Self-Discipline Equals Freedom: Navy Seal Jocko Willink

00:27:41
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3UkRFyaALI

Summary

TLDRJocko Willink, a former Navy SEAL officer, discusses the critical role of discipline in achieving personal and professional freedom. He draws on his military experiences, particularly during the Battle of Ramadi, to offer insights into effective leadership and the importance of balancing humility with authority. Jocko introduced the idea that discipline equals freedom, illustrating that early rising and structured schedules result in more productive and meaningful lives, both in military and civilian settings. He contrasts the need for discipline with the broader idea of living freely, emphasizing that structure in life provides room to maneuver more freely when unpredictable situations arise. Additionally, he emphasizes that balance between work and family is essential, advocating for setting priorities and strict schedules. His philosophies are rooted in personal experience and have been encapsulated in his book, "Discipline Equals Freedom: Field Manual," which guides readers on implementing such discipline in their own lives.

Takeaways

  • 🎖️ Jocko Willink is a seasoned Navy SEAL officer who translates military lessons into civilian leadership.
  • 📘 His book "Discipline Equals Freedom" outlines how discipline paves the way for personal and professional liberation.
  • ⏰ He advocates for early rising as a key method to enhance daily productivity.
  • 🤝 Humility is vital for leaders to remain open to better ideas and strategies.
  • ⚖️ Balancing work and personal life is essential to maintain harmony and success.
  • 🏋️‍♂️ Daily exercise is crucial for keeping the mind and body alert and efficient.
  • 📅 Structuring the day provides freedom to handle unexpected occurrences effectively.
  • 💡 Discipline allows one to enjoy greater freedom in various life aspects.
  • 👪 Planning and discipline are necessary to fulfill family responsibilities while succeeding professionally.
  • 📈 Effective use of discipline and planning can lead to long-term gains in both career and life.

Timeline

  • 00:00:00 - 00:05:00

    This segment introduces Jocko Willink, an ex-Navy SEAL officer and featured cover figure. With 20 years in Navy SEAL Teams, including leadership in Ramadi, Jocko used his experience to train future SEAL leaders. Now he shares his leadership lessons through his company Echelon Front and as an author and podcaster, advocating disciplined management for achieving freedom, both financially and in time management.

  • 00:05:00 - 00:10:00

    Jocko explains that achieving freedom requires discipline. Financial freedom stems from financial discipline, and having free time comes from disciplined time management. Counterintuitively, acts like sleeping in can hinder freedom, as they result in unfinished tasks and lost productive time. His new book, "Discipline Equals Freedom: Field Manual," expands on these ideas, offering a dual perspective—thought and action—on achieving discipline.

  • 00:10:00 - 00:15:00

    Jocko recounts his early fascination with the military, spurred by a childhood spent fantasizing about warfare and soldiers. This passion led him to join the SEAL Teams, which promised an adventurous and disciplined lifestyle. Reflecting on his training days, he emphasizes enjoying tactical aspects and team maneuvers over preliminary physical assessments, echoing how these experiences guided him from being unruly to disciplined.

  • 00:15:00 - 00:20:00

    In the SEALs, Jocko learned the importance of humility and teamwork. Arrogance in the ranks, he found, could be detrimental, whereas humility fostered learning and growth. This is equally crucial in business, where leaders must be humble to improve and solve complex problems collaboratively. He stresses learning from both exemplary and flawed leaders, underscoring how humility and adaptability are vital for success in any field.

  • 00:20:00 - 00:27:41

    Jocko's discipline extends beyond military life into daily routines, advocating early rising for productivity and physical exercise for mental clarity. He counters the notion that every minute needs strict scheduling, advocating instead for flexible discipline. This approach allows him both to meet work demands diligently and to embrace freedom in other areas. Jocko's methodical discipline in little daily actions leads to larger successes over time.

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Mind Map

Video Q&A

  • Who is Jocko Willink?

    Jocko Willink is a former Navy SEAL officer, leadership instructor, speaker, and author.

  • What is Jocko Willink's book about?

    His book 'Discipline Equals Freedom: Field Manual' explains the relationship between discipline and achieving freedom in various aspects of life.

  • Why does Jocko Willink emphasize waking up early?

    Waking up early provides quiet time for productivity without distractions, helping to ensure daily priorities are met.

  • How does Jocko define 'freedom'?

    Freedom is achieved through disciplined action, allowing for more time and financial independence.

  • What motivated Jocko to become a Navy SEAL?

    He was fascinated by the ability to serve with a real machine gun as part of the SEAL Teams' maritime operations.

