@habits

At least 10 times a day, and probably closer to 100, I’m faced with a situation where I SHOULD do X, but I actually do Y instead.

I should wake up now. I actually hit the snooze button. Three times.

I should run another 2 laps, like I planned to do. Instead, I walk one and call it a day.

I should tell the waiter that this dish is too salty. I wind up just eating less of it and feeling dissatisfied.

This gap, between what we SHOULD do and what we ACTUALLY do, is something the Greeks knew well.

They even gave it a name: AKRASIA.

Akrasia is our inner weakness. It’s the gap between our expectations and our realizations. It’s our lack of (pick your favorite psychology concept of the day: willpower/grit/persistence).

Akrasia is like amnesia for our better self. Our better self knows what he should be doing: Finish the project. Get to bed early. Be kind to strangers. But instead, akrasia casts its magic spell and our better selves forget. We play Pokemon Go instead of working on our side business. We watch another episode of Narcos instead of sleeping. We get snippy at a slow cashier even though deep down we know it’s not her fault.

Akrasia knows we’re impatient. So she gives us rewards right here right now. She knows doing the right thing, the hard thing, those rewards don’t come until later. So she offers us one marshmallow, right now, and she sits back and watches as we scarf it down, instead of waiting for two later.

Akrasia knows we’re afraid. She knows we hate to fail, we hate to look bad, we avoid embarrassment at all costs. So she exaggerates risk. She distorts our ability to make calm, rational choices. She toys mercilessly with our emotions.

But in the words of Edward Murrow, we are not descended…from fearful man.

We have an ally in our corner. An ally that can beat akrasia time and again. An ally who is so strong and influential that he’s already everywhere in our lives, in the world around us.

That ally is habit.

Akrasia hates habit. Because habit defeats akrasia like it ain’t no thing.

Habit is an action repeated until it becomes automatic. With each repetition, that action becomes easier, more efficient, more effective. More unstoppable.

Habits can be simple, like flossing, and awesomely complex, like flying a jumbo jet.

When you build a strong habit, your willpower and grit and persistence no longer matter.

When you have a strong habit, impatience and fear don’t matter. You’re focused on action, not results. You know the outcome will take care of itself, with time, with effort, with repetition. Through building the habit, you accept that failure is inseparable from growth, from progress. You know what matters is the doing, not the thinking.

Habit shuts out akrasia.

That’s why you brush your teeth every night, no matter how tired you are, what kind of day you had.

That’s how a long-time vegetarian stops craving meat. They may even find it gross.

That’s how early birds wake up at 7am, even on the weekends, even after a late night out.

And that’s why you see the same ripped and athletic guys at the gym, day after day, at almost the same time, doing nearly the same routines. You think they don’t have slow days? Mornings when they feel tired, cranky, sore?

That’s the power of habit.

If there’s something you REALLY WANT from life, whether its to build a profitable business, or save enough money to travel the world, or lose 100 pounds, you must think habits first. You must consciously build the right habits, repetition after repetition, routine after routine, week after week.

Don’t worry about akrasia. Don’t fret that you lack willpower or grit

Frankly, none of that shit matters. The solution, like most good and real solutions, is very simple:

Build good habits. Build a habit driven life.

And kiss akrasia bye-bye.

I’m writing a book about habits. This is a working excerpt. Thanks for reading!