I recently finished reading Jocko Willink’s “Discipline equals freedom: field manual”. As I read the book, I found myself frantically trying to save the lines which I found to be profound. As of now, I have a note that is several pages long. I am planning to read this document every day in the morning to set a correct frame of mind in my head because the book covers a lot of situations that can plague my mind and how best to combat it.
In this blog, I hope to cover some of the most important points stated in the book, including some scenarios and personal examples that demonstrate each.
My (incorrect) version of discipline
I’ve always thought that discipline is the way we can mould ourselves into the people we want to become. People want happiness and a big part of the how we reach holy land of happiness and peace is knowing that we have done all we’ve can. It’s knowing that we worked out in the morning, we wrote that book, and finished the project.
It has been the same for me. I can clearly see that I have felt the happiest when I’ve done what I was supposed to, when it was needed. The mission can be anything from trying to build my body or working on my portfolio website. These events were not without an inward force that pushed me from the bed in the morning into the action that would fulfill whatever I wanted to achieve. This required discipline.
Where did that discipline come from anyways?
I ask this question because I find the origins of discipline very intriguing; this is why I read Jocko’s book. At those points in my life, there were a couple feelings and emotions that filled me with discipline. Yet, the discipline that resulted was somehow a shallow, superficial kind which did not last.
The wrong kind of discipline
We can differentiate between my “discipline” and the kind of discipline that Jocko speaks of in this book to gain a clearer picture of what real, solid discipline truly is. The three thoughts that spurred me into action in my teenage/pre-college/college days:
1. The feeling that doing it would make me look better in the eyes of others (workouts)
2. An intellectual curiosity to explore skills I’d learnt to create something unique and interesting (doing more programming projects)
3. A desire to be special (study for CBSE board exams)
These thoughts motivated me a lot and pushed me into action for quite a long time, sometimes even for several months. However, after reading the book, I now see why I fell off the wagon for each of those activities for different reasons: I relied on my feelings instead of purely being a disciple of the craft I was trying to develop.
I missed the point of discipline back then, even though my feelings drove me to action for a short amount of time. As soon as the project was completed, my feelings dissipated. I stopped working out, programming, reading, etc and fell back into the slog of nothingness which led to no personal evolution. After I saw some results in my body, I released the gas pedal a bit first and then completely. After building some projects, I thought I’d done my job and stopped my exploration.
I curbed my curiosity and let it starve. I fell into a trap which many people fall into: relying on feelings and thinking that the job was done. However, if you choose to be truly committed and disciplined to your pursuits, you will avoid this slippery slope.
Why discipline is the answer
What makes discipline such a solution to these mentalities that I fell prey to? Because it is inexhaustible, unlike feelings of motivation. Because you have made an unbreakable vow with yourself that you will be doing what you set out to, it is irrelevant whether you are feeling like you want to do the task or not. You are just going to do it. You are going to breathe in the next second, aren’t you? Similarly you are going to lift those weights.
The image below explains discipline very well.
This is one of the most realistic, optimistic image that I’ve ever seen on the internet. I first became aware of this idea thanks to James Clear through his book Atomic Habits. Ever since reading it, this picture has been living rent free in my head. The vision of discipline that Jocko labels in this book is exactly in line with this image. Come rain, snow, or sunshine, I will still be in the gym doing my workout splits and writing my blog posts because that’s the routine of an athletic person or a blogger.
This is what I missed when I relied on my version of discipline when my usual habits washed away from my life like words written in sand at the beach’s shore. When that happened consistently, I gradually lost a sense of my identity. Falling into an existential crisis, I tried to ascertain what I was going to do with the rest of my life and retrace the steps that had led me to this point. Doing so, I realized that it was a lack of honest discipline and pursuits that had been the culprit.
Discipline builds identity
Try to determine the difference between these two people described below.
Joe: “I used to read books, I used to workout, I used to play guitar, I used to program, but not anymore.”
Mike: “I read books. I exercise and am an athlete. I am a programer.”
Joe is haphazard and all over the place. Mike is firm about who he is. Joe does not seem to have a plan and doesn’t seem to sure where he fits at a societal level. Mike has it sorted out. He’s sure of what he does. Mike has a solid identity composed of several things while Joe… it isn’t too sure what his identity consists of currently.
Everybody in the world does something to benefit the community that they’re in. It’s like the thing that you often hear older folk saying: in the past, people would have last names that would reflect their professions. There was no ambiguity about what these people were there to do in their community.