  • How does Jocko's military experience translate to civilian life?

    He applies leadership and problem-solving skills from his military training to business challenges.

  • What role does humility play in leadership according to Jocko?

    Humility allows leaders to listen to others' ideas and improve decision-making, reducing risks on and off the battlefield.

  • How does Jocko suggest integrating discipline into daily life?

    Start by waking up early, exercising daily, and having a structured yet flexible schedule.

  • Why is balance important in work and family life?

    Balance ensures neither work nor personal life suffer, allowing both to thrive simultaneously.

  • What is Jocko's perspective on time management?

    Plan key tasks but allow for flexible time for unexpected priorities, ensuring important goals are still achieved.

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  • 00:00:00
    [Music]
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    we feature in the magazine and on the
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    podcasts every month a lot of amazing
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    leaders the top people in their fields
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    who have studied or lived the lessons
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    that they teach and my interview guest
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    today is the latter Jaco willing was our
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    April cover figure the April issue of
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    success there it is it's okay don't be
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    afraid he's cool Jocko has taken his
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    experience as a Navy SEAL officer and
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    brought it to the world at large he
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    spent 20 years as part of US Navy SEAL
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    Teams he was commander of SEAL team
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    threes task unit bruiser during the
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    battle of Ramadi he orchestrated seal
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    operations that helped the ready first
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    brigade of the US Army's 1st Armored
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    Division bring stability to the city of
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    Ramadi Jacko returned from Iraq to serve
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    as officer in charge of training for all
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    West Coast SEAL Teams and there he
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    spearheaded the development and
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    leadership training personally in
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    structuring and mentoring the next
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    generation of SEAL leaders that have
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    continued to perform with great set
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    success and bravery on the battlefield
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    he now has translated his leadership
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    lessons into his company s Shalon front
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    raised a leadership instructor speaker
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    and executive coach he is also the
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    author of the mega bestseller extreme
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    ownership how US Navy SEALs lead and win
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    and he hosts the very popular Jacko
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    podcast it is one of the most listened
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    to fastest-growing podcasts for leaders
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    of all stripes including civilians like
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    you and me
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    everyone bring him out give a round of
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    applause let's welcome a hero Jacko
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    willing
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    [Music]
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    all right Jocko
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    thanks for being here thanks for having
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    me out appreciate it our theme for the
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    discussion today is one of the guiding
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    tenets of your life it happens to be the
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    name of your new book out October 17th
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    discipline equals freedom a field guide
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    so discipline equals freedom what does
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    that mean to you well I think the
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    freedom part is pretty easy for everyone
