How I brainwashed myself for success

[Fox]

Are you happy?

Very much so. There is more effort and challenges when you push yourself like this but I am happy in the struggle. I am willing to sacrifice who I am now for what I will become.

 

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[Fox]

To avoid burning out I have brought in a rest/work cycle:

Work 3 days - Rest 1 day. Repeat.

Work days are flat out with no excuses. Rest days are treats for sticking to the plan. I can work hard the 3 days knowing that I will be able to recover soon.

After three weeks I take 5-7 days in light mode. That means half days and some time off like a two night trip somewhere, massage, night in a hotel with my girlfriend etc.

 

[Singh]

@Fox I've been doing a similar thing for my mornings before going to work. Have you done anything to try and improve sleep quality? I atm blackout the room, wear an eyemas, orange UV blocking glasses 1-2 hours before bed. Is there anything else you have tried thats working for you?

 

[NewJamesBond]

@Fox - Your posts are so inspiring. This month I have increased my net worth by 11%, made more money, and worked with more clients than ever before. It's unbelievable all it took was pitching every single day. I now have a system of taking action and truly that is key as you have written in this thread. Totally agree with your whole thread and I think your method for taking 'light weeks' is awesome. I NEED TO DO THAT. I get burnt out.

Truly @Fox your posts are all so helpful to me. Still waiting to get that reply to my message to you though, haha

 

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[Fox]

@Fox I've been doing a similar thing for my mornings before going to work. Have you done anything to try and improve sleep quality? I atm blackout the room, wear an eyemas, orange UV blocking glasses 1-2 hours before bed. Is there anything else you have tried thats working for you?

No phone or computer 30-60 minutes before bed. No naps throughout the day. I usually just listen to good music and do visualizing stuff till I pass out.

I work hard throughout the day though and workout or do MMA most days so I am quite tired by 8pm.

I also find a really cold room but a warm bed helps a lot but that might just be me.

 

[Fox]

@Fox - Your posts are so inspiring. This month I have increased my net worth by 11%, made more money, and worked with more clients than ever before. It's unbelievable all it took was pitching every single day. I now have a system of taking action and truly that is key as you have written in this thread. Totally agree with your whole thread and I think your method for taking 'light weeks' is awesome. I NEED TO DO THAT. I get burnt out.

Truly @Fox your posts are all so helpful to me. Still waiting to get that reply to my message to you though, haha

Good stuff man, I see a lot of your posts on here too. Lets your Skype and we can chat, I am super bust atm so apologies on no reply. Send me your details.

 

[Testament]

Hey @Fox , LOVE the thread! Your daily ritual looks a lot like my usual daily ritual. Actually had a question for you about keeping up with it.

So I've been having weird fluctuations with my ritual - where I'll be really good on it for a solid 30 days, then I'll relapse and get off of it for 30 days, then when I hit a low point I'll get back on the ritual again. Does something like this ever happen to you with your ritual? How do you keep up the will to do it long term?

 

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[Fox]

Hey @Fox , LOVE the thread! Your daily ritual looks a lot like my usual daily ritual. Actually had a question for you about keeping up with it.

So I've been having weird fluctuations with my ritual - where I'll be really good on it for a solid 30 days, then I'll relapse and get off of it for 30 days, then when I hit a low point I'll get back on the ritual again. Does something like this ever happen to you with your ritual? How do you keep up the will to do it long term?

For sure, I am only human. I keep on it as much as I can but there are days where I don't want to work or just feel off.

So general pointers...

Motion creates emotion. Your feelings can trick you, usually when you start taking action and change your self-talk you will self correct. We are emotional creatures, trust the routine and just do it anyway.

Time off to reflect and treat yourself. Hugely important. Don't buy into the grind 24/7 hype. You need better systems of work, not more hours.

Switch things up. If you feel yourself feeling down try changing up your food, music, the route you walk, the order of your routine. The body and mind likes new things, try spice it up every so often or your brain gets bored.

 

[Welder1986]

Just read both pages.. quality information from @Fox Thanks for sharing

Where did you look for a salesperson in your particular industry? I have browsed freelancers.com but have read some really bad reviews so was hesitant. Your post about getting a salesperson hit home. I believe that is a part I am lacking in my service business. Anyways thanks for the nuggets!

