy to maintain it.

On the flip-side: you get those "sugar cravings" at night. That's when 99% of people "fail" in their diet.

That's because their "mental energy" is already drained, and they have none left for "discipline".

Don't get me wrong: discipline is a great tool to "get you started" on the right path, but it is NOT a great tool to keep you on the path (unless you're someone whose days are so easy that you can sustain your mental energy all day long).

So how DO YOU achieve results if discipline doesn't work?

HABITS!

Habits don't require discipline to SUSTAIN them, they require discipline to START them only.

You need to SET YOURSELF up for success, and the way you do that is by building HABITS and ROUTINES.

Let's take my morning routine for example:

- I wake up at 5:30

- Within 2min I drink 750mml of water (3 large glasses, one of which with lemon and a pinch of salt)

- I grind coffee beans & get the coffee going

- While coffee is brewing, I test my HRV

- I pour the coffee, and prepare my clothes for work while sipping it, then prepare my workout clothes

- I go in to "do my business" in the bathroom - I have a philosophy book and stack of research papers ready for me to read

- 6:30 I'm on my way to the gym to do the workout I created the night before

- 7:45 I'm back home, drink my recovery drink while typing out an article (like this one)

- 8:30 shower, get dressed, put on a podcast or audiobook and get into the car to drive to work.

How many of these steps I "think about"? NONE!

Over the years, I've built this routine by building HABITS.

HABITS become "automatic", you don't even think about them for a split second.

In fact, when I travel, I often forget many of these steps and actually have to "think" to make sure I stick with them.

So if you find yourself struggling with discipline:

1. Write down a routine you think will work for you

2. Write down the habits (steps) you want for that routine

3. Use discipline to "get you started"

4. Create the right environment (e.g. don't have chocolate or alcohol in the house)

5. Start "stacking" habits

"stacking habits" is a great way to build a good routine: you "stack" a new habit to an existing "already established" one.

Here is an old article I wrote back in 2016 about how to build good habits, including "stacking".