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    to understand I think that everybody
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    wants freedom in all the various aspects
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    of their life whether it's financial
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    freedom those are the two examples I
  • 00:02:43
    bring up all the time are financial
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    freedom of course everyone wants
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    financial freedom everyone wants to have
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    more free time those are two really easy
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    examples to understand and if you want
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    to have financial freedom well then how
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    are you going to get there the answer is
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    you have to have financial discipline
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    and same thing with more free time if
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    you want to have more free time then you
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    have to have a more disciplined time
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    management schedule and you have to have
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    discipline in your life to say no to the
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    things that aren't actually moving you
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    towards whatever goals you have so you
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    know you have to have the discipline to
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    to not click the next YouTube video that
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    springs up when you get done watching
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    one dumb video that you should know
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    watched and then it presents you with
  • 00:03:29
    six more don't click on those go and do
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    something else and do something
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    productive it's counterintuitive in a
  • 00:03:36
    way so it's it almost seems like
  • 00:03:38
    something that only someone who has
  • 00:03:40
    lived that way can testify to well yeah
  • 00:03:44
    it is definitely counterintuitive
  • 00:03:45
    because you know one of the things you
  • 00:03:47
    were just talking about is sleeping in
  • 00:03:48
    in the morning right it seems like
  • 00:03:50
    sleeping in the morning is a form of
  • 00:03:51
    freedom because hey I don't have to do
  • 00:03:53
    anything I'm just gonna sleep in but the
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    reality is is when you sleep in now you
  • 00:03:57
    don't get things done and now those
  • 00:03:59
    things that you were supposed to do
  • 00:04:00
    aren't done and now the next day you
  • 00:04:01
    have to wake up early and get them done
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    not because you want to but because you
  • 00:04:05
    have to so you've become a slave to the
  • 00:04:07
    fact that you didn't have discipline so
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    if you actually
  • 00:04:10
    want to have freedom in your life you
  • 00:04:11
    have to implement discipline on yourself
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    before we get too far away from the
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    theme tell us about the book it's a
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    field guide
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    yeah it's discipline equals freedom
  • 00:04:20
    Field Manual I'm sorry it's okay you'll
  • 00:04:23
    be punished later and so so what it is
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    is honestly there's not there's not I've
  • 00:04:30
    never seen a book like this it's it's
  • 00:04:32
    written in a way that's not normal prose
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    writing it's broken down into sections
  • 00:04:38
    two major sections one of them is called
  • 00:04:40
    thought and the other one is called
  • 00:04:43
    action and so the thoughts section is
  • 00:04:45
    kind of the things that I think about
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    and the the reasons and the the kind of
  • 00:04:49
    why I am the way I am and then the
  • 00:04:52
    actions are the actual things that I do
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    in my life from workouts to what I eat
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    to how I sleep to how I recover from
  • 00:04:57
    injuries to how I actually manage my day
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    and train so that's the way it's broken
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    up and like I said it's it's it's
  • 00:05:06
    different from any book that I've ever
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    seen so it'll be interesting what the
  • 00:05:09
    public thinks of it we'll find out
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    shortly
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    so I possibly I know you heard the wus
