Once you have a thought that aligns with your comfort-zone-seeking-self… your ego will immediately go to work justifying it.
“I should skip exercise today.”
…To which your ego will delightingly reinforce like a hormone-raging, insecure-trying-to-look-cool, rebellious-against-all-things-good-for-you teenager—and start peer pressuring that thought into existence.
“For sure, you have a headache… better to skip today.”
“Oh, absolutely… don’t want to aggravate that tweak in your shoulder.”
“Definitely… you have so much other work you could get done instead.”
And so forth.
The real pros at self-discipline know this and are excellent at nipping initial comfort-zone-seeking-self-thoughts in the bud.
“I should skip exercise today.”
…To which you have to channel the infinite wisdom of your deeper self and start rebutting that idea like Will Ferrell—a.k.a. Frank the Tank—when he was pitted against Democratic strategist James Carville for the debate event that would save the brothers’ fraternity in the movie Old School.
“Headache? It’ll be good to do what you can so the rest of the body is cared for. Heck, circulation and sweat might even be good for the headache.”
“Shoulder tweak? There are hundreds of other muscles that could be worked on in its place. It’d be foolish to let one tweak stop you from keeping the hundreds of other muscles healthy and well.”
“Other work? What could be more important than taking care of the one true home we’ll ever really get to live in? Nothing, that’s what. Priorities were set; promises were made; word is law; no skipping today.”
Bottom line? Channel your inner Frank the Tank debating skills today and get it done.