Newsletter

Every single day you have a decision to make.

Are you going to take concrete action steps toward your goals? Or not?

The actions you take don’t have to be anything big. You just have to do SOMETHING.

This could mean committing to moving your body every day, even if it’s just a twenty-minute walk. Or finally signing up for that class you’ve been interested in for years.

Do enough of these small somethings day after day, week after week, year after year, and those seemingly small daily actions you took will add up to something big.

As the Chinese proverb goes:

“The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.”

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Happy Monday,

Mornings have always been my favorite part of the day. I like the quiet before the hustle and bustle of the world begins. Most of the time, I feel clearest-headed in the morning, full of optimism and energy to start my day.

I also use mornings to complete the most difficult thing of my day.

Right now, that means writing. Every morning, I get up and write for about 90 minutes. Writing is my “hard thing” for the day and the thing I most want to accomplish.

Once I do my morning writing session, I can feel good about the rest of my day. No matter what else happens after that, I know that I finished one thing that brings me closer to my long-term goals.

Although doing my most difficult thing in the first part of the day has always been instinctual for me, what I prioritize in the morning has changed over the years.

I used to get up and work out right away because if I didn’t, I worried I’d end up making excuses and skip my workout.

As fitness became a more ingrained part of my identity, I became more flexible with my workout times. Now, I trust myself to work out no matter what time of the day it is.

This might be different for you. Like me, you might want to knock out your highest priority creative work for the day, or work out first thing to get your day going. Or you may choose to take that time to meditate and journal before the rest of your day starts because you know yourself well enough to know that carving out that quiet time later in the day is just not doable.

Get your difficult thing done first thing in the morning, and you can feel good about the rest of your day, no matter what happens.

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Happy Monday,

The other day I was wearing a Gold’s gym sweatshirt while walking my dog, and a guy waved at me from across the street with a big smile on his face.

He said he and his wife have been going to Gold’s gym, the iconic gym in Venice Beach where Arnold Schwarzenegger has been known to train, for 47 years.

47 YEARS!!!

Now that’s dedication.

It’s also a good reminder for all of us that fitness shouldn’t be just about looking good for beach season or temporarily getting six-pack abs.

(In fact, research shows that appearance goals are the least motivating long-term. This is why I always encourage people to have some non-appearance-related goals, whether strength, skill or adventure-related.)

Instead, fitness can and should be a source of joy in your life. The daily grind at the gym can build confidence, self-discipline, and mental toughness like nothing else can. And as my neighbor clearly showed, it can be a source of pride and community.

You can bet that I’ll still be training 47 years from now.

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Happy Monday,

So many of us have a bad habit of wanting to be perfect.

We try something challenging, and rather than focus on what we’ve done well, we zoom in on our flaws and only notice everything we’ve done imperfectly.

I often catch myself doing this when I’m training handstands or martial arts, two of my main training focuses at the moment. I’ll watch videos of myself training and pick apart every single thing I did wrong.

Doing so zaps my motivation and fills me with negative self-talk. Worse, it often leaves me feeling like my efforts are pointless — I’ll never live up to my idea of perfect, so why even try?

Of course, logically, this way of thinking makes no sense.

Trying to be “perfect” rarely leads to progress. For most of us, it results in procrastination and means we fail to put our full effort forward since we’re so worried about making mistakes.

But making mistakes along the way to our goals is how we learn. Mistakes, it turns out, are crucial to opening the door up to neuroplasticity — our brain’s ability to learn and change.

As Ryan Holiday writes, “Perfectionism rarely begets perfection, or satisfaction — only disappointment.”

Aim to be perfect, and you’ll never be good enough. You’ll be overwhelmed by self-doubt. You’ll be likely to give up and not even try.

Don’t aim for perfection. Aim to give your best, knowing that your imperfect efforts will one day add up to something meaningful.

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Happy Monday,

It’s easy to feel like all the little things we do to work toward our goals don’t really matter.

After all, you can only do so much in one workout or one day of work. It’s easy to get discouraged and feel like no matter how hard you work, it’s never enough.

But as the sensei asks the student in the fictional but powerful Chop Wood Carry Water: How to Fall in Love With the Process of Becoming Great,

“Do you know what separates the most successful people from everyone else?”

“Inches. That’s all that separates them.”

And it’s true: every little thing we do, no matter how seemingly small, adds up when we do it over and over for months, years, or even decades.

The work you put into your training, career, relationships, or life may not feel like you’re making much progress today.

But keep going, inch by inch, and over time it will add up to something great.

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