There’s energy and there’s resistance.
There’s your physical energy. You can have more of it or less of it.
We can argue all day about you being able to access more energy and do more,
But there’s no denying the existence of physical energy
One day you’ll have less of it, and eventually you’ll have none of it. Everyone you know will one day have none of it. You will stop moving and die.
Therefore existence of physical energy is a fact
So don’t say “I don’t get tired”. Nor say “I don’t have energy”. You have energy. Sometimes more of it, sometimes less.
Then there’s resistance
Again we could define it in many terms,
Let’s define it as anything, inside or outside, which provides resistance to you moving from point A to B
When there’s enough resistance — no amount of physical energy will get you through it
Likewise when there’s little resistance — you get by on less energy
We will use this simplified model to illustrate a simple truth.
(If you want more complex model, check this out: “Commitment, Energy, Momentum, Resistance: how one moves”)
The simple truth is that we confuse our RESISTANCE with our TIREDNESS
And, to lesser extent, confuse tiredness with resistance.
Tiredness will happen.
Tiredness will cause resistance
But resistance can occur without tiredness
Resistance can occur for very many reasons
One common reason is when we don’t actually want it, but are not aware of it.
Consciousness is the answer. Deep self-reflection. Introspective intelligence
Other common reason is your state, your momentum
If you believe you’re tired — you’ll feel tired, and act tired
This case is of interest to us in this text
If you feel tired when you’re actually tired — but also feel tired when you believe you’re tired — how do you know when you’re actually tired?
To answer you must understand resistance
Things you love you can do EVEN when tired
When there is no resistance — instead there’s a drive, a pull! You don’t even realise you’re tired.
When there is resistance — even when you’re not tired you’re tired.
That you can easily check. Wake up strong, have your breakfast, have your coffee — then go ahead and try something really hard, which you have been putting back. Something you really DIDN’T WANT TO DO. That’s resistance.
Now, actually start doing that thing. You will observe that resistance has gone away. STRESS has gone away. It was all mental. It was a belief.
Now in life we obviously have varied levels of energy at various moments, and varied enthusiasm and resistance towards different things.
Thus it becomes genuinely confusing.
Should you take a break — or are you simply resisting?
Should you push through it — or are you genuinely exhausted, and quite frankly ineffective and miserable?
Idea to always “just do it” is good for start — but this is not the endgame.
TRUTH is the endgame,
Which means GETTING RID OF ALL RESISTANCE is the endgame,
You’re numb and burn yourself working THROUGH your resistance and working THROUGH your tiredness, and what for?
How do you get rid of all resistance?
By doing nothing.
Doing NOTHING is the missing link
“Just doing it” is the first half,
“DOING NOTHING” is the second half
Because the thing about resistance is that it causes you to resist even acknowledging it.
THIS is the true root of procrastination.
Resistance doesn’t just cause you to not do something. It causes you to DISTRACT YOURSELF with something else.
It essentially causes you to run the fuck away from that thing you resist.
And tragically — in indulging your resistance — you only ACCUMULATE MORE RESISTANCE.
Unlike resting when you’re actually tired — resisting when you feel like resisting makes you EVEN MORE RESISTANT.
It’s a vicious circle
And that’s why man find more success in just powering through the pain — even if it’s real.
Because believing your weakness is a slippery slope to more weakness
Well there’s a better way,
There’s a way to FACE your resistance — by refusing to run away from it
Just stay with it.
Stay with your resistance.
What this means is: DO NOTHING.
DON’T DISTRACT YOURSELF. DON’T DO ANYTHING ELSE. JUST SIT THE FUCK QUIETLY
And guess what. If you are ACTUALLY TIRED, rather than “resisting” — this sitting quiet will REINVIGORATE YOU. What else is a rest if not DOING NOTHING? You can take a nap if you want too.
Therefore you CAN’T LOSE with doing nothing:
-Either you rest
-Or your resistance will be revealed
“Doing nothing” is the first half.
“Just doing it” is the second half.
Once you refused to distract yourself and refused to escape the truth of your own reluctance — you can NOW take action, true action,
And once you know that this was resistance indeed, and not actual tiredness, not actual exhaustion, not actual indisposition — you can TAKE RESOLUTE ACTION, true action.
“Just doing it” is necessary next step
This is how you make it real.
This is how you ACTUALLY get things done — and in getting them done — you prove that there was nothing to resist. That it was DOABLE ALL ALONG.