How I found that LESS discipline is MORE

I, like so many others, put enormous amounts of work into myself and self improvement. I used to scoff at the self-help section of the book store, thinking it would be embarrassing to look for a book there. I was immature.

Many years later, I found Tim Ferriss. If you have not heard of Tim, you may have spent the last 10 years under a rock. He was probably the first person I began following that made me look at self improvement differently. He made me see self improvement as a powerful undertaking, that opens doors in every area of life. Want to read more and faster? That's self improvement. Want to get healthy and strong? Self improvement. Learn more on a particular topic? Self improvement.

So when I decided I wanted to start a company, naturally I went on a self improvement tear. As Warren Buffet says, "The most important investment you can make is in yourself."

Listening to Tim lead me to a myriad of individuals who have helped transformed my life. A brief list for anyone interested:

• Tom Bilyeu
• Gary Vaynerchuck
• Adam Robinson
• Jocko Willink

This is a short list of some of my top people. Check them out, and listen to Tim's podcast to find so many more. It is a rabbit hole worth going down.

But as the title of this article suggests, this is not about the people I follow in order to better myself. This is about discipline and why it may not be the answer, all the time.

If you follow Jocko, you may be familiar with his adage, Discipline Equals Freedom. There are a million quotes about discipline and they all get to about the same thing: If you want to be successful, you have to have discipline.

While I agree, I only agree to a point. Currently. And I say currently because that may change. Like any good opinion, this one may change over time. And though I am directly defying the advice of two of the people on the list above and maybe every successful person, I am suggesting that maybe LESS discipline is the answer. Or the amount that works for you.

I used to wake up at 6 am. Not THAT early, but early. Sometimes, 5:30. Sometimes earlier. I wanted to be one of those early risers and GET AFTER the day. I wanted to read, meditate, journal, stretch, and collect myself. But guess what happened?

Most of the time I fell asleep meditating. Then the rest of the day I was dog tired. So two weeks ago I stopped. I don't sleep past 7 am for the most part because I have a young daughter, but that extra hour does me wonders.

I wish more than anything that I only needed 3 hours of sleep. But in reality I need 8-9. Yes, 8-9. Its a lot. But it is how I can feel good an productive during the day.

I also used to have much stricter work hours. I HAD to work X amount during the day and if I didn't get what I needed to do done or didn't work enough I was stressed. How could I be so lazy and so undisciplined? How could I only put in 6 hours one day? How could I stop working at 5 to spend time with my daughter and then NOT work from 8pm-2am?

Well, I did sometimes. And it sucked. I am not saying that there are not days that I work 6-10, or am up until 2, or need to wake up at 4. I am just saying, that by letting go of all the self imposed "should" discipline, I have not only been happier but just as, if not more productive. When I am not tired and not stressed, its a wonder how much I can get done. The work seems easier and flows much better.

I am not saying to sit on the couch, eating ice cream all day and do as little work as possible. I am suggesting that we need to find a balance.

I remember one summer training for climbing I went WAY overboard on the discipline front. I used to be a competitive rock climber and decided to step up my game. So I put together a plan to train 7 days a week. Cardio, all kinds of climbing specific training, and cross training. I basically lived at the climbing gym. Guess what happened?

That's right, I burned out. And didn't get any better or stronger. In fact, in aggregate I got weaker because I was over training and burned out so bad that I needed time off. After I crumpled up the plan and threw it away, I saw my progression return and began improving again.

I have applied my climbing philosophy to my work life. Everyone I climbed with used to ask me, "how should I train to get better? What should I be doing to improve?" They always hated the answer, which was my philosophy.

"Climb as much as you want, when you want and try as hard as you can."

There really isn't that much else to it. And it applies to life. Are you trying to be a potter? Then throw pottery as often as you want and try to improve. Don't go into it saying you need to be on the wheel 9 hours a day, and need to research new techniques, and you need to spend the whole weekend at shows. That is only going to lead to burn out. Just do it as much as you want and try as hard as you can. That first principle may even lead you to doing more than you could have planned for yourself in the first place.

It is about trying hard but finding the balance to your happiness and productivity.

In my day-to-day, finding the right balance meant, backing off the discipline. It means giving myself the sleep I need. Letting go of what I didn't do in a day and looking at macro goals. Letting go of the hustle culture, to replace it with a results and outcome culture. Embracing rest and time to think. And just like in my climbing, when I am working or into something, it means going all in.

Starting a company is hard. I will let you know how much harder it gets to build it into a successful one. But for now, finding a better balance and letting go of some of that discipline, has been so helpful.

So, I say. Eat that doughnut. Watch one more episode. Play with your kinds. Read something you WANT to read. Flip through the Facebooks for 20 extra minutes. Our minds need rest, just like our bodies. And when you are in it, be all in. You may just find more balance and come out on the other side mentally stronger.