In the 90s, no one gave a shit about how you felt. You got up, went to work, got underpaid, took verbal abuse from your boss, bit your tongue around your in-laws, and cried in silence. No one asked, “How’s your mental health?” No one paused to say, “Let’s unpack your feelings.” And sure—that had its own problems. A lot of people suffered with years of undiagnosed anxiety and depression.
But you know what else happened?
People got shit done. They weren’t waiting around for motivation or perfect mental clarity. They weren’t analyzing daddy issues before making big moves. But fast forward to now—
we’ve overcorrected.
As a result, we have a become a society of THINKERs instead of DOERS. “I need time to think about it.” “I need time to research it.” “I need time to see if this feels right.” Now, everything is about how you feel. You’re sad? Take a mental health day. You’re anxious? Blame your job. You’re tired? Call in sick and rest. You’re uninspired? Must mean it’s not “aligned”, you should quit. But here’s the truth no one wants to say out loud: your feelings are real, but they’re not always relevant. You can feel anxious and still show up (that’s normal!). You can feel unmotivated and still do the work (discipline is a bitch!). You can feel stuck and still move forward. Mental health is important. If you have REAL clinical anxiety/depression - get treated ASAP. But if you just “feeeeeel” like you’re anxious and depressed…. Or you’re having a shitty day- then that it’s not an excuse to stop trying. Because if you keep letting your feelings run the show, they will keep you exactly where you are: stuck, tired, and secretly resentful of people who are smarter, wealthier, and happier than you. You’re not broken. You just lack discipline. Most of the time - you’re not even anxious. You just throw on the “anxiety” label on everything. But can anxiety just mean you just lack clarity on what you want?!? That you’re out of practice with doing hard things when you don’t feel like it?!? Maybe the cure isn’t always therapy (but yes, sometimes it is). Sometimes, it’s discipline. Sometimes, it’s action. Sometimes, it’s ignoring the voice in your head that says, “Maybe I just need a nap.” Because you don’t. You need to move. You need to show up. You need to remember who the hell you are and what you’re really chasing. So stop chasing that Motivation Cocaine. You search everywhere for motivation, but most of time - you just have do shit without motivation.
Discipline > Motivation.
Fuck your feelings. Follow the plan. Do hard shit. Run towards the pain. And ugly cry when you do it. Sometimes that’s normal… especially when you’re in a new growth phase. Unconventionally Yours, Sam