I am not exceptional. I am merely exceptionally disciplined.
I am not a good runner, but I have logged the miles and will do another Ragnar soon and a few weeks after that my second ultramarathon. I don’t look like a deer, more like a shambling broken cowboy too long on the range. But I keep going, because I refuse to stop. I will finish.
Discipline trumps talent in the long run.
I have movie star good looks (not), an incredible natural market (if you think engineers are fun to work with), and the social skills of a lab rat but I get tons of Introductions because I am disciplined and use agendas and feeder lists (after doing my research) every single time so I always get Introductions to new potential clients.
Discipline supports skill development.
I love cheeseburgers and donuts and beer. I don’t have them all the time, and when I do it is because I earned them by doing the things I hate to have the things I love.
Discipline earns rewards.
I work long hours, and not just punching the clock but focused on high productivity and efficiency. I accomplish more in a decade than most men do in a lifetime, and I do it over and over again. I can take time for races and to do things with my kids because I get stuff done.
I maintain my calm even among the chaos of life. Of relationships gone sour, of unexpected events, of betrayals and heartbreaks and medical issues and stupidity. I Stoically work through what needs to be done even in the raging storms, no matter how much my soul weeps.
Discipline equals strength.
I am not exceptional, just a mere man with many flaws and scars.
But I am exceptionally disciplined, and this gives me faith in the future.
