Why NEGATIVE Emotions Create Discipline.

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What’s up friend and subscriber,

Be honest.

You know exactly what you need to do, right?

• You know you should work on your business.

• You know you should go to the gym.

• You know you should read books.

You know all this, yet you don't do it...

Why is that?

Well, it's because you have a lot in common with a heroin addict.

Let me explain…

I'm not talking about the homeless heroin addict who’s on the street.

I'm talking about the addict BEFORE his addiction causes him to be homeless.

The addict who still has a good 9-5 job, good relationships, a nice apartment, etc.

Slowly but surely, his heroin addiction is destroying his life.

• His relationships are breaking down.

• His financial situation is declining.

• He is having problems at work.

• His house is a mess.

• You name it.

He is aware of these problems. He knows that his addiction is ruining his life. He knows he HAS to quit. But yet he doesn't.

Why is that?

You would think that his life falling apart would be enough motivation to make him quit, right?

He is literally destroying his life.

This should get him to take action, no?

But that's exactly the problem:

The worse his life gets, the more he will use heroin to escape.

Not only that, but the more heroin he uses, the worse his life gets. And this makes him take more heroin again.

It's a negative feedback loop of hell.

This brings me back to you.

Yes, you.

Do you recognize aspects of this problem in your life?

I'm not saying you're a drug addict, but...

• You know your laziness is killing your potential.

• You know your bad habits are holding you back.

• You know you HAVE to make a change or live a life of regret.

You know these things. Yet you don't change.

Instead of heroin, your drug of choice is distractions.

• Playing video games.

• Mindless scrolling.

• Watching Netflix.

• Eating junk food.

• Watching corn.

You're escaping from the pain of your situation. Just like the heroin addict.

The worse your life gets, the more you escape.

Now stay with me.

People often say: "I'm not motivated enough." But the truth is, you are TOO motivated.

Like the heroin addict, you're so intensely motivated to solve your problems, that you want to "solve" them right now by escaping.

When you escape, you effectively "solve" your problems.

When the heroin addict takes heroin, his problems are gone for a couple of hours.

He doesn't think about them. He doesn't feel the weight of his situation anymore.

Problem solved. (for a couple of hours)

The same is true for you.

When you mindlessly scroll, watch Netflix, play video games, or distract yourself in any other way, you are effectively “solving” your problems.

Your problems are gone for a little bit. You don't think about them. They don't feel that painful or urgent anymore.

And this is the greatest mistake we make.

Humans Are Wired For Pain Avoidance.

We do anything to avoid pain, preserve energy, and seek pleasure.

This is how we're wired.

This is why negative emotions or "pain" are the greatest catalysts for change.

You've heard of people hitting rock bottom, right?

Their situation got so bad, there comes a moment where they think:

"F*ck this sh*t."

“No more."

"I NEED to change NOW!"

And then they completely turn their life around.

That's the power of negative energy.

Think of the carrot and stick.

A horse may want a carrot and will be a little motivated to go and get it. But it will run as fast as it can to avoid getting hit with the stick.

Pain is the greatest catalyst for change.

And you and I are in pain.

We are not satisfied with our situation.

We want to DO more, BE more, and HAVE more.

And because we’re not there yet, it brings up "negative" emotions.

• Sadness

• Shame

• Anger

• Guilt

• Fear

• etc.

We want to avoid these emotions. That’s how we’re wired, remember?

So normally, these emotions inspire us to take action and make changes in our lives.

But because of the way our modern society is set up, we can "change" and "solve" our problems by escaping from our emotions.

We numb these emotions by indulging in cheap pleasures/distractions.

You don't lack motivation. You're TOO motivated.

You are so motivated to solve your problems that you want to solve them right now.

And how do you solve your problems right now? By escaping.

But obviously, escaping doesn't solve your problems.

If you want to solve your problems, you have to solve them in the real world.

But that is "painful." It is difficult. It takes time.

So your brain will calculate its options:

1. Go through pain and effort for a long time to actually solve the problem.

2. Escape with cheap pleasures and "solve" the problem right now.

And remember:

We are wired for pain avoidance, energy preservation, and pleasure seeking.

So your brain will naturally choose option #2.

This is why when you sit down to work on your business or decide to monitor your diet, your brain tempts you with distractions.

Because It sucks. It will take a long time. It will take hard work.

Negative emotions will start bubbling up.