 

[Fox]

Just read both pages.. quality information from @Fox Thanks for sharing

Where did you look for a salesperson in your particular industry? I have browsed freelancers.com but have read some really bad reviews so was hesitant. Your post about getting a salesperson hit home. I believe that is a part I am lacking in my service business. Anyways thanks for the nuggets!

Personal network. Great guy with huge business network.

 

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[MakeItHappen]

Great thread Fox!
I have a routine myself and it's very helpful. It literally makes me 10x more productive.

Write out my daily goals 5 times

I like that. How do you do it? Do you write down you lets say 5 tasks for the day 5 times? What would be an example from a typical workday?

What I like about writing down the DAILY goals is, that it should help you focus more on the daily process, on doing the work.


I will tweak my routine and implement a couple of your daily actions. Thanks for that.

 

[Fox]

Great thread Fox!
I have a routine myself and it's very helpful. It literally makes me 10x more productive.


I like that. How do you do it? Do you write down you lets say 5 tasks for the day 5 times? What would be an example from a typical workday?

What I like about writing down the DAILY goals is, that it should help you focus more on the daily process, on doing the work.


I will tweak my routine and implement a couple of your daily actions. Thanks for that.

Whoops that is a typo, I write out my overall goals 5 times.
I only write my daily goals once, usually the night before.

 

[The_One]

Hi Fox,

My routine is somewhat similar and I also do mind reconditioning work.
One commenter asked if after such tough routine with restrictions you feel happy and you said you do.
My situation is different though and unlike you, I feel the opposite.

It all started with high motivation and excitement. I woke up every day 5AM - 5:30AM, did intensive 30 minute
exercise with workout and ran to computer. The reason of starting early is that I noticed that I was able to get
a lot of things done and Tony Robbin's "Hour of Power" rings true to me. I would write task for the day in a notebook
before starting to work and push myself from 7AM until 20:00PM and sometimes 23:00PM as I would constantly think
of many tasks occupying my mind. I would do exercise and cardio at 11:00AM for 10-15 minutes, hour later eat something small,
often skipping the lunch and get back to work until 2PM -3PM. I would feel mentally encumbered and unable to output so
I would nap 20 minutes listening to binaural beats for optimizing nap time. Get up, exercise and workout for 20 minutes, drink coffee and work until 7PM where I would have a small meal and then push until late hours.

It has been over 2 years and I have changed to a somewhat better individual but I lost some part of my ego too and
I no longer can experience happiness I once had. I have eliminated distractions and people who did not serve me but
I have also eliminated something that I affected me in way I feel. I forgot old habits good or bad I had and it seems
even bad habits which would not serve my goal were part of me that made me happy with my life. In short I think
I have focused too much ignoring things that were part of myself before and I have deprived myself of what was supporting
me from the start of the journey that I no longer feel there is a purpose in what I do. I do not enjoy things I used to enjoy
in personal life because I forgot them as part of mind reconditioning. I don't remember what made me laugh and have fun,
I don't forget what eating habits I had. All I remember is what is now and it no longer makes me as happy as I was.
Slowly I started slipping down the path because even after sacrificing 2 years of my life for something bigger than myself
I am still spinning my wheel as I do not see the results I hoped to see and I am thinking of returning back to Matrix - the system
that keeps everyone in their comfort zone, limiting potential of their growth to becoming their own greatest version.

The journey was stressful and it was more than putting in work. For me it is hard to concentrate and enter flow state to
begin the work. I noticed that small distraction or thought could break my focus and divert my attention to doing something
that does not promote work. But this is not as bad as food which I would start restricting myself on. Normal small and medium meal normally crushes my productivity, makes me drowsy, brain foggy and I am unable to think unclearly so it would cost me 2 hours to recover which I can't afford due to many things I need to accomplish. Do you have this too?

I noticed that the less I eat, the more focused, cognitive and clear minded I can be which boosts my output and allows me to get tasks done for the day. I noticed that drinking ground black coffee with coconut MCT oil helps to suppress my appetite, making it less likely to be distracted by hunger and easier to enter flow state. I would drink it in the morning, in the afternoon, skipping meal, eat something light in the evening and get to bed later. I would feel great knowing I have done as much as I could during the day. My mind would stay sharp, clear and I would perform better than ever but would I actually be happy depriving myself of a few things that I enjoy and hurting my body due to how obssessive I approach this? I was productive, yes, but despite this I still saw how people managed to get more things done in their day. Maybe there something wrong with me? My thinking? My process? Why it takes me more time to do something that others do faster? I am a one-man business. New things would turn up and keep me from advancing further and I would spin my wheel longer.

