Discipline: The Key to Overcoming Motivation Challenges

Discipline, not motivation, is crucial for success in any endeavor, leading to ultimate freedom.

### Discipline Equals Freedom: The Key to Overcoming Lack of Motivation
* 🏋 Jocko Willink emphasizes that "motivation doesn't matter at all" and that what truly matters is the **discipline to execute what needs to be done**, even when you don't want to do it.
* 💂 In SEAL training, discipline is instilled by being forced to do things you don't want to do, and this intrinsic discipline is crucial for both **individual and team performance**.
* 🌊 The **20-minute rule** illustrates how motivation quickly fades, making **discipline the only reliable factor** to rely on.
* 🎖 In combat situations, discipline is essential as it **overcomes fear, hesitation, and other emotions**.
* 🍩 People often get defeated by trivial things like **alarm clocks, pillows, or donuts**, leading to **unhealthy and problematic situations**.
* 🔒 By recognizing that **discipline is much more powerful than feelings or motivation**, and by letting discipline guide your actions, you can achieve **freedom in all aspects of life**.
* 💪 "**Discipline equals freedom**." By imposing discipline in your life, you can **break free from being a slave to your feelings** and ultimately **gain true freedom**.

Jocko:
You don't feel like working out. It doesn't matter. 
It's not part of the calculation. It's Leif:
Up to you to get yourself up, get some training in, 
maintain your level of fitness. People Jocko:
Get defeated by their alarm clock. People's motivation gets defeated by their pillow. People's 
motivation gets defeated by a donut. That's what happens. There are things that you learn in basic 
SEAL training that stick with you, that when it's Leif:
Cold, when it's miserable, when you don't want to be there, Jocko:
There is something else that you can tap into that is 
much more powerful than your feelings, than your motivation. And if you do that, 
you're going to end up with freedom. Leif:
Jocko, how do I get more motivated? Obviously we get this question all the time for 
people that want to improve their motivation.

Jocko: Well, the fact of the matter is motivation doesn't matter. Doesn't weigh in, carries no weight. It's not part of the program. It really isn't. It's just not part of the program. Being motivated is not part of the program and look, going through SEAL training, I have often said you don't learn anything going through SEAL training. You don't learn anything. It's just you're just going to be wet, cold and miserable. But we talked about this on a recent podcast. There are things that you learn in basic SEAL training that stick with you. One of them is that motivation is worthless. It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter at all because what's going to happen going through SEAL training is you are going to do things that you 100% do not want to do at that moment. So it's three o'clock in the morning, four o'clock in the morning, you've been wet, cold and miserable.

You get dragged up onto the beach. You climb up onto the beach. You get underneath your boat for seven minutes. You're huddled up with your guys. You're trying to create body heat to get a little bit of warmth, and you start feeling a little bit of warmth. Then the instructor's like, Get back in the water. No one in that class wants to get back in the water. Zero people. The zero people want to get back in the water. The motivation level to get back in the water is zero. It might even be negative nine, right? It is low. And guess what you're going to do? Get out from under the boat. You're going to get back in the water. So what you realize is that motivation doesn't matter at all. What matters is the discipline that you're going to execute what you're being told at that time to execute. Now, the other thing that's happening in SEAL training is, believe it or not,

you have a lot of freedom. You have a lot of 
freedom in seal training. You get weekends off,   you get a lot of weekends off, sometimes you 
get nights off, you have time. You can go,   right? You're in one of the most beautiful 
places in the world, Coronado, California.   There's stores out there, there's little bars 
guys can go to. Then you go from Coronado,   you can get a cab back in the day, you can 
get a cab now you can get an Uber or a Lyft or   whatever. You can go right over into downtown 
San Diego. Now you got clubs, you got bars,   you got things going on. You got women, you can 
chase around. You can go all the way up to Pacific   Beach. There's colleges that pour into Pacific 
Beach and there's all that mayhem to get into. And guess what? If you want to go out and get into 
that mayhem, you can, but that costs some people.

Some guys going through that training that costs them the ability to make it through training. They either get in trouble or they're not ready for that four mile time running on Monday morning, but those temptations are there and what protects you from those temptations is discipline. That's what it is. So motivation isn't what we are relying on and we can't rely on motivation because like I said, if you and I got to get in the water to go conduct an operation, the motivation to do that will be zero, might even be negative nine, might be negative 12, might be negative a thousand. And you know what? Doesn't matter. You and I are going to go do what we have to do. But going through SEAL training, you're having stuff imposed upon you. This is what you will do. Now, in a lot of ways that's easier, right? It's easier to do that. It's easier to get

put in the water because you're being told to get put in the water. But what they do is you have those weekends off. You have those times. You can get in trouble. You have a four-mile timed run. There's no pace setting. As a matter of fact, this is a reason they do this. You don't have a watch on. They don't let you have a watch in seal training. So you do a four-mile timed run. You have to mate a certain time, you have to make a certain time. You don't know what the time is because you don't know what time you don't have a watch. So you know what you have to do. Run as hard as you can. Same thing with a swim. What do you do? Swim as hard as you can. Same thing with the obstacle course. The motivation won't be there three and a half miles into a