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    and the Rose there are some people here
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    who know you for anyone who doesn't
  • 00:05:21
    let's talk about your background a
  • 00:05:24
    little bit what drove you to enlist in
  • 00:05:26
    the seals as a teenager you know I was
  • 00:05:30
    one of those kids that I was running
  • 00:05:32
    around the woods taking every stick I
  • 00:05:35
    could find him pretending it was a
  • 00:05:36
    machine gun and at some point you know
  • 00:05:40
    probably around the age of seven or
  • 00:05:42
    eight I realized that you could actually
  • 00:05:43
    go and have a job where they'd give you
  • 00:05:45
    a real machine gun and I said to myself
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    I can get paid for this so eventually
  • 00:05:52
    figured out that I figured out what the
  • 00:05:54
    SEAL Teams were I like being in the
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    water and the SEAL Teams were obviously
  • 00:05:58
    the maritime component of Special
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    Operations and so it seemed like the
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    place to go and that's where I ended up
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    it's a major commitment for anyone but
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    as an 18 year old or a 19 oh and this is
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    when people make this commitment do they
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    do they have any idea what's really in
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    store for them did you I honestly
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    thought I would be dead in five years
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    once I got in there that that's
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    literally what I thought
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    I thought seals were just all over the
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    world fighting in all these wars and I
  • 00:06:27
    was gonna go and do that too and I was
  • 00:06:29
    ready to rock and roll so you've told me
  • 00:06:33
    before that one of your favorite things
  • 00:06:35
    about being a seal was the training when
  • 00:06:37
    you were going through it yourself and
  • 00:06:39
    the physical and tactical work that goes
  • 00:06:42
    into becoming a seal what was it that
  • 00:06:44
    you loved about that so much well you
  • 00:06:47
    know a lot of times when people think of
  • 00:06:48
    the training and the SEAL Teams they
  • 00:06:49
    think of the training that you see on TV
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    which is you know the guys carrying the
  • 00:06:54
    boats on their head and carrying the
  • 00:06:55
    logs around and and that's what a lot of
  • 00:06:57
    people talk about but that that actually
  • 00:06:59
    is just the beginning of of your career
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    and and when you're in the SEAL Teams no
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    one actually talks about that and no one
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    actually cares because all of us have
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    been through it and you don't actually
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    learn anything about being a seal in
  • 00:07:11
    that initial phase of training and so
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    yeah you go through that training a
  • 00:07:15
    bunch of people quit that's cool
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    but what I really liked about it was the
  • 00:07:19
    tactics of when you're actually a
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    commando and you're maneuvering elements
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    on the battlefield and you're closing
  • 00:07:26
    with and destroying the enemy or you're
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    training to be able to do that that's
  • 00:07:29
    that's a fantastic job it's fun it
  • 00:07:32
    changes all the time it's dynamic and
  • 00:07:35
    yeah it's it's really hard to find a
  • 00:07:38
    replacement for that in the civilian
  • 00:07:39
    sector
  • 00:07:42
    you you learned a lot of these guiding
  • 00:07:46
    principles that have shaped your life
  • 00:07:48
    ever since as an eighteen or nineteen
  • 00:07:51
    year old did you need them after your
  • 00:07:54
    you know upbringing your teenage years
  • 00:07:56
    were you reckless or unruly did you did
  • 00:07:59
    you need the discipline yes one could
  • 00:08:02
    say I was fairly unruly as a kid that
  • 00:08:05
    was a little bit of a maniac of a kid
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    and that's one thing that was great
  • 00:08:08
    about the military for me was it's a
  • 00:08:11
    clean slate number one and then they
  • 00:08:13
    give you very specific okay this is what
  • 00:08:15
    you need to do to succeed and so you
  • 00:08:17
    show up a SEAL team and they say you got
  • 00:08:19
    to learn about this radio and here's
  • 00:08:20
    what you need to know about it and if
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    you know that you're gonna be successful