But isn't the cost high for such a sacrifice for small gains? That's self-exploration, working and tweaking personality, pushing forward, stressing out and depriving one and body of things that one used to do and enjoy etc. all while not achieving even half of what I hoped to. I should have been able to become at least self-sufficient not dependent on day job after what I went through but I can't even afford to solely live on income I have from business because what I make, I reinvest and I do not reinvest much because I don't make much. I no longer believe that setting mind onto something will eventually happen or die trying to achieve something because I feel I will die spiritually if I will keep at it. We have hard about millionaires that were unhappy with their life no matter the amount of money they had. Did they deprive themselves of something that was necessary to support them in their journey?

Everyone is different and everyone's situation is not the same. I could give everything to something bigger than myself, but would it be worth dieing for it considering how some end up purposeless?

 

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[Fox]

I don't forget what eating habits I had.
...
I noticed that the less I eat, the more focused, cognitive and clear minded I can be which boosts my output and allows me to get tasks done for the day. I noticed that drinking ground black coffee with coconut MCT oil helps to suppress my appetite, making it less likely to be distracted by hunger and easier to enter flow state. I would drink it in the morning, in the afternoon, skipping meal, eat something light in the evening and get to bed later. I would feel great knowing I have done as much as I could during the day.
...
But isn't the cost high for such a sacrifice for small gains? That's self-exploration, working and tweaking personality, pushing forward, stressing out and depriving one and body of things that one used to do and enjoy etc.
...
I could give everything to something bigger than myself, but would it be worth dieing for it considering how some end up purposeless?

It sounds like you are under eating which is not what I am trying to say at all. Enjoy the best of life and don't stress the destination - the journey is the fun part. I am a disciplined guy but I stop and smell the roses too.

I would start eating more healthy and cut out caffeine. Enjoy some delicious fruit, vegetables and healthy meats. Drink lots of water and get out in nature. Take time to enjoy your food and relax. There is no rush to get to X destination, enjoy the daily grind and the process of progress. I think you have maybe taken this a bit too far and overdone it. Maybe take a week off, get a girl and go enjoy nature - walk in the hills or go to the beach etc.

I am not a doctor and this forum shouldn't be responsible for anyones decisions but I think your diet is at an unhealthy point and it is affecting your behavior and mood. Not eating enough can slowly cause bigger issues that happen over time so the person might not even be aware. take a week off, enjoy some fresh air and eat whatever you want.

This morning I woke up late, had a Colombian girl make me a great breakfast and a took a 60 block stroll through the main financial district of Bogota. The sun was out and everyone was heading to work while I was taking my time and just enjoying the sights and sounds of early morning city life. Probably a few people were wondering why I was smiling like an idiot but it is nice to take some days off and enjoy. I made $600 while I slept last night and I have nothing I really need to do today.

Unplug, relax, eat up and enjoy the moment. The journey is the fun part so don't skip over it. I love everyday - working hard or not. If you feel a long period of deeper dissatisfaction you need to reevaluate your journey. The above thread is only a guideline and unique to me.

Take a few days off and go enjoy yourself.

 

[The_One]

It sounds like you are under eating which is not what I am trying to say at all. Not eating enough can slowly cause bigger issues that happen over time so the person might not even be aware. take a week off, enjoy some fresh air and eat whatever you want.

There was a study that showed that earing entire meal signals to brain that all is comfortable and it no longer needs to enter survival mode in case there is lack of nutrition so it no longer needs to stay in a high performance. Whereas if you eat less than entire portion, it causes deficit and neurons fire more often and new cells form in the brain leading to much better performance.

I just posted about my productivity drop issue here if you or others are interested to look at. In my opinion there is a truth to scientific study I mentioned above. I just think my issue is of least known and I kept asking others about it.

This morning I woke up late, had a Colombian girl make me a great breakfast and a took a 60 block stroll through the main financial district of Bogota. The sun was out and everyone was heading to work while I was taking my time and just enjoying the sights and sounds of early morning city life. Probably a few people were wondering why I was smiling like an idiot but it is nice to take some days off and enjoy. I made $600 while I slept last night and I have nothing I really need to do today.