four mile time run. You're dying. You feel like you're going to die. What do you got to do? You got to have the discipline to keep pushing, otherwise you're not going to make the time. So they develop this intrinsic discipline. You should carry into the teams so that you continue to stay on the path and it doesn't take a person telling you that you need to do something, you do it anyways. You don't do it because you're motivated. You do it because you're disciplined. And that's what we have in our minds. What's interesting is in our minds, we are the general. The general on the battlefield in our minds, we are the general. We are also the soldier that has to execute. That's what we have in our brains. You come up with a plan, I'm going to work out today. That's the general telling you to work out the

soldier. You also has to go and then execute on that. That's the discipline. And listen, in a normal real military organization, the leaders put out the word to the soldiers. The soldiers have to execute, otherwise everything falls apart. It's the same thing in your mind, the leader in your mind, the general puts out the word on what needs to be executed. It's you the soldier that has to go make that happen. So you get trained just like you get trained in Marine Corps bootcamp or Army Bootcamp or Navy bootcamp, that you're going to respond to those direct orders when they come. You have to train yourself. You have to train the soldier in your mind to obey those direct orders when they come. And that is the foundation of discipline. When you graduate from BUDS, after you're going into that training and you have to use discipline to go out there when you're not motivated, well then it's on you to maintain a high level of

physical training. And that was a tough transition 
for me. I know it was for a lot of people because now you don't have an instructor in a blue shirt 
yelling at you or telling you to show up at this time to go through a training evolution. You 
have to do it on your own and it's up to you to maintain a super high level of physical fitness. 
And that's a big transition because now all of a sudden it takes that self-discipline to 
get yourself up, get some training in, go out and maintain your level of fitness on your 
own. And that's something that the motivation is often not there because particularly when you're 
training and there's things that are happening, you're traveling and it's harder if you 
don't have access to your regular gym or it's not super convenient if you're out 
on the road, you got to wake up early. If you've got early training evolution, you got 
to wake up even earlier to get up and get your

workouts in. But that's something you have to do, and it takes tremendous self-discipline to do that in the seal teams. I remember often when we're out shooting, or we're in a demolition range, and we're blowing things up, or we're jumping, and it's easy to look at yourself and think, I can't believe I get paid to do this. This is such a fun job, and it was the best job in the world. But we used to joke about the fact that we had what we call the 20-minute rule of when you're on a boat in high seas, in cold water, or you're riding in a helicopter, it's really cool for 20 minutes. If you're diving at nighttime under the ocean, and it's pitch black, and there are ships going over the top of you, it's really cool for 20 minutes, and then two and a half hours later, you're still doing it.

So, you might be motivated in the first 20 minutes to like, Oh, this is really cool. This is really neat. This is fun. This is something that I kind of dreamed of doing or something that I maybe saw in the movies or on TV shows. But that motivation is immediately waning. And so you got to do that for hours and hours when it's cold, when it's miserable, when you don't want to be there. And it requires discipline to push through, and that's what makes all the difference in the performance for your own individual performance and the performance of your team. And that's why that training is so hard. They will 100% get through whatever level of motivation a human being has. They will burn through that and get to where there's only thing that's left is discipline. The only thing that's left, there's nobody at day four of hell week that is

like I said, sitting a boat. They get told to get back in the water. Not one of those people want to get back in the water and hey, do they stand up and say, who ya? And run back in there and act like they are. Yep, a hundred percent or not a hundred percent, but some guys, false motivation. I was all about that false motivation. They're telling me to do something that's going to suck. I'm going to act like I want to do it. Let's go. But they get through, they burn through that motivation of everybody in that class. That's why so many people quit and because you think about it, 20 minutes, it's gone, right? That's your assessment. Even if it's something that you love doing, you love whatever you love, going on an op and going on patrol, you love doing that,

cool. Maybe you're a person that it's fun for 
an hour, three hours, five hours, seven hours, 12 hours one day. So they're going to keep doing 
that to you until you get to five, five and a half days of things that suck and they burn through 
every the class. Motivation collectively is zero at the end. What you end up with is people that 
are going to do what they are told to do because they are disciplined. That's what you end up with 
and that's what you need. That's the way you can't negotiate. You don't negotiate with an instructor 
and say, Hey, maybe can we go in a little while? I'm kind of warm right now. You don't get to do 
that and clearly you don't get to negotiate in combat, and that's what it boils down to. There 
is going to be times in combat situations when

there's gunfire in the street, and someone's got to go out and lay down cover fire. There's going to be times where people say, Oh, I can die when I step out of this alleyway. I don't want to do this right now. And he's got 15, 20 other people relying on him putting down that cover fire. You can't have someone that says, I'm not sure if I'm motivated to do this right now. What you need is someone that is going to execute what they need to execute through pure discipline. Fear is overcome, hesitation is overcome. It's not overcome by motivation, it's overcome by discipline. That's why it trumps all these bullshit emotions that are floating around in people's head. I'm scared, I'm afraid. I'm nervous, I'm hesitant. I'm not sure if I want to do this.