“I am a blacksmith”
some dudes in the 19th century (probably)
“I am a soldier”
“I am a doctor”
The risks of not having an identity
Without a strong sense of identify, one is vulnerable to feeling aimless, as if his existence has served no utility to the world or any people close to him, making him effectively useless. A difficult feeling to have and something that Joe and I know.
To rely on feelings is to allow yourself to avoid setting your actions and identity in stone.. One day you’re doing this, another day you’re doing that. There is no sense of direction and therefore no sense of progress either, which can be maddening.
To have discipline is to find your place in the world, to drive through plateaus of averageness, to instill an identity into yourself, and to be a learner, all the time.
Thus, keeping all my mistakes and assessments in mind, let’s carry on with Jocko Willink’s mentality when it comes to discipline and see how we can implement those into our lives!
Jocko Willink’s version of discipline
Below are some of the most important points that Jocko makes in the book where he tries to explain the nature of discipline, where it came from for him, how he looks at life, etc. These are all very positive and strong lenses through which to look at life.
What motivated Jocko to be disciplined
There are two factors to talk about. He, being an active navy seal who served in Iraq, has seen his fair share of battles and lost many of his brothers to war. He remembers them, their spirits, and all the unique characteristics that formed their core selves, traits that Jocko admired and cherished. Jocko’s memories of them and their sacrifices are something he brings to his mind often. He vows to live more as well as do more for all of his fallen brothers who have departed.
This is a very strong motivator and is one of the most impactful, proactive way to deal with loss. All of us have losses – our relatives, friends, family – and it can be very painful to deal with that. I cannot even begin imagine losing some people who make life livable for me. However, it is something that I will face too, one day. And I just hope I have the strength to deal with it the way Jocko does, actively vowing to be a better person so something positive can arise out of the darkness of loss and death.
Parallels between war and UFC
Jocko was also preparing for war which is the UFC on steroids. In the UFC, we can clearly see the level of preparation the fighters go through. Whether it be watching fight tapes of the opponent, figuring out their styles, or building a game plan to nullify the opponents’ strengths and bolster one’s own. They do it all. If this is the level of preparation a fighter does for UFC, what kind of mindset would a serving soldier have?
War. The biggest stage of all, where the stakes are life and death, not just broken bones or injuries. Jocko was forever vigilant of what the enemy could be doing at any given moment. They could be preparing more, coming up with a more tactical game-plan, or more. These thoughts kept him disciplined to training, strategizing, and anything else he needed to do.
If anyone watches the UFC’s embedded vlogs that the company releases a week prior to a fight, they would see the mindset of a fighter who is about to fight on the biggest stage of his life. It is eerily similar to the words Jocko wrote in the book. The goal is to constantly stay vigilant and push yourself to be better prepared than your opponent could ever be.
When to begin being disciplined
Sometimes, when I have not done something for a while, I can feel the negative momentum pulling me down. The thought of practicing that activity feels like a ton of bricks on my head. It is a completely irrational feeling, but the sadness of all the opportunities I’ve missed to lay another brick on the wall inhibits me from practicing or studying right now.
It’s irrational because if I don’t start now, won’t the negative momentum and sadness just get greater? How else am I supposed to escape this negative spiral except by starting right now and aiming to practice every single day, no matter how difficult?
There is no other way.
Jocko also addresses how sometimes we get sidetracked and let our goals escape our minds. We forget what we intend to do. The only solution is to find any way to burn it into our minds, using whatever it takes. Hanging up a picture of our goal on our desk, setting an alarm clock for the daily ritual, etc.
Dealing with thoughts and emotions
We have more control over our minds, surroundings, and situations than we think. We can choose not to entertain certain thoughts. I’ve noticed a tendency to drown whenever negative emotions and thoughts come into my mind. I definitely am not unique here.
Most people let their brains create these entities that completely envelop them. But the reality is that these thoughts and emotions do not define us. We can certainly use them in a positive way to spur us into action, but these feelings themselves do not aid us in any way.
I can choose to be more disciplined in spite of my thoughts and emotions. I go contrary to what I feel and towards what I need to do. Doing so, I will be victorious over this war within.
Being disciplined is the essence of adulting
Learning how to work in spite of negative thoughts and emotions is what being an adult is.
When you wake up at 6AM, in a household you’re supporting, with 3 mouths to feed, I don’t think you’re filled with happy thoughts that make you want to go to work. The bed will feel warm and if you had your way, you’d probably spend the entire day there while eating Doritos and watching Game of Thrones.
However, you cannot do that because you will not earn money, be able to run your house, and will get fat. You know this very well so you choose to act contrary to your emotions. This isn’t anything new and is what all adults do, so what Jocko is saying only takes this to the next level. Don’t just stay at the baseline of choosing to work because you have to; consciously decide to work harder, get better, stronger, and faster. When it hurts, go against your emotions, choose to ignore the pain, and get things done.