  • 00:08:22
    in that department and here's what you
  • 00:08:24
    know about this weapon and if you learn
  • 00:08:26
    that then you'll be successful and
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    that's a great a great base to start
  • 00:08:30
    from and then eventually what what you
  • 00:08:32
    really learn in the SEAL Teams is that
  • 00:08:33
    what you have to do is you have to be
  • 00:08:35
    able to think you have to be able to
  • 00:08:36
    problem-solve and you have to be able to
  • 00:08:38
    look at complex problems simplify them
  • 00:08:40
    and then implement solutions to them and
  • 00:08:42
    that's what comes a little later once
  • 00:08:44
    you have that base but it's it's a
  • 00:08:46
    little bit different from what people
  • 00:08:48
    think because a lot of times people
  • 00:08:50
    think that the military is everything is
  • 00:08:52
    super rigid and structured and that all
  • 00:08:54
    you're doing is getting orders from
  • 00:08:55
    above you and the chain of command and
  • 00:08:57
    you're executing those orders well
  • 00:08:59
    that's actually not true at all and and
  • 00:09:01
    what you're really doing in the military
  • 00:09:03
    is you're you're looking at complex
  • 00:09:05
    problems on the battlefield and you're
  • 00:09:08
    coming up with a solution with your team
  • 00:09:09
    on how to get those problems solved and
  • 00:09:11
    that's why I think that part of the
  • 00:09:13
    military even though it's not well known
  • 00:09:15
    it does translate great into the
  • 00:09:17
    civilian sector because this is what
  • 00:09:18
    businesspeople and now obviously I work
  • 00:09:20
    with businesses all the time and that's
  • 00:09:21
    what the businesses are doing they're
  • 00:09:23
    looking at these problems that they have
  • 00:09:25
    in whatever industry they're in and
  • 00:09:26
    they're trying to find out solutions so
  • 00:09:28
    they can execute them quickly and
  • 00:09:29
    efficiently but by the way it is hard if
  • 00:09:34
    anyone has any doubts about that and
  • 00:09:36
    there were as you mentioned people would
  • 00:09:37
    quit and you've told me before that was
  • 00:09:40
    one of your favorite things of going
  • 00:09:41
    through the training is is seeing seeing
  • 00:09:43
    people who didn't didn't have it in them
  • 00:09:45
    to keep going why why did that motivate
  • 00:09:48
    you or why did you like that mainly it
  • 00:09:51
    was just really funny
  • 00:09:54
    you get these guys that were you know a
  • 00:09:58
    lot of the guys that would quit were
  • 00:09:59
    guys that were running around thinking
  • 00:10:00
    that they were super tough and acting
  • 00:10:02
    like they were super tough and you know
  • 00:10:05
    it's not that's just not the case always
  • 00:10:07
    and so it was really interesting I guess
  • 00:10:09
    to see to see people break down and
  • 00:10:12
    you'd see someone that was acting like a
  • 00:10:14
    real tough guy and after they've been
  • 00:10:16
    through you know a few days without
  • 00:10:17
    sleep and a bunch of hard exercises all
  • 00:10:19
    of a sudden they're ringing the bell and
  • 00:10:21
    me I was not a great I was never a great
  • 00:10:24
    athlete I was never a superstar at any
  • 00:10:26
    sport but I wasn't gonna quit and so I
  • 00:10:29
    guess that's why I had a little little
  • 00:10:32
    inner satisfaction watching guys that
  • 00:10:35
    would just give up it's kind of sad in
  • 00:10:38
    some ways too in a way you just as you
  • 00:10:41
    describe it it sounds like authenticity
  • 00:10:43
    and you know being able to show or
  • 00:10:48
    express what you don't know or what or
  • 00:10:50
    or maybe some small form of weakness and
  • 00:10:53
    I have to get I have to get better and
  • 00:10:55
    acknowledgement that you have to get
  • 00:10:56
    better can keep you going and and and
  • 00:10:59
    and keep you from breaking yeah I mean
  • 00:11:02
    you definitely have to be humble and
  • 00:11:04
    when you show up in the SEAL Teams and
  • 00:11:05
    when I showed up with the SEAL Teams as
  • 00:11:07
    a new guy like I said even though I'd
  • 00:11:08
    been through this tough training you you
  • 00:11:11
    better be humble when you show up the
  • 00:11:12
    SEAL Teams because you don't know
  • 00:11:14
    anything and if you think you know
  • 00:11:16
    something you find out really quickly
  • 00:11:17
    that you don't and so it's it's actually
  • 00:11:20
    easy because if you haven't if you're
  • 00:11:21
    humble and you have an open mind and
  • 00:11:23
    you're willing to listen the guys are
  • 00:11:24
    willing to teach you and it's
  • 00:11:25
    fundamental fundamental things that you
  • 00:11:28
    can learn pretty quickly but anybody
  • 00:11:30
    that comes in that's arrogant that
  • 00:11:31
    thinks they know everything they're
  • 00:11:32
    gonna have problems and again that's the
  • 00:11:34
    same thing you see in the business world
  • 00:11:35
    when we work with companies where the
  • 00:11:37
    company that is actually asking us to
  • 00:11:39
    come in and you know maybe the CEO
  • 00:11:41
    saying hey we want you to come and help
  • 00:11:43
    us that company they're already doing
  • 00:11:45
    well they're already being successful
  • 00:11:47
    and their attitude is hey we need help
  • 00:11:49
    we want to get better we want to be more
