Post: #1

I hit a critical point in my life this year and needed to change a lot of things at once. Without going into detail I can say I was not very successful in most things where I wanted to succeed and I suspected that a lack of self-discipline, self-control, and willpower was the source of my problems.

I though what I needed was a campaign of sorts, a period of time when I'd be working on myself and subjecting myself to short-term pain in order to secure long-term gains.

One day I found the ebook 30 days of discipline but after reading the marketing copy I decided I could do something like that without buying it. I had quit nicotine before doing this so I knew I could do it.

This is the program I devised for myself:
- no alcohol whatsoever
- getting up at 5 in the morning, taking a cold bath, and studying a chapter of a language textbook every day
- gym every other day
- limiting or eliminating distractions such as reading news websites, TV, or gossip

With this I hoped to increase my energy and focus and getting more shit done. It worked and I'd like to share my findings with you.

1) No alcohol
This one was important to me as I am a heavy drinker. I managed to stay clean for a month.

Downsides: especially in the evening when I wanted to take the edge off things, I couldn't and stayed sharp and alert. Going out was also problematic as it's not much fun to hang out with drunks when you are sober.

The obvious upside was that I had more choices as to what to do with my available time and energy, which alcohol would have drained away. Not saying and doing stupid shit was a welcome consequence, though I can do both while sober, too.

2) Getting up early. Critical - I could do stuff in the morning such as language study that would be difficult to stuff into my working day. Plus it prevented me from wasting time in the evening as I had to go to bed early.

3) Cold baths. I recommend this, in combination with regular gym you’ll be a motherfucker. It wasn’t easy for me; I had to use a carrot-and-stick technique for willing myself into it, the carrot being a promise of a more solid health, and the stick being calling myself a wimp and such until I entered the bath.
I recently caught a cold, which went away the following day. I think this will work as intended.

5) Regular gym time. I had lifted without making any progress for the past two or three years. I’d typically ease into going once per week, which is far from sufficient to make any gains. Once I got serious, I observed unexpected progress in key lifts as early as the 2nd or 3rd week. That reinvigorated my motivation and I’ll now go on a serious winter bulk-up program.
Being 35+ I can’t stress how important is the regular gym time to keep feeling like a man.

6. Distractions. I didn’t manage to avoid them completely but for instance giving up TV shows freed me to do things that are more valuable to me right now, such as reading a history book or starting a side project. I still haven’t seen the last episode of Breaking Bad and don’t know when I’m going to, despite being a huge fan.

CONCLUSION. This was a fun month and it wasn’t nearly as difficult as I thought it would be. I took things in my life that I thought weren’t working and tried to fix them all at once. I thought I’d share it with you guys in case someone was thinking about doing a similar thing.

Post: #2

I'm about to do the same thing starting tomorrow...

Post: #3

A bit counterintuitive (and a bit OT), but as of today, I've deleted all my online dating profiles.

I've decided that they're just too much of a distraction, when compared against the results they yield.

And not that I'm overly into it, but periodically, I'll disable my Facebook account too in order to limit distractions.

Since February, when I ramped up my gym efforts (including diet and supps), I've found that I've steadily and naturally reduced my alcohol intake. Now, I'm lucky to have a drink once per fortnight, and when I do, it'll only be one or two drinks. I no longer keep beer in the fridge, and only ever stock a bottle or two of red wine, on the off chance I have a glass with my girl over dinner.

Post: #4

More importantly, how did it improve you?

Post: #5

In addition to your list, I got rid of every social media that I am using. I turned off facebook, twitter and whatever social procrastination I am part of. I am more productive now.

Post: #6

Excellent!

I will attempt the same. I was already thinking of limiting my drinking, but I think no drinking at all during the semester will do me good.

Post: #7

1) Agree on drinking. When I was living in the far north for job reasons, in the middle of the minus 30 winter, I started drinking too much. After drinking a whole bottle of wine on a weeknight I asked a substance abuse counselor I worked with at a hospital if tat was too much and if I was going off the deep end. He said I'd have to be up to a half-gallon to be really fucking up.

"What IS alcohol good for?" I asked him.
"As a social lubricant" he answered.

That seems about the only good use to me. You should be able to relax with exercise or meditation -- the only worthwhile reason for taking the cognitive hit-- the hours lost in not being able to productively THINK--are only justified if you are getting to know a valuable contact-- a hot chick, a professional associate. Just hanging out with the same people and saying the same things... waste of time. Couldn't you be doing something productive with that time? Practicing music, planning biz-- SOMETHING?

I kind of look at it like that now If you are trying to do anything intellectual-- making music, learning languages, learning programming-- any alcohol you drink will reduce the time per day you an study the stuff. It just takes time to recover from the dumbing down alcohol does to you.
2) I'm not sure about cold baths. While I was in Ukraine, one of my friends had a friend who died while doing the macho jumping-in-a-frozen-river thing.

Post: #8

Quote:one of my friends had a friend who died while doing the macho jumping-in-a-frozen-river thing.

Ouch.

