If You Can't Answer These... You've Already LOST!

Intro: The Hermoine Effect

I’m outing myself as a huge nerd here, but I love Harry Potter.

But, the weird thing is that our minds kinda work like Hermoine.

Let me explain:

Whenever a question is asked within a 100-mile radius, Hermoine is raising her hand with an unstoppable desire to answer. Our minds are the same. When you ask a question, your mind wants to answer.

But….

If you ask stupid questions, you get answers that destroy you!

For example:

Have you ever done something stupid and thought “Man, why am I such an idiot?”. And in that moment, your mind listed the 999 reasons why you are one. Making you feel even worse than you did before.

That’s an example of what NOT to do.

In this newsletter I’ll give you 3 powerful questions that can change your thinking and life forever! So let’s rock and roll!

Question 1: “What if I’m Still Stuck in the Exact Same Place in Life 5 Years From Now?”

Imagine the following situation:

You’re walking through a quiet part of town, listening to the radio. They’re playing an emergency warning that a tiger has escaped from the zoo in your town. You look around, and… you see it right behind you!

And as you look at it, it starts charging towards you.

Guess what?

In that scenario, you’re going to run faster than you EVER have in your life. Fatigue won’t even exist. You’ll pull off moves you never thought possible in an attempt to escape.

Fun fact: A tiger’s top speed is roughly 40 mph, so you’d likely die regardless.

Anyway, here’s the point of this little story:

When it comes to motivation, people will often tell you to envision some grand thing in your future. The truth however, is that away-from motivation is often way more powerful! (Although not as sustainable long-term).

Use it!

I get it, trying and failing doesn’t feel great.

Doing new things or aiming higher is scary, which is why most people procrastinate.

The Fix?

Summon your own tiger. Just the chase, not the whole being mauled to death part (unless you’re into that, no judgment).

Ask yourself how you would feel if you stayed stuck in life. What if you never solved the problems you’re dealing with? What if you went to your high school reunion in 5 years and you were exactly as you are now (but with a few grey hairs)?

Write it out.
Make it vivid.
Make it sting.

Make it real and allow that tiger to chase you into greatness!

Question 2: What Obvious Thing Can I Do RIGHT NOW?

Overwhelm kills dreams faster than our hypothetical tiger.

Here’s what happens to most ambitious men:

They dream big. Fastastic! But… those dreams are also intimidating. It will take YEARS to pull off. There’s a 1682-step plan involved. Hundreds of things can go wrong. Tons of doubt. Uncertainty everywhere.

And the end result?

They procrastinate because they overwhelmed themselves.

So instead use ask yourself:

“What is something that I can do RIGHT NOW that will get me closer to my goal?”

The truth is, you do NOT need an elaborate plan to succeed. Not initially at least. An ounce of action beats a ton of planning every day of the week! So focus on taking the logical next step, and worry about the other 999 AFTER taking your first!

The simpler you make it to take action, the more likely you are to do it!

Question 3: Why? Why? WWWHHYYYYYYYYYY??

Harry Potter, existential dread, imaginary tigers and now we have the Backstreet Boys!

Is there anything this newsletter doesn’t have?

Sidenote: Joking aside, if you’re getting both practical info and a laugh or two, would you consider sharing this newsletter with a (couple of) friend(s)? You’ll help them and I greatly appreciate the support as well!

You can send them this link: https://www.riseandthrive.school/subscribe (or use the share buttons if you’re on the web version)

Moving on to question 3:

The BRUTAL truth is that success will take a LOT of sacrifice and effort on your end.

Honestly… the odds are against you!

Most people give up WAY before they ever reach the finish line. BUT… there is one final question that will allow you to succeed REGARDLESS of how difficult it gets! It will ignite your motivation harder than a nuclear blast, and sustain it!

It’s a simple 3-letter question:

Why?

The journey is going to be difficult. In order to endure, you NEED to know why you’re in the game to begin with! Without that, you’ve lost before you even get started!

Here’s the technique to use:

1. Write down your main goal on a piece of paper.

2. Ask yourself: “Why is achieving this crucial to me?”

3. Write out your answer. (Try to use emotional language)

4. Ask yourself why your answer is important to you. (dig a layer deeper)

5. Once again, write your answer down. Make it come alive.

6. Continue this process at least 3 more times.

7. You know you got it when writing your answer is making you highly emotional.

Here’s why this is important:

Summoning your own tiger (Q1) will push you out the door.

Your reason WHY is what sustains you long-term.

When you combine both types of motivation, you become unstoppable. A force of nature. An avalanche of success. A missile locked-onto your future. You magnificent goal-getting beast!

Audio: Building Discipline in 6 Simple Steps

Building discipline is a superpower. Unfortunately 99% of people don’t know how to build it. These are the 6 steps I took to build my own and that you can follow as well.

Time to leave your competition in the dust!

Video: The Key to Winning Without Discipline

Not yet as disciplined as you’d love to be?

No worries, I got ya!

In the video below, I share exactly how to start getting more done without the need for discipline. While you’re building yours just use the one simple tool I share here to skyrocket your progress!