| *Below is a TRUE STORY told in our new book, The Dark Side of Discipline, now available on Amazon.*
Meet Chuck.
On the outside, Chuck had it all.
- Beautiful wife
- Two adorable kids
- A fancy red sports car
- Big biceps and six-pack abs
- A multi-million dollar business
But strangers on the internet convinced Chuck that he wasn’t successful because he hadn’t done their online challenge of random tasks done for a random number of days.
“No, Chuck, you aren’t disciplined,” they told him, “until you chase our definition of discipline.”
Chuck took the bait.
He spent hours per day dedicated to the program. Getting up at 5 am. Cold plunging. Reading and exercising twice a day. Posting selfies doing these things.
Chuck finished the challenge.
He got his “virtual claps on the back” from people he’d never met and whom he would never meet.
This validation was so strong that Chuck did the challenge again.
Shortly after finishing round two (and getting more virtual dopamine hits)...
Chuck’s wife walked out on him, taking the kids.
“You spend half your time doing all that silly stuff,” she said, “And the other half with your face glued to your phone for work!”
While learning a powerful lesson, Chuck won the internet but lost the game of life.
Chasing Other People’s Definition of Discipline is the Least Disciplined Thing You Can Do
I had always looked up to Chuck because he was a successful entrepreneur, happily married man, and father.
I didn’t understand his obsession with the challenge.
He was already disciplined, a multi-millionaire with six-pack abs, and a leader in his business, family, and community.
Why was he consumed with doing random acts of discipline to impress strangers on the internet?
And by extension…
Why has “doing hard things” become the new “look at me with a Lambo” humblebrag on the internet?
This new obsession with discipline is the wrong path for pursuing what really matters.
It is the result of a misalignment of goals and a lack of clearly defined personal identity.
Chuck sacrificed his standards, chased someone else’s definition of discipline, and lost everything that matters while impressing no one who did.
In other words, he chucked-up.
Chuck was devastated.
I saw a triumphant life turned tragic.
For what?
It turns out Chuck was using the discipline challenge as a way to avoid meeting the real problems in his life head-on, such as working on his marriage.
I see this all the time in our business, coaching clients at my company Early To Rise.
Otherwise smart, hard working people put a Level 10 effort into Level 1 problems, while putting a Level 1 effort into their Level 10 problems.
- Wealthy businessmen make no time for their wives and kids because they are working fourteen hours a day to get even richer.
- Personal trainers with 8% body fat and $8 in their bank account spend two hours a day in the gym but no time working on building their business or sales skills, so they stay broke.
- Entrepreneurs create long morning routine rituals while putting off the most important tasks in their business until they are too tired or it’s too late in the day.
For many years, I was guilty of making a similar mistake.
I used discipline challenges to avoid facing what mattered.
I chased “Gold Stars” and virtual claps on the back from strangers.
“Wow, you’re so productive; you must be The World’s Most Disciplined Man,” they would say after seeing how much content I created and how many speaking events I did for my business.
For years, I felt validated when my clients would refer to me with that title, but the positive recognition provided a slippery slope, putting me in a prison of my design.
I used my obsession with discipline as an excuse to avoid rejection in the pursuit of what really mattered to me in life — meeting my wife and making time to have a family.
Like Chuck, I nearly threw it all away to the Dark Side of Discipline — putting a Level 10 effort into Level 1 problems while chasing other people’s definition of discipline.
To be fair, discipline was once my savior — when I was a young, broke, struggling, introverted, socially anxious, binge-drinking personal trainer who suffered from anxiety attacks so badly that I went to the emergency room twice.
In order to beat the booze, I created what I call “Effortless Discipline Systems” to remove myself from toxic environments and social circles.
I also created systems for making time to acquire high-income skills, putting more structure in my day to become more productive, and mastering my mindset to deal with the challenges of entrepreneurship so I could build Early to Rise to a multi-million dollar business.
Discipline even helped me break free from my anxiety and introverted tendencies to become a highly sought-after speaker and business coach.
But discipline can also destroy you, and that’s what no guru will tell you.
Eventually, discipline became my master, putting me in a prison where I had to adhere to a strict schedule robotically, skip social events, work weekends, and get to bed at 8 pm so I could wake up at 3:57 am and never miss a workout.
I once had an exercise streak of over one thousand days.
I remember doing a bodyweight workout in an airline lounge bathroom in Copenhagen airport. Squats followed by push-ups on the filthy floor. I couldn't miss a day and lose my streak.
I look back and shake my head.
What was the point?
There are no Gold Medals for working out every day.
In fact, this is the Dark Side of Discipline that can destroy you — and your family.
By now, you’re seeing that discipline is a double-edged sword.
You can use discipline to set you free (like it did for me from anxiety and alcohol).
Or you can use discipline to build yourself a prison (like it did for Chuck and the old me when we chased validation from strangers while ignoring what mattered).
The solution was an evolution beyond discipline.
After building effective systems, I still needed to shift my identity and develop high personal standards that served me — rather than me serving them.
Standards leverage the positive power of discipline — making the right decisions automatic for success — without dragging you down to the dark side.
I used the systems and standards you’ll learn about in this book to build “level 10 discipline” where it mattered in my life.
This has helped me do everything from overcoming crippling anxiety, to meeting my wife and raising three kids under the age of three, all while building multiple businesses and writing best-selling books (and to keep my unnecessary-but-nice-to-have six-pack abs at the age of forty-nine).
If you want to stop white-knuckling your way through life…
Gritting your teeth and praying that your willpower will hold out for another hour to get you through the day…
Then you need to evolve beyond fleeting daily motivation and short-term challenges.
Discipline can set you free in the short term, but only through the setting of high personal standards can you remain free for life.
My co-author, Daniel Woodrum, and I have been obsessed with discipline, productivity, and transformation for over twenty-five years.
This book is our life’s work.
We’ve spent decades coaching people to get fit, get rich, change their lives, and improve their marriages.
We’ve been around the block and know how systems and standards can transform people’s lives, but we’ve also seen how the unnecessary pursuit of other people’s definitions of discipline destroys dreams.
We wrote this book so that you can achieve your biggest goals without the unnecessary suffering so many approaches to discipline and common motivational challenges bring.
You’ll also be shown what doesn’t work and is not necessary…
Saving you hundreds of hours that most people spend chasing the wrong path to success.
This might even save your marriage like it could have done for Chuck (and did for Marcus, whom you’ll meet in a moment).
This book is the fastest path you’ll find to automating success.
We’ll show you simple yet powerful strategies for doing what you should do, when you should do it, no matter how you feel about doing it.
You’ll soon be applying a Level 10 effort to your Level 10 problems automatically…
Because that’s what a person like you, with high personal standards, does.
With your new systems, identity, and a higher set of standards, you’ll become unstoppable in every area of life.
From the boardroom to the living room.
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Ok...
If you’ve read this far and you’re still with me…
I’m going to guess this intro to the book appealed to you.
If that’s the case…
Then I'd be honored for you to use this link and grab your copy today on Amazon (Kindle version just $0.99 for a limited time)
Oh, and once you give it a read can you please do me a favor?
If — and only if — you love it and find it helpful…
Please drop us a quick 5-star review.
That’s the best way to support us and help get this message to more of the people who need it most.
My team and I read every single review that comes in…
And I’d consider it a personal favor if you’d be so kind as to leave one.
Success Loves Speed,
Craig
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