Are you living in Colombia or temporary there? Or are you a digital nomad? The one who is location-independent and travels the world?

 

[Esoteric Wealth]

Hi Fox,

My routine is somewhat similar and I also do mind reconditioning work.
One commenter asked if after such tough routine with restrictions you feel happy and you said you do.
My situation is different though and unlike you, I feel the opposite.

It all started with high motivation and excitement. I woke up every day 5AM - 5:30AM, did intensive 30 minute
exercise with workout and ran to computer. The reason of starting early is that I noticed that I was able to get
a lot of things done and Tony Robbin's "Hour of Power" rings true to me. I would write task for the day in a notebook
before starting to work and push myself from 7AM until 20:00PM and sometimes 23:00PM as I would constantly think
of many tasks occupying my mind. I would do exercise and cardio at 11:00AM for 10-15 minutes, hour later eat something small,
often skipping the lunch and get back to work until 2PM -3PM. I would feel mentally encumbered and unable to output so
I would nap 20 minutes listening to binaural beats for optimizing nap time. Get up, exercise and workout for 20 minutes, drink coffee and work until 7PM where I would have a small meal and then push until late hours.

It has been over 2 years and I have changed to a somewhat better individual but I lost some part of my ego too and
I no longer can experience happiness I once had. I have eliminated distractions and people who did not serve me but
I have also eliminated something that I affected me in way I feel. I forgot old habits good or bad I had and it seems
even bad habits which would not serve my goal were part of me that made me happy with my life. In short I think
I have focused too much ignoring things that were part of myself before and I have deprived myself of what was supporting
me from the start of the journey that I no longer feel there is a purpose in what I do. I do not enjoy things I used to enjoy
in personal life because I forgot them as part of mind reconditioning. I don't remember what made me laugh and have fun,
I don't forget what eating habits I had. All I remember is what is now and it no longer makes me as happy as I was.
Slowly I started slipping down the path because even after sacrificing 2 years of my life for something bigger than myself
I am still spinning my wheel as I do not see the results I hoped to see and I am thinking of returning back to Matrix - the system
that keeps everyone in their comfort zone, limiting potential of their growth to becoming their own greatest version.

The journey was stressful and it was more than putting in work. For me it is hard to concentrate and enter flow state to
begin the work. I noticed that small distraction or thought could break my focus and divert my attention to doing something
that does not promote work. But this is not as bad as food which I would start restricting myself on. Normal small and medium meal normally crushes my productivity, makes me drowsy, brain foggy and I am unable to think unclearly so it would cost me 2 hours to recover which I can't afford due to many things I need to accomplish. Do you have this too?

I noticed that the less I eat, the more focused, cognitive and clear minded I can be which boosts my output and allows me to get tasks done for the day. I noticed that drinking ground black coffee with coconut MCT oil helps to suppress my appetite, making it less likely to be distracted by hunger and easier to enter flow state. I would drink it in the morning, in the afternoon, skipping meal, eat something light in the evening and get to bed later. I would feel great knowing I have done as much as I could during the day. My mind would stay sharp, clear and I would perform better than ever but would I actually be happy depriving myself of a few things that I enjoy and hurting my body due to how obssessive I approach this? I was productive, yes, but despite this I still saw how people managed to get more things done in their day. Maybe there something wrong with me? My thinking? My process? Why it takes me more time to do something that others do faster? I am a one-man business. New things would turn up and keep me from advancing further and I would spin my wheel longer.

But isn't the cost high for such a sacrifice for small gains? That's self-exploration, working and tweaking personality, pushing forward, stressing out and depriving one and body of things that one used to do and enjoy etc. all while not achieving even half of what I hoped to. I should have been able to become at least self-sufficient not dependent on day job after what I went through but I can't even afford to solely live on income I have from business because what I make, I reinvest and I do not reinvest much because I don't make much. I no longer believe that setting mind onto something will eventually happen or die trying to achieve something because I feel I will die spiritually if I will keep at it. We have hard about millionaires that were unhappy with their life no matter the amount of money they had. Did they deprive themselves of something that was necessary to support them in their journey?

Everyone is different and everyone's situation is not the same. I could give everything to something bigger than myself, but would it be worth dieing for it considering how some end up purposeless?