How did this happen? Heart attack? Drowning? Hitting the rock under the ice with his head?

Post: #9

(10-20-2013 07:11 AM)Handsome Creepy Eel Wrote:  

Quote:one of my friends had a friend who died while doing the macho jumping-in-a-frozen-river thing.

Ouch.

How did this happen? Heart attack? Drowning? Hitting the rock under the ice with his head?

I don't have details and I'm not a medical doctor, but my impression is that the shock caused some kind of cardiac arrest. Your body and life is an unbelieveably complex combination of chemical and electronic signals, what's amazing is that we live as long as we do. One foulup in a critical system, one "radiator hose" bursting, means you disappear forever.

Wikipedia says cardiac arrest is the most common cause of death from winter swimming, but it says it's not very dangerous for healthy people. It also says it may improve resistance to infection and mood.

But many, many people have high blood pressure and don't know it.

I don't want to be too alarming however. Tap water seems unlikely to be as cold as water in a frozen river or lake. My guess is 45 degrees is probably a lot less dangerous than 35.

Post: #10

Great thread.

I think the reason why I am not as successful as I would like to be is because I am a lazy fuck. I have got all the right ideas but I never act on them. I only get to travel a lot and make decent money because i have a super easy and fun online job that gives me this lifestyle. I have tried different techniques to stop being lazy but after a while i go back to the same problem.

I need to maintain my energy levels high and stop masturbation for good (I have no reason to masturbate because I am in a pussy paradise but sometimes I just go back to this porn addiction, I hate this shit).

Thanks for sharing those tips though.

Post: #11

(10-20-2013 08:25 AM)pitt Wrote:  I think the reason why I am not as successful as I would like to be is because I am a lazy fuck. I have got all the right ideas but I never act on them. I only get to travel a lot and make decent money because i have a super easy and fun online job that gives me this lifestyle. I have tried different techniques to stop being lazy but after a while i go back to the same problem.

Could it be that you are actually quite satisfied with what you have?

One thing that this exercise I described above gave me was that I discovered about many things that I thought I wanted - but didn't give enough effort to - that I didn't really want them. I would call myself to be lazy yet this laziness could be our natural protection from doing things we don't truly desire.

You wrote that you have a super easy and fun online job that gives you lifestyle - sounds like you've already done good enough. Maybe a good start for you would be to ask yourself what is is that you truly desire.

I used to (sometimes) be angry with myself for not being able to quit smoking. Yet when I realized I truly desired to quit, I just did. I don't know if this is true for eveyone but I have to want something really bad to do anything about it.

Post: #12

(10-20-2013 07:04 AM)iknowexactly Wrote:  [...]

"What IS alcohol good for?" I asked him.
"As a social lubricant" he answered.

That seems about the only good use to me. You should be able to relax with exercise or meditation -- the only worthwhile reason for taking the cognitive hit-- the hours lost in not being able to productively THINK--are only justified if you are getting to know a valuable contact-- a hot chick, a professional associate. Just hanging out with the same people and saying the same things... waste of time. Couldn't you be doing something productive with that time? Practicing music, planning biz-- SOMETHING?

[...]

That. I was uneasy when I realized how much I depended on alcohol to relax. Opening a bottle of wine after coming home from work had become a reflex.

However, I cannot continue using alcohol as a social lubricant since I don't really want to stop drinking once I start, and at a certain point in the evening I start saying things that I wouldn't otherwise want to say to a professional associate or a hot chick. The way I see it now is that I will alternate dry weeks with wet weeks and keep experimenting; who knows, maybe I'll have to quit altogether.

Or, maybe I should look for a thread about how to handle one's alcohol?

(10-20-2013 07:04 AM)iknowexactly Wrote:  2) I'm not sure about cold baths. While I was in Ukraine, one of my friends had a friend who died while doing the macho jumping-in-a-frozen-river thing.

I think you have to start easy and train for a long time before you can jump into a frozen river. Someone who has never lifted would hurt himself trying to squat with a 100kg barbell either.

I remember watching TV as a kid on December 25 and seeing a footage about 70 and 80 year olds entering the frozen river and swimming in it, year after year. Those people trained their whole lives for it and you could see that despite their advanced age, they were tough. They liked saying they were never ill etc. That impresed me.

Post: #13

(10-20-2013 08:25 AM)pitt Wrote:  Great thread.

I think the reason why I am not as successful as I would like to be is because I am a lazy fuck. I have got all the right ideas but I never act on them. I only get to travel a lot and make decent money because i have a super easy and fun online job that gives me this lifestyle. I have tried different techniques to stop being lazy but after a while i go back to the same problem.

I need to maintain my energy levels high and stop masturbation for good (I have no reason to masturbate because I am in a pussy paradise but sometimes I just go back to this porn addiction, I hate this shit).

Thanks for sharing those tips though.

In a similar position, super easy online job (like 1 hour a day work), plenty of money. Could it be that the 'chase' is over, and you are getting things a little too easy? I know I am.