  • 00:11:50
    successful and those companies they
  • 00:11:53
    ramped up really quickly and we have a
  • 00:11:54
    great time working with them sometimes
  • 00:11:56
    we work with companies where let's say
  • 00:11:58
    we get brought in by the board brings us
  • 00:12:00
    in because the company's not doing well
  • 00:12:02
    well right off the bat the company's not
  • 00:12:04
    doing well
  • 00:12:05
    and they don't think they need any help
  • 00:12:07
    and so it's it's the opposite effect
  • 00:12:10
    they're saying well we're we don't need
  • 00:12:12
    any help we don't need you guys here and
  • 00:12:14
    the fact of the matter is they need us
  • 00:12:15
    more than the other folks do but the
  • 00:12:18
    reason that they need help is the reason
  • 00:12:20
    we're there in the first place it's the
  • 00:12:21
    reason they're not doing well because
  • 00:12:22
    they're not looking at themselves every
  • 00:12:23
    day humbly and saying what can we do
  • 00:12:26
    better how can we improve how can we
  • 00:12:28
    adjust right now and turn our game
  • 00:12:31
    around or improve our game so that we
  • 00:12:33
    can get better in the market do you've
  • 00:12:35
    written before and I know talked about
  • 00:12:37
    on your podcast just humility as a vital
  • 00:12:41
    vital trait of any leader in the seals
  • 00:12:44
    if you're not humble it could get you
  • 00:12:45
    and your team killed how does that work
  • 00:12:48
    exactly if are you is it about closing
  • 00:12:51
    yourself off from ideas from other
  • 00:12:53
    people it's it's that's definitely one
  • 00:12:56
    of them you know if you and I are
  • 00:12:57
    working together and I'm the boss and I
  • 00:12:59
    have a big ego and I think I'm better
  • 00:13:01
    than you
  • 00:13:02
    and you come to me with an idea I
  • 00:13:03
    immediately shot you out well what if
  • 00:13:05
    your plan was a better plan or what if
  • 00:13:07
    you had some piece of knowledge that
  • 00:13:08
    made sense for a particular operation
  • 00:13:10
    but my ego is too big to listen to you
  • 00:13:12
    well now we go out and we put lives at
  • 00:13:14
    risk and possibly lose lives because my
  • 00:13:16
    ego is too big
  • 00:13:17
    same thing you could say about the enemy
  • 00:13:19
    right if I don't think the enemy is is
  • 00:13:20
    any good all the enemies know good there
  • 00:13:23
    they don't train hard and they're not
  • 00:13:25
    prepared for for the big tough seals
  • 00:13:26
    well if you have that attitude guess
  • 00:13:28
    what maybe those guys are training
  • 00:13:30
    harder and if you start cutting corners
  • 00:13:31
    and you're training you're gonna get
  • 00:13:33
    caught and obviously it's the same thing
  • 00:13:35
    in the business world when a company is
  • 00:13:37
    doing well if the company stays humble
  • 00:13:39
    while they're doing well they're still
  • 00:13:40
    looking for how they can improve they're
  • 00:13:42
    still looking for things that they can
  • 00:13:43
    do better and they will stay on top but
  • 00:13:45
    the minute a company says that's right
  • 00:13:47
    we're the best and no one else even
  • 00:13:49
    stands a chance well guess what
  • 00:13:51
    those people down there on the bottom
  • 00:13:52
    they're hungry and they're gonna come
  • 00:13:55
    and get them
  • 00:13:55
    so you didn't start out as a leader you
  • 00:13:58
    worked your way up through the ranks and
  • 00:14:00
    and you learned from people and
  • 00:14:02
    experiences who or what shaped you well
  • 00:14:07
    it's really lucky again it's a great
  • 00:14:08
    environment to grow up in you know from
  • 00:14:10
    a kid basically and seeing and being in
  • 00:14:14
    Co platoons with very types of
  • 00:14:17
    leadership and
  • 00:14:18
    I was very lucky that I saw really
  • 00:14:20
    outstanding leaders and I saw some
  • 00:14:22
    leaders that weren't outstanding at all
  • 00:14:23
    far from it and you can learn from both
  • 00:14:25
    and I learned from both you know and
  • 00:14:27
    even as a young kid i'ts I I wouldn't
  • 00:14:29
    put it together a hundred percent but
  • 00:14:31
    I'd say and that that guy does something
  • 00:14:33
    that makes us all want to do a good job
  • 00:14:35
    for him I want to act like that guy and
  • 00:14:37
    this guy over here he makes us all mad
  • 00:14:41
    and we don't even want to come to work
  • 00:14:42
    and work for him I'm not gonna act like
  • 00:14:44
    him and eventually I kind of figured out
  • 00:14:46
    what those traits were that they had and
  • 00:14:48
    actually humility being one of the most
  • 00:14:50
    important ones that I noticed with the
  • 00:14:51
    people we wanted to work for and I
  • 00:14:53
    wanted you do a good job for those guys
  • 00:14:55
    are the most humble people and
  • 00:14:56
    ironically always the most experienced
  • 00:14:58
    too so the most experienced people would
  • 00:15:01
    be the most humble and the least
  • 00:15:03
    experienced people would be the least
  • 00:15:05
    humble and and be the most imposing of
  • 00:15:08
    how they wanted to do things which is
  • 00:15:10
    not a good way to lead what are some of
  • 00:15:12
    the experiences that shaped the
  • 00:15:14
    leadership philosophies you would
  • 00:15:16
    develop well it was my whole career but
  • 00:15:19
    really the the solidification of what I