I think it's important to not forget about why you're doing this in the first place, and to continue to do things that you love every once in a while.
What were your passions prior to wanting to go "fastlane"?
For me it's photography and filmmaking. So every Sunday, I get up early so I can catch the beautiful "golden hour" for some photography. This is when the sun comes up and the lighting makes everything look so cinematic and wonderful. This makes me happy. And while I do this I tell myself, "When I finally reach my goals in business, I'll be able to do this everyday, anytime I want. I'll be able to afford any camera or equipment I want without worry." It keeps me motivated and feeling good.
When I'm not doing this, it's as if I almost forget what I love, and end up feeling a little lost and down.
So maybe take some time or a day off on a Sunday and go for a bike ride, hike, whatever makes you happy. While you're enjoying yourself you can tell yourself, "This is why I work so hard everyday, so I can be able to do things that I enjoy and love, like this, everyday, whenever I please."
I find it gets me back to work feeling energized, motivated, and with a feeling of purpose.

 

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[dgr]

“We become what we repeatedly do.”

The last few months I have taken some big steps towards changing my prospective and mindset when it comes to business and life. Some of these might sound drastic but I wanted drastic results and those require steps normal people don't want to take. Here is a quick breakdown of what I have been doing.

Daily Morning Habits:

Wake up every morning at 5am

Instant 100 push ups, squats and ab crunches

Write out my daily goals 5 times

Freezing cold shower

Healthy breakfast and fresh raw vegetable juice


Workflow:

Start right into biggest task, complete task (eat that frog!)

Quick business email, linkedin and sales check

Crush out next 3-5 major tasks

1 hour MMA/boxing session
Good for testosterone levels, cardio, and confidence - I picked the toughest sessions I could find. Cold calls are a lot easier when you have just been fighting someone for an hour!

Healthy home cooked lunch (cheap but quality food, no slump after eating)


Afternoon:

Work on Fastlane idea

Business meetings in person or on Skype

Reading or further learning

Plan next day


The Brainwashing Part:

The no's...

No drink, drugs, masturbation or porn

No apps like Instagram, FB, games or similar

No entertainment: tv, nights out, fun apps, news sites, forums other than this one

No time with people who are negative or not driven

No spending money on "stuff" - essentials only


The yes's...

Any moment where I can't work I blast motivational ebooks, podcasts, learning courses, or educational content. Shower - Brian Tracey, cooking breakfast - podcast, gym - ebook, walking - education etc.

My goals are everywhere. They are written on my window in massive writing, they are on the front of my laptop, they are on my phone, they are written on the inside of my cupboards. They get done, they get tracked, they get tweaked EVERYDAY.

Networking and adding value to everyone worth my time. I am not focused on money but getting on the same level of those who I look up to and aspire to be. I want to be exposed to their way of thinking, habits and results.

Dress well, look sharp, walk confident and be assertive. No ifs, maybes, buts. Say what I want to say.

Everything is positive. My mind is constantly surrounded by what I want in life and what will help me get there. I have no expected source of negative influence. Everything has been removed.



Before I go to bed..

Review day, write out goals for tomorrow, go over major goals and listen to 30 minutes of inspirational audio (at the moment its Brian Tracey).


This isn't meant to be some profound thread but rather just a set of basic daily habits that I really feel the difference from. After a week or two it becomes a lot easier and your mind enjoys the structure and the progress. I have seen huge increases in progress, results and my general mood.

Also I take a half day off on the weekend and spend time with friends and my girlfriend everyday. I am not some monk living in a cave but I have eliminated a lot of daily time wasting and focused on maximizing the 80/20 rule across everything I do. I create more quality time by getting more work done in a more efficient manner. In fact my relationships have improved noticeably also while on this plan.

Hey @Fox ! Just curious... how have changed your routines after 2 years of hustling and success?

This thread has motivated me to get back to this kind of routines. I've done them in the past but I started to slack after some time. Once you skip some days in a row... man, you're done.

 

[Fox]

Hey @Fox ! Just curious... how have changed your routines after 2 years of hustling and success?

This thread has motivated me to get back to this kind of routines. I've done them in the past but I started to slack after some time. Once you skip some days in a row... man, you're done.

Ya it isn't as strict since this was a kind of personal bootcamp of sorts but my habits are still quite disciplined.