We’re not children anymore
Think about it: how weak is the idea of choosing not to do something certain to bring what you want because of weak, pathetic feelings in your head? These days, I’ve started listening to and judging my inner talk a little more, and the excuses my mind finds to not do what I’m supposed to do are absolutely comical. Here’s a conversation I recently had with myself.
Emotional me, in a whiny, nasally voice : “I don’t feel like it”
Disciplined me: “Why?”
Emotional me – “Cause I don’t feel like it”
Disciplined me: “So what? Is protecting that feeling worth not accomplishing your goals?”
Emotional me: “No…”
Disciplined me: “What are you going to in the place of the action that’s making you feel such distress but is a necessity?”
Emotional me: “Stay in bed and look at Instagram reels”
Disciplined me: “What is that going to do for you? Is that truly worth avoiding writing, lifting, and doing other necessary things?”
Emotional me, beat yet still whiny: “No…”
Just hearing this conversation in my head reminded me of my Uncle and Aunt convincing my little cousin to go school even when he doesn’t want to. And rightly so because the emotional reasons for which we don’t do what we’re supposed to always sound childish because the emotional brain is a child. It seems like you need to treat it such and logically explain to it that you need to be an adult. And act. And do. Become 1% better. Lay another brick into the foundations which will one day become Rome.
Jocko says fight emotions with the power of logic but he also stresses that emotions can be powerful motivators when logic fails you. So, you need all the tools that your brain provides. We do not need to be too harsh against thoughts and emotions. Sometimes they are great tools.
Fear, aggression, weakness
You should feel fear. Not feeling afraid when you’re dangling on the side of a tall building would be grounds for a mental checkup. Even though the decisions of everyday life do not seem anywhere near as scary and are pretty minor, compounded over a long period of time, they can gain magnitude and become huge. Therefore, we should be fearful of what failing to act would do for our self-image, reputation, progress, legacy. All of it.
The fear of being stagnant and not progressing should be crippling, like being face to face with a tiger in the jungle. Seeing the tiger prompts me to run in the opposite direction and, similarly, the thought of not progressing should prompt me to go to the gym and write a paragraph. Sometimes fear freezes us into inaction, but we have to step forward in the face of fear. Step boldly into what you’re afraid of. It’s good, says Jocko.
Miscellaneous mental models
Dealing with difficult times
Bad situations happen which can make us feel as if we’re uniquely experiencing negative situations, but that’s factually incorrect. Looking at the world, we know and hear about people who have faced incredibly terrible circumstances. Even if we don’t know such people, given how there have existed more than 100 billion humans, just statistically speaking, some groups of people have for sure experienced every single bad situation that has happened to you in the past.
Laid off? Broken up with? Bullied? Beat up? Failed an exam? Whatever you name, it is not a singular event that the universe is seeing for the first time ever. This is a liberating thought that leads us to what Jocko likes to push quite a lot: detaching. The ability to detach is to go outside your own point of view and look back at the situation impartially. Given how we are stuck in our own noggin and cannot truly look at the world from another individual’s eyes, it is a tremendously difficult thing to do.
Good as detaching may be theoretically, one may point out that all we can really do is feign an impression of what other people may be thinking in our imaginations because it is impossible to truly look at things from another person’s perspective. But even doing that is enough and allows us to view things with a fresh perspective and is really powerful. Detach and gain perspective. Oh, all those bad things have happened to other people too. Oh, you know what, it’s not that bad. I can look for a new, better job, I can date more, I can get stronger and learn how to stand up for myself so that never happens again, I can study more and learn how to control myself.
Have a strictly internal locus of control
What is in your control is that you can work hard on your projects, resume, and interview questions. Whether or not you get the job is absolutely out of your control and it is terribly irrational to worry about it once you have done all you can. In all likelihood, it is probably the feeling of knowing that you have NOT done all you could have which contributes to an unpleasant feeling of anxiety and worry.
Reserve your celebrations for the grave
The classic, “Don’t count your chickens until they’ve hatched”. Kobe Bryant echoed the sentiment of in his famous response to a reporter asking if he was happy. According to Jocko, celebration should be cautious; the game of life isn’t won until the day you die, as there’s always more to do, practice, and personal weaknesses to overcome. David Goggins is also a proponent of this mentality.
This has been the main killer of my productivity and discipline in my life, as explained in the earlier section, so I hope you can learn from my mistakes. Feeling satisfied will make you slide down from a good point and you won’t even realize it.