  • 00:15:23
    talk about now and what I wrote about
  • 00:15:25
    with with my brother Lafe babban who's
  • 00:15:27
    another seal to serve with me in the
  • 00:15:28
    battle of Ramadi what we what we talk
  • 00:15:31
    about now is those lessons that we
  • 00:15:32
    learned throughout our career that were
  • 00:15:34
    solidified in the Battle of Ramadi and
  • 00:15:36
    set certified battle-tested and really
  • 00:15:40
    you know I say it all the time combat is
  • 00:15:43
    the harshest of teachers and it teaches
  • 00:15:45
    lessons that you're not going to forget
  • 00:15:46
    and and that's true and so the lessons
  • 00:15:50
    that we brought home from Ramadi it's
  • 00:15:52
    the same thing the same thing that I
  • 00:15:53
    taught when I was teaching the young
  • 00:15:55
    seal officers how to lead on the
  • 00:15:57
    battlefield is literally the exact same
  • 00:16:00
    thing that's in the book extreme
  • 00:16:01
    ownership and it's the same thing we
  • 00:16:02
    teach to companies when we're all
  • 00:16:04
    working with them so let's talk about
  • 00:16:06
    the ways that discipline governs your
  • 00:16:09
    life today you're obviously an
  • 00:16:11
    incredible physical shape you have a
  • 00:16:14
    strict diet and exercise regimens that
  • 00:16:16
    you stick to what are what are some
  • 00:16:20
    other musts for you on a daily basis to
  • 00:16:23
    make sure that you're getting the most
  • 00:16:25
    out of yourself I mean fundamentally you
  • 00:16:28
    know this this is so easy and so hard
  • 00:16:31
    you know people say how can I get
  • 00:16:32
    discipline in my life and I tell them
  • 00:16:34
    step number one is wake up early and I
  • 00:16:38
    know people don't want to do it it's
  • 00:16:40
    harsh I know that your alarm clock is
  • 00:16:44
    you know your most hated object in your
  • 00:16:47
    bedroom I get that but here's the deal
  • 00:16:49
    with with getting up early in the
  • 00:16:51
    morning when you get up early in the
  • 00:16:52
    morning if you can get up before the
  • 00:16:53
    rest of the world is awake right before
  • 00:16:55
    the enemy's awake before the rest of the
  • 00:16:57
    world is awake you can get so much done
  • 00:16:59
    you're so much more productive without
  • 00:17:01
    your phone going off without people
  • 00:17:04
    sending you emails and texting you or
  • 00:17:06
    calling you and you wake up in the
  • 00:17:08
    morning there's just quiet and you can
  • 00:17:10
    get things done and you should do things
  • 00:17:11
    and I do things in the morning that I
  • 00:17:13
    know they're a priority for my life but
  • 00:17:17
    maybe they're not a priority for that
  • 00:17:18
    day right so like for instance working
  • 00:17:21
    out or working out you got to work out
  • 00:17:22
    everyday you got to stay in shape if you
  • 00:17:23
    want to I mean if you don't stay in
  • 00:17:25
    shape you die right so you got to stay
  • 00:17:27
    in shape but but working out might not
  • 00:17:30
    be a priority for every single day
  • 00:17:31
    because you've got things going on in
  • 00:17:33
    your business world and with your family
  • 00:17:34
    and all that so guess what it's a
  • 00:17:36
    priority for my life so I do it in the
  • 00:17:37
    morning before my day even starts so I
  • 00:17:40
    can still handle the priorities for the
  • 00:17:41
    day but I got my workout done so
  • 00:17:44
    long-term I look up in a year and I'm
  • 00:17:46
    not out of shape and breathing hard when
  • 00:17:48
    I go up in the stairs because I maintain
  • 00:17:50
    that discipline on a daily basis so I
  • 00:17:52
    think getting up early I think doing
  • 00:17:53
    some kind of exercise every day I don't
  • 00:17:55
    care what it is I don't you just have to
  • 00:17:57
    do something you have to do something
  • 00:17:59
    physical there's it's scientifically
  • 00:18:01
    proven with not only bro science but
  • 00:18:05
    also real science that that waking up
  • 00:18:08
    early or that doing physical exercise
  • 00:18:10
    every day it Tunes your mind it puts
  • 00:18:13
    more oxygen in your blood in your brain
  • 00:18:14
    it is absolutely makes you think more
  • 00:18:17
    clearly
  • 00:18:18
    so waking up early working out every day
  • 00:18:21
    if you start with those two kind of
  • 00:18:23
    cornerstones and then the other thing is
  • 00:18:26
    you know figure out what you're gonna do
  • 00:18:27
    during the day go don't don't go to bed
  • 00:18:29
    without a plan of how you're gonna
  • 00:18:30
    handle the next day your days very
  • 00:18:32
    structured I know that you write at the
  • 00:18:34
    same time every day you you have
  • 00:18:37
    scheduled yeah I have a schedule and I
  • 00:18:40
    execute the schedule and that's what you
  • 00:18:42
    need to do now you actually said that my
  • 00:18:43
    my time is very structured and
  • 00:18:45
    it's actually a little bit not true
  • 00:18:46
    parts of my day are very structured
  • 00:18:49
    parts of my day are very disciplined
  • 00:18:51
    which gives me freedom in other parts of
  • 00:18:53
    the day and as a matter of fact when
  • 00:18:54
    people sometimes people will will get
  • 00:18:57
    okay I'm gonna I'm gonna run a
  • 00:18:58
    discipline time management schedule so
  • 00:19:00
    they schedule every single minute of the
  • 00:19:01
    day and I don't recommend that
