Your actions come from your identity. When your identity is rooted in current commitments, rather than your Future Self, your actions are weak and un… - Benjamin P. Hardy

When you create enriched environments of positive stress and high demand, your motivation to succeed is sky-high without any conscious effort on your part. You are not in conflict with your environment but being pulled forward by it. The specific strategies detailed in this chapter for outsourcing your motivation to enriched environments included: Installing several layers of external pressure and accountability; Making your goals public; Setting high expectations for customers and fans; Investing up front on your projects and scheduling them in advance; Surrounding yourself with people who have higher personal standards than you have; Competing with people who have a much higher skill level than you do by viewing competition as a form of collaboration; Making a commitment and then practicing or performing these in public settings. The external pressure of performing for others only heightens your internal pressure to succeed; Getting enough clarity to move forward a few steps toward your goal; Hiring a mentor who is world-class at what you want to do; and Joining a mastermind group filled with role models and people who will help you elevate your life.

According to psychological research, your willpower is like a muscle. It’s a finite resource that depletes with use. As a result, by the end of your strenuous days, your willpower muscles are exhausted, and you’re left to your naked and defenseless self — with zero control to stop the nighttime munchies and time wasters. At least, that’s what you’ve been taught. Clearly, the research on willpower explains human behavior. But only on the surface level. The very fact that willpower is required comes from several fundamental sources: You don’t know what you want, and are thus internally conflicted. Your desire (your why) for your goals isn’t strong enough. You aren’t invested in yourself and your dreams. Your environment opposes your goal.

Slowing time is truly a matter of quality more than quantity. The destination a person is traveling toward must be intrinsically desirable.