Satisfaction is the death of improvement. You must fight tooth and nail against such self-indulgent feelings such as “I deserve this break” or “I don’t have to work so hard” or “Now I can relax”. The reality is this: there’s always another mountain to climb, so it’s essential to be prepared to tackle it. Otherwise, you might find yourself sliding downhill faster than you can say “avocado toast.”
Question everything, especially yourself
Especially, question yourself, your thoughts, your character, what you’ve done. We are all too sure of ourselves. I certainly am and have been, which turned out to be my personal devil leading me away from my goals and towards the darkness. My sureness and arrogance allowed laziness to also enter my world which would never have been the case if I had just questioned everything, like Jocko says.
Arrogance is a weird thing. It is extremely comforting and doesn’t even allow the possibility that one could be wrong. It makes one irritated whenever others offer suggestions, especially if those suggestions fall in the category of one’s perceived weaknesses. I felt this throughout my life and have finally acknowledged it for what it was: a dull feeling of self-importance, one that convinces me that I, with all my naturally earned wisdom, know it all and should not even be bothered to listen to people who actually want the best for me.
Question everything, and most of all, question yourself. On top of it, question what you have accomplished and what you’re going to do on this day. These questions truly compel impartiality and demand a credible answer; otherwise, failure ensues, prompting us to reassess everything. After all, if nothing is accomplished today, how can we anticipate legitimate progress in a 365 repetitions of the same?
Compromise with others but never with yourself
Jocko has an interesting take on compromises. He urges people to always compromise with others when it comes to a team situation. This makes sense because people come from different walks of life and have different ideas and perspectives.
The function that leaders hold is to ensure a smooth collaborative process between members of a team, so they should always compromise between members and themselves to reach a solution that makes everyone happy. However, when it comes to you and yourself in your daily life, there should be no compromises at all. Your distracting feelings do not get a vote; neither does weakness.
I use anything that I have in my mind, energy, and soul to sway my decision making to the side that gets things done. This relates to Jocko’s Standard Directive #5 in which he mentions how the decisions we make happen in a mental court where a case is being fought: a case for whether or not we should do something that is difficult but necessary.
The lawyer on the side of why we should not do the task is lazy and corrupted, but he knows how to sway the jury and uses every trick in the book to convince you to not do it. Every excuse you know of becomes available to your mind thanks to the untrustworthy lawyer. Our goal is to not make compromises with those snakes i.e the thoughts and emotions supporting the lazy lawyer who convinces you to not run, write, read, or do something difficult.
Your goal is to win the case for strength, not weakness. Even though your mind knows exactly what to say, the excuses to not do it, and the loopholes that would be extremely appealing and convince you to not do the task, you have decided to not compromise and not give your internal state any power over the matter. Since there’s no time for debate, you can safely and blindly walk towards the stage where you will do the action that is causing this much debate in your head.
Be aggressive
Aggressively tackling the problems, opportunities, and goals that you have in life. We fail to be aggressive when we think we have time. Your default state should be aggressive problem solving and acting. There’s always tomorrow is what we often think, but we don’t have to live life in that mode. We have to realize that there is no guarantee of a tomorrow.
On top of it, the counter question, “Why not?” is very difficult to answer. Why not aggressively seize the moment every second? Why not give it your all? We only have one life to live. This life. Is lounging on the couch truly that peaceful? Or would you find greater peace in dedicating your entire being to a meaningful pursuit? I have my money on the latter.
Make hesitation your enemy
Everybody knows that moment when the alarm goes off and you face the entirety of the day. Sometimes it is difficult to get going. The easy choice is to lay around, grab your phone, and look at some funny reels on Instagram, TikTok, or whatever your poison is. 5 minutes pass, then 15. Suddenly you look at the clock and it has been 2 hours since you woke up.
Not good.
Do not let hesitation get into your head. It could let the opportunity pass or enable another form of weakness to infect you. Instead, jump out of bed and embrace the pain of action right in the face. Getting it done the quickest is actually the strongest form of self-love. In the case of laying around, you’re just prolonging the moment unnecessarily and making yourself miserable. When you’re being aggressive, there’s no hesitation allowed.
Finally, Jocko concludes by saying that simply reading the book or the words is not enough. It is necessary to bring the theories into action by doing. We have to do what we know we must do. This is why our ancestors toiled and passed on their genes. So we could live and make something of ourselves, for the sake of the world.
And this will require unshakeable discipline that, paradoxically, will not chain you, but set you free. I personally hope that we remember to keep these ideas in mind as we plough through life and at the end of it all, we get to look back and say: “yes. I did everything I set out to”.
