David Goggins, known for his incredible mental toughness and relentless drive, offers several pieces of profound advice on motivation. Here are some of his most impactful insights:
Stay HardDAVID GOGGINS
- Callous Your Mind:
- Goggins emphasizes the importance of building mental toughness by facing challenges head-on. He believes that repeatedly enduring difficult situations makes your mind resilient and better equipped to handle future obstacles.
- “You have to build calluses on your brain just like how you build calluses on your hands. Callus your mind through pain and suffering.”
- Embrace the Suck:
- He often talks about accepting and even embracing discomfort and pain. Instead of shying away from difficult tasks, he suggests leaning into them.
- “Embrace the suck. It’s supposed to be hard. Your mind wants to protect you, but you need to train it to push through the discomfort.”
- Stay Hard:
- This phrase encapsulates Goggins’ philosophy of maintaining a tough and disciplined mindset regardless of circumstances. It’s about staying mentally strong and pushing forward even when things get tough.
- “Stay hard. Always push yourself. When you think you’ve done enough, do more. Never settle.”
- Accountability Mirror:
- Goggins advises using a mirror to hold yourself accountable. Write down your goals and honestly assess your progress every day.
- “Look in the mirror and hold yourself accountable. No one else is going to do it for you. Be brutally honest with yourself about where you are and what you need to do.”
- The 40% Rule:
- He believes that most people only tap into 40% of their potential. When you feel like you’re at your limit, you actually have a lot more to give.
- “When you think you are done, you’re only at 40% of your body’s capability. That’s just the limit that your mind puts on you.”
- Motivation is Fickle, Discipline is Key:
- Goggins stresses that motivation is not reliable and can wane over time. Instead, he champions discipline as the true driver of success.
- “Motivation is crap. It comes and goes. When you’re driven, whatever is in front of you will get destroyed.”
- Develop a Cookie Jar:
- This metaphorical concept involves keeping a mental jar of all your past victories and accomplishments. When you face tough times, reach into this “cookie jar” to remind yourself of what you’ve already overcome.
- “I call it the ‘cookie jar’ — we all have a cookie jar. And those cookies in there are things you have overcome in your life. You’ve got to put them in your cookie jar and then you can pull them out when you need them.”
- Seek Discomfort:
- Goggins advises actively seeking out discomfort to grow. By constantly challenging yourself, you expand your comfort zone and capabilities.
- “If you want to get better, do the things that no one else wants to do. Do the things that scare you the most.”
In summary, David Goggins’ advice on motivation revolves around building mental toughness, embracing discomfort, staying disciplined, and holding oneself accountable. His no-excuses approach serves as a powerful guide for anyone looking to push beyond their perceived limits.
Resources
For more on David Goggins, visit his official website.
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/davidgoggins/
Twitter https://x.com/davidgoggins
Never Finished: Unshackle Your Mind and Win the War Within
Can’t Hurt Me, David Goggins’ smash hit memoir, demonstrated how much untapped ability we all have but was merely an introduction to the power of the mind. In Never Finished, Goggins takes you inside his Mental Lab, where he developed the philosophy, psychology, and strategies that enabled him to learn that what he thought was his limit was only his beginning and that the quest for greatness is unending.