Perhaps starting something new where you are right at the bottom of the barrel would inspire and motivate you again.

Post: #14

(10-20-2013 10:51 AM)Teekay Wrote:  

(10-20-2013 08:25 AM)pitt Wrote:  I think the reason why I am not as successful as I would like to be is because I am a lazy fuck. I have got all the right ideas but I never act on them. I only get to travel a lot and make decent money because i have a super easy and fun online job that gives me this lifestyle. I have tried different techniques to stop being lazy but after a while i go back to the same problem.

Could it be that you are actually quite satisfied with what you have?

One thing that this exercise I described above gave me was that I discovered about many things that I thought I wanted - but didn't give enough effort to - that I didn't really want them. I would call myself to be lazy yet this laziness could be our natural protection from doing things we don't truly desire.

You wrote that you have a super easy and fun online job that gives you lifestyle - sounds like you've already done good enough. Maybe a good start for you would be to ask yourself what is is that you truly desire.

I used to (sometimes) be angry with myself for not being able to quit smoking. Yet when I realized I truly desired to quit, I just did. I don't know if this is true for eveyone but I have to want something really bad to do anything about it.

yeah I am quiet satisfied with what i have but deep inside I know i could have more. I am just a lucky guy that has always built systems to get passive income with very minimal work or non work at all. For example, I could go to Canada now and start working in the oil field and make more money than I am making now but when i think about all the cold that goes on there, I lose motivation to move there. I don't want to leave my current lifestyle and I don't want to delay gratification. I could work hard for few years and then live a richer lifestyle in 5 years time but I don't want to delay gratification.. I am just a lazy bastard that got lucky and is living that international playboy lifestyle, but I need to stop being lazy and build an anti-fragile income system.

Post: #15

I'll fucking do this.

I really like this thread and I'm glad you made it. I've found myself in a slump of inertia lately.

It can be really hard to get going with a resolution if you think it's going to be forever. Like "open one girl a day", but I found that when I resolved to open one girl a day for just 7 days in a row, then it's finite and has a definitive "end". So it's easier to go along with knowing that you're just taking it one day at a time. Kind of like how they do with alcoholics at AA.

Four weeks of discipline to do things that will make you better is like a tunnel that you can see the light at the end of. You can suck it up and tell yourself you can do anything for 4 weeks.

I think it's so lame when people say "I'm doing this tomorrow" or "I'm thinking about doing xyz.." so instead of sharing my list here, I'm just going to do it. I'll reply to this thread in ~4 weeks when I actually accomplish it.

Great idea.

Post: #16

(10-20-2013 01:53 PM)pitt Wrote:  

(10-20-2013 10:51 AM)Teekay Wrote:  

(10-20-2013 08:25 AM)pitt Wrote:  I think the reason why I am not as successful as I would like to be is because I am a lazy fuck. I have got all the right ideas but I never act on them. I only get to travel a lot and make decent money because i have a super easy and fun online job that gives me this lifestyle. I have tried different techniques to stop being lazy but after a while i go back to the same problem.

Could it be that you are actually quite satisfied with what you have?

One thing that this exercise I described above gave me was that I discovered about many things that I thought I wanted - but didn't give enough effort to - that I didn't really want them. I would call myself to be lazy yet this laziness could be our natural protection from doing things we don't truly desire.

You wrote that you have a super easy and fun online job that gives you lifestyle - sounds like you've already done good enough. Maybe a good start for you would be to ask yourself what is is that you truly desire.

I used to (sometimes) be angry with myself for not being able to quit smoking. Yet when I realized I truly desired to quit, I just did. I don't know if this is true for eveyone but I have to want something really bad to do anything about it.

yeah I am quiet satisfied with what i have but deep inside I know i could have more. I am just a lucky guy that has always built systems to get passive income with very minimal work or non work at all. For example, I could go to Canada now and start working in the oil field and make more money than I am making now but when i think about all the cold that goes on there, I lose motivation to move there. I don't want to leave my current lifestyle and I don't want to delay gratification. I could work hard for few years and then live a richer lifestyle in 5 years time but I don't want to delay gratification.. I am just a lazy bastard that got lucky and is living that international playboy lifestyle, but I need to stop being lazy and build an anti-fragile income system.

Haha. I finally meet (at least online) my doppelgänger.

Post: #17

I dunno Pitt, life is short, you can sell your online business to somebody willing to wait six or eight months for his investment to start paying off and start looting Canada of it's oil field riches.

Post: #18

(10-20-2013 08:25 AM)pitt Wrote:  Great thread.

I think the reason why I am not as successful as I would like to be is because I am a lazy fuck. I have got all the right ideas but I never act on them. I only get to travel a lot and make decent money because i have a super easy and fun online job that gives me this lifestyle. I have tried different techniques to stop being lazy but after a while i go back to the same problem.

I need to maintain my energy levels high and stop masturbation for good (I have no reason to masturbate because I am in a pussy paradise but sometimes I just go back to this porn addiction, I hate this shit).

Thanks for sharing those tips though.

described me to a fuckin T