And when these negative emotions come up, your brain is like "f*ck that, we need a distraction, now!"

Because think about it:

When you're procrastinating, you're not just doing nothing.

You don't procrastinate and sit still and think about it…

…no, you distract yourself.

You distract yourself from the "negative" emotions.

But you need those negative emotions to make a change.

So how do we solve this?

Well, it's simple but not easy.

Increase Awareness And Suffer.

Your awareness might already be increased because you now understand what's going on. If this is important to you, your brain will store this information.

Whenever you notice yourself trying to escape, you will remember this letter, and you can choose to face the problem instead of escaping.

You can choose to feel the negative emotions and let them fuel you.

But most of the time, you will escape on autopilot.

Most of us live on autopilot.

We're driven by our subconscious mind.

The programming of our parents, our education, our peers, and society.

To break free from this, you have to increase your awareness even more.

If you're aware of what you're doing, you have the power to change it.

If you're unaware and mindlessly go along with your programming, you're absolutely powerless.

In a future letter, we will be talking about awareness some more, but for now, just know that awareness is key. And that is no exaggeration.

Mental Bodybuilding.

Hands down, the best way to increase your awareness is meditation.

Now, before you click off...

DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE MEDITATION.

Don't think it's just some woo-woo stuff that only hippies and monks do.

Mediation is a workout for your mind.

• It increases your awareness.

• It increases your discipline.

• It lowers your stress.

• It trains your focus.

• It reduces anxiety.

• It improves sleep.

Meditation has a lot more benefits--that are proven by science--but let's keep going for now.

There are a ton of different mediation techniques.

But I recommend the most simple and powerful meditation:

Breath Awareness.

Start with 5 minutes per day and slowly work your way up to 20 minutes.

How To Meditate

Do I need an app? How do I do it? What do I do? Do I need to sit like those monks?

Meditation is simple. Don’t overcomplicate it.

Sit in a chair, on your bed, on the couch, or on the ground; it doesn’t really matter.

Keep your back straight(no back support).

Close your eyes, and focus on your breath.

Don't try to control your breath, just focus on it.

You will notice that your monkey mind will go crazy. It will go absolutely bananas.

All kinds of thoughts, ideas, conversations, and stories will pop up.

That is normal.

The goal is to notice these things and refocus on the breath again.

That's it.

It doesn’t get much simpler than that.

Don't get discouraged if it's difficult. The more difficult it is, the more benefit you will gain from meditation.

Once you meditate consistently, your awareness will increase.

Your mind WILL change.

You will start noticing patterns you never noticed before.

Now, besides meditation, you need to:

Feel The Pain And Suffer.

Are you brutally aware of how shitty your current situation is?

Are you brutally aware of what your life will look like 10 years from now if you keep doing what you’re doing?

Think about these things.

Let it be ugly. Because that is the reality.

You have to keep it real with yourself.

If you’re not where you want to be and you’re lazy, be honest with yourself.

Think about where you will end up if you stay lazy.

You won’t end up somewhere nice, will you?

Take some time to really think about it.

Allow it to evoke “negative” emotions.

You know that they're coming. You know that they're part of the process. So just allow them. Feel them.

Whether it's anger, sadness, fear, shame, guilt, you name it.

Let it burn. Let it fuel you.

Don't try to escape them with cheap pleasures or by thinking about something else.

Feel it fully.

Those emotions are the fuel to change your life.

NOTE: Don't get consumed.

Emotions are powerful.

They hold the power to knock you down. If you let them.

Always remember that you are in control.

You have the power to change these emotions, and you have the power to change your life.

Never let these emotions get you down.

USE them. Don't let them use you.

You are in control.

You have the power to change your life.

It's up to you.

Stop numbing yourself and distracting yourself from negative emotions.

Feel them and let them fuel you.

You'll be surprised how powerful this is.

So with that said, that's it for today's letter.

I hope you enjoyed it and I hope that you act on the advice.

Remember:

Learning without action is useless.

Cheers,

Ryan from Elevate Start

P.S. Meditation changed my life for the better. I promise it will do the same for you.

It’s simple. It doesn’t take long. But the only premise is that you do it every single day.

P.P.S. AI is the future. It will replace a lot of people but it will not replace you if you know how to use it.

So, if you want to future-proof yourself, check out today’s sponsor.

(It’s free and supports these letters)👇