Hello Readers 👋
Life is rough sometimes. It sends Jabberwockys to kick the crap out of you. It's our job, to be prepared. How do we prepare to battle a Jabberwocky?
Step One: Define the Jabberwocky
What is it and what do you need to beat it?
You need to know what you are going up against. In sports, coaches have you study your opponents moves. What are they good at? Where are their blind spots? What do they leave unprotected and easy to hit?
Then they have you watch yourself. What are you good at? What are your blind spots? What do you leave vulnerable to attack?
Next you strengthen where they're weakest. You also strengthen where you are the weakest. With these two strategic moves, you will be prepared to battle the Jabberwocky.
Step Two: Know you are ready
How do you know you are ready?
Practice a whole fuck of a lot, until you are better than the task at hand.
It is common in fighting sports to know who your opponent is, what they are good at, and who is better than they are.
Then you practice with the person that is better than the person you are going up against. This does two things. It ensures that you will do well, if you can beat the guy that is better. It also builds your confidence.
Confidence goes a long way when you are doing difficult things. If you go into a situation, and you are unsure, in your head, and second guessing every move you make.... you lose.
If you go into the same situation, calm, level headed, and breeze through the steps because you practiced so many times, you know you know it.... you win.
Your opponent can see the calm knowing, and will be scared. They will be in their own head, and make easy mistakes. You will have it in the bag!
If you want the calm confidence of knowing the battle is already won, you need to practice a whole fuck of a lot.
Everyone is looking for the secret to success. The secret is busting your ass until you are where you want to be.
How long will it take?
As long as it takes for you to get to where you feel that calm confidence. I know this isn't the answer you want to hear. But we all start out with different abilities.
The amount of training I would need to do a 5k run is going to be different than someone that consistently does cardio three to five times per week.
Step Three: Know Your Why
I hate this one, because it reminds me of every bull shit 'life coach'... but I have realized that this is valuable.
When you are going through hell to get to the top of Mount Doom, you need a strong why. If you don't have a strong why, you will hit the snooze button.
Every time you delay your tasks, you are saying that your comfort is more important than your end goal. You get to make this decision, everyday. Three to seven times a day... or more.
You are in control of your meat suit. You decide if you are going get up early and write, or sleep in. You decide if you are going to stay up late to make your dreams come true, or pack it in early.
This is where the Zoom In, Zoom Out method helps. I might write a post on that one day. I am still tweaking it, so it isn't quite ready yet. Leave me a comment if you want a post on that.
Example Time!
This is all fine and dandy, but it means fuck all without some evidence. Let's go through a real life example.
You have noticed that your joints and muscles are more stiff and less flexible. You want to add excercise into your routine. There are a couple of videos you like on YouTube. You set your alarm to go off 35 minutes early.
When your alarm goes off and pulls you out of your sleeping state, what do you do? Do you forget why you woke up early? Do you remember and just hit snooze until there is no time?
Waking up early isn't fun. When you first get back into exercising, it isn't fun! Your body aches, and you just want to go back to sleep. This is prioritizing the comfort of now, over your end goal.
If you really want to be more flexible and comfortable in your body, you have to get up.
If working out is your Jabberwocky, what are all the strengths and weaknesses you will encounter?
Enough time
Clean clothes
Shoes or other equipment
Water
YouTube video
Alarm with a named reminder (picture reminder would help too)
Temperature, not too hot or too cold
Digestion, not too full or too hungry
Distracted... get everything done before you start. You don't want to start and then suddenly decide that doing the dishes is more important.
List every excuse you would use to wiggle your way out of working out. Then you build a routine that removes all the excuses. All you will have left is you and an alarm reminder of what you said you wanted to do.
This is a big step in the beginning. Deciding to get up, when your alarm goes off. You can choose to commit to future you, or to your past you. Which you do you want to be?
Some days, you are going to roll out of bed, and get to it before your brain gets a chance to talk you out of it. Some days, you will hit snooze. But as time goes on, you will get better.
Which 90 year old do you want to be?
Everyday, you decide if getting up to defeat the Jabberwocky is worth it to you. Is your Jabberwocky being unfit and immobile when your older? Then you have to remind your younger body and brain, that you need to move.
Decide that your end goal is more important than the extra 30 minutes of sleep. You can do it!
Whatever your Jabberwocky might be. Remember why it is important for you to not fail. If the consequences of not doing the correct actions are unclear, uncertain, unattainable, or don't seem worth all the effort... you won't do it.
Make it clear, certain, possible, and have a big enough reason to put in the effort. I keep a bullet journal for this. It helps me keep track of the things I want and the things I don't.
It keeps the Jabberwocky of tomorrow, fresh in my brain today. I don't want to wake up 90 years old, and still haven't accomplished certain things. This is why finding tools like a bullet journal are worth their weight in gold!
The systems that work for me, might work for you. They might not. But I think having a Jabberwocky Defense System is important.
I wish you all the success in focusing on defining and defeating all your Jabberwockys!
Thank you for reading and supporting my writing journey.
Forever Wishful 💜💙💜
~Wishful Writer ✍☕🐉🗡📔🖋
