“I don’t want to do it today.”
“I don’t feel like doing it any more now.”
“Can’t I skip this today and start this tomorrow when I am in a fresh state of mind?”
“It really sucks.”
“I can’t do it now.”
Most of us hear these inner dialogues often in our heads, when it’s getting tough.
Why does it happen?
It is basic human psychology that every human being wants to (1) seek pleasure and (2) avoid
pain.
All our actions are governed by this principle.
But there are exceptional people who seem to embody the principle:
“When the going gets tough, the tough get going”
Those limited few people, keep moving forward despite the difficult time.
They keep moving even if they don’t see the light at the end of the tunnel.
They keep marching ahead towards their summit despite chilly strong winds pushing them back.
They don’t move their attention away from their goal, because they know the principle,
as Henry Ford rightly once said: “Obstacles are those frightful things you
see when you take your eyes off your goal.”
But most often the obstacles are not from the outside; rather they are demons sitting
inside our mind — that also keep pulling us back from what is important for us.
So the question arises: How do tough ones keep moving forward even
when it feels like it sucks?
The answer is the W.I.N.
Formula.
It stands for: What’s Important Now This acronym was used by Bob Bowman, coach
to the legendary Michael Phelps, an American swimmer and one of the most prized Olympic
athletes in History.
In the Book No Limits- The Will To Succeed authored by Michael Phelps with Alan Abrahamson,
Coach Bob Bowman explains what separates Michael from all other swimmers.
Bowman states that if other swimmers don’t feel good, they don’t swim good.
But this was not the case with Phelps.
He performs regardless of how he feels.
This trait of Phelps shows that high performers don’t let their feelings govern their actions.
If something is to be done as a priority, then they perform at their best, despite whatever
they feel about that activity.
Their feelings are not important at any point; rather the action towards their goal is their
topmost priority.
Similarly, author Eric Greitens, in his book Resilience states that he is less interested
in how you feel and more interested in who you want to be.
His success principle is that it is your identity that should drive your actions, and not your
feelings.
His formula is: Identity to Action to Feelings.
He recommends that whenever you are next in a state of dilemma, ask yourself, “Who do
I want to become?”.
The answer to that question will guide you to the right action to be taken.
The action that is important to you — the action that will be defining your win.
But the good part is that once you take action and move ahead, you start to feel better.
Therefore, don’t go by your feelings to decide your next action step – they will
simply leave you in the lurch.
If you are in a good mood one day, you will work your butt off; but the next day, if you
don’t feel better, you just spoil your day.
Therefore taking action based on feelings is not a sustainable way of operating your
life.
Rather, taking action based on What’s Important Now is the way to keep winning your day.
So ask yourself when your emotions drag your feet back…
What’s Important Now!
And keep taking action...