guessing. All those little things, they're 
just overridden by one thing and one thing   only discipline, and that's what it's going to 
take. So that's why that training is hard and   that's why the result is guys that can go out on 
the battlefield and they are going to deliver,   they're going to execute no matter what they 
come up against. That is the discipline. What   does that mean to a normal person that doesn't 
need to go into extreme cold conditions or   doesn't need to go into combat situations? 
Well, guess what? What's strange is people   get defeated on a daily basis by things 
that are much less significant. I mean,   infinitely less significant. People get 
defeated by their alarm clock. People's   motivation gets defeated by their pillow. 
People's motivation gets defeated by a donut. That's what happens. That's the reality. The 
situation is people, the will that people have

gets defeated by a donut. That's what happens. And 
they end up in terrible situations. They end up   not healthy. They end up having problems. They're 
not physically capable. All that starts with their   will and their motivation being overcome by a 
donut. So what you have to do is you have to start   to recognize that there is something else that 
you can tap into that is much more powerful than   your feelings, than your motivation. And that is 
discipline. You can apply this discipline. Look,   you have a project that's do at work that you 
don't feel like working on right now. Doesn't   matter that you don't feel like working on it 
right now. You impose discipline on the situation,   and you do what you're supposed to do. You have 
an exercise you need to work out this morning. You haven't worked out yet. You wake up 
in the morning, you need to go work out.

You don't feel like working out. It doesn't 
matter. It doesn't matter that you don't feel   like working out. It doesn't matter. It's not 
part of the calculation. Discipline overrides   that. Discipline trumps your feelings, and 
that is what you need to apply as a person,   as a normal human being. No matter what you're 
doing in your life. You need to let discipline   be your guide, not how you feel. That's 
what we need to do. And if you do that,   you're going to end up with freedom. You're 
going to end up with freedom across the board.   Discipline equals freedom. That's what I have been 
saying for a long time. It is 100% factually true.   If you allow your feelings to dictate what you 
do, you'll end up being a slave to your feelings   at a minimum. But if you utilize discipline 
in your life, you'll end up with the ultimate

freedom in everything that you do. So that is why you as a person out there doing your job, whatever that job may be, impose discipline in your life, it will set you free.

Motivation Doesn't Work. Do This Instead. | Jocko Willink | Leif Babin | #extremeownership

Echelon Front, the premier destination for elite leadership solutions founded by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin, the New York Times #1 Bestselling Authors of "Extreme Ownership: How US Navy SEALs Lead and Win". Our team of battle-tested Veterans brings you unparalleled expertise in leadership, strategy, innovation, safety, risk mitigation, team building, and crisis management.

WHO WE ARE:
Led by Jocko and Leif , our team is dedicated to building, training, and leading high-performance teams. Our mission is to empower you to cultivate your own high-performance team and achieve victory. We offer tailored training programs, from immersive leadership courses to dynamic workshops, strategic advising,  speaking engagements, and online training.

WHAT WE DO:
We deliver practical, experience-driven solutions to tackle your toughest challenges, drawing from real-world combat leadership experiences. Our approach is rooted in the crucible of actual combat scenarios, not theoretical classrooms. 


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The Irrelevance of Motivation in SEAL Training

Motivation is deemed irrelevant in SEAL training, with a focus on discipline over feelings.

The program emphasizes the execution of tasks regardless of motivation levels.

The key lesson is that discipline is more important than motivation in order to succeed.

The Freedom and Temptations of SEAL Training in Coronado, California

SEAL trainees have a lot of freedom on weekends and sometimes even at night, with access to various attractions and temptations in Coronado and San Diego.

However, these temptations can hinder their ability to make it through training, highlighting the importance of discipline.

SEAL training imposes strict requirements and challenges, such as timed runs and swims, without allowing trainees to rely on motivation.

The Importance of Discipline in Achieving Goals

Discipline is crucial for pushing through challenges and staying on the path to success, even when motivation is lacking.

In the military, the general gives orders and the soldier must execute them, similar to how the mind operates in maintaining discipline.

After completing training, individuals must transition to maintaining high levels of discipline and physical fitness on their own, without external motivation.

The Importance of Self-Discipline in Navy SEAL Training

Navy SEALs require tremendous self-discipline to push through challenging and often miserable situations during training.

The initial motivation quickly fades, leaving only discipline to drive performance.

The ability to surpass motivation and rely on discipline is crucial for the success of individuals and the team.

The Power of Discipline in Overcoming Obstacles

Discipline is emphasized as more important than motivation in completing tasks, especially in challenging or dangerous situations.

In a combat environment, discipline is crucial for overcoming fear and hesitation to execute tasks effectively.

The same level of discipline can also help individuals overcome daily obstacles and distractions, highlighting its significance in achieving goals.

The Power of Discipline in Overcoming Temptation

Giving in to unhealthy temptations can lead to physical and mental problems, but these can be overcome by the power of discipline.

Discipline is the key to accomplishing tasks, such as work projects and exercise, even when not feeling motivated.

By prioritizing discipline over feelings, one can achieve ultimate freedom in life.