  • 00:19:03
    just like I wouldn't recommend
  • 00:19:05
    conducting a seal operation where your
  • 00:19:08
    time line is so tight that there's no
  • 00:19:10
    room for error because that's not a
  • 00:19:12
    that's not a possibility you're gonna
  • 00:19:13
    have errors things are gonna go wrong
  • 00:19:15
    vehicles gonna brake boats are gonna
  • 00:19:17
    break people are gonna get lost you're
  • 00:19:19
    gonna take a wrong turn and so you're
  • 00:19:21
    gonna need extra time and it's the same
  • 00:19:22
    thing with your day if you schedule you
  • 00:19:25
    know 16 hours of your day you're not
  • 00:19:27
    gonna hit all your targets but if you
  • 00:19:29
    look at your workday and you you know
  • 00:19:30
    you've got an eight-hour workday you're
  • 00:19:32
    gonna be in your office and you schedule
  • 00:19:34
    four or five of those hours and you have
  • 00:19:36
    three hours that you're gonna fill in
  • 00:19:38
    and you're gonna put important things
  • 00:19:39
    into those as they come up that is a
  • 00:19:41
    much better way to be successful with
  • 00:19:43
    with running a time management on your
  • 00:19:45
    life and so I only schedule hard core
  • 00:19:48
    like four hours a day the other hours
  • 00:19:50
    I'm picking up I'm getting phone calls
  • 00:19:52
    I'm adapting and maneuvering on other
  • 00:19:54
    things that need to be executed on but
  • 00:19:56
    what is important those four hours they
  • 00:19:58
    get done they get done and that's the
  • 00:20:01
    difference between finishing writing a
  • 00:20:02
    book and not finishing writing a book
  • 00:20:04
    because you know when I write a book I
  • 00:20:07
    write a thousand words a day it takes me
  • 00:20:09
    about an hour yeah that's what I do I
  • 00:20:10
    read a thousand words a day and in 30
  • 00:20:12
    days you got thirty thousand words and
  • 00:20:14
    in sixty days you got sixty thousand
  • 00:20:16
    words and in 90 days you got 90 thousand
  • 00:20:19
    words and that's a book that's three
  • 00:20:21
    months and it took you an hour a day and
  • 00:20:23
    that's exactly what I did with the books
  • 00:20:25
    that I've written and and it's the same
  • 00:20:28
    thing with physical fitness you don't
  • 00:20:29
    you don't get in amazing shape in in you
  • 00:20:33
    know this short amount of time but you
  • 00:20:36
    get an amazing shape in a short amount
  • 00:20:37
    of time day after day after day after
  • 00:20:39
    day and that's where discipline comes in
  • 00:20:41
    on both those subjects waking up thing
  • 00:20:44
    that's pretty unpopular yeah no one
  • 00:20:46
    likes that that's okay keep sleeping in
  • 00:20:48
    that's fine you wake up earlier you have
  • 00:20:50
    to go to bed earlier there are fun
  • 00:20:53
    things that happen at 11:00 yeah
  • 00:20:55
    and that is true and I you know I'm I'm
  • 00:20:58
    uh I guess I'm I'm genetically what's
  • 00:21:01
    called a short sleeper and people have
  • 00:21:03
    sent me all these articles about it
  • 00:21:04
    because I don't sleep a lot and and I'm
  • 00:21:06
    not advocating because it's unhealthy to
  • 00:21:08
    not sleep enough you know and if you
  • 00:21:10
    need eight hours go to bed earlier but
  • 00:21:12
    you know and I'm not saying you need to
  • 00:21:13
    wake up at four o'clock in the morning
  • 00:21:14
    but I am saying this you know you know
  • 00:21:20
    when you are guilty of wasting time and
  • 00:21:23
    laying in bed and you're being lazy you
  • 00:21:25
    know it whether that was seven seven
  • 00:21:28
    o'clock in the morning or six o'clock in
  • 00:21:30
    the morning you know it and the other
  • 00:21:32
    thing that we do is if you want to wake
  • 00:21:34
    up early in the morning go to bed
  • 00:21:37
    earlier well that's real simple to say
  • 00:21:40
    but it's hard to do it's it's hard to do
  • 00:21:42
    number one when you're looking at your
  • 00:21:43
    phone it's hard to do when you're
  • 00:21:45
    staring at your computer screen it's
  • 00:21:47
    hard to do when you're watching TV those
  • 00:21:49
    things are meant there they're designed
  • 00:21:52
    to make you keep looking at them and so
  • 00:21:55
    you do so what you need to do is turn
  • 00:21:57
    those things off and try and go to bed
  • 00:22:00
    now the first night you're gonna have a
  • 00:22:01
    hard time going to sleep what you do is
  • 00:22:03
    the next morning you wake up early
  • 00:22:05
    anyways that first night you only got
  • 00:22:07
    five hours worth of sleep and now you're
  • 00:22:08
    tired throughout the day good because
  • 00:22:11
    then when you get to bed that night you
  • 00:22:13
    will turn off that computer you'll be
  • 00:22:14
    able to go to bed earlier like you
  • 00:22:15
    wanted to so you have to start the cycle
  • 00:22:18
    of waking up early by waking up early
  • 00:22:20
    you can't start the cycle by going to
  • 00:22:23
    sleep early
  • 00:22:30
    you know they're clapping about it I
  • 00:22:33
    like it you are making progress you've
  • 00:22:35
    turned them you are a family man - does
  • 00:22:42
    discipline play a role in making sure
  • 00:22:44
    that you are being everything that you
  • 00:22:47
    need to be for your wife and kids
  • 00:22:50
    well again you have to carve out time
  • 00:22:52
    for your family and you have to do
  • 00:22:55
    another huge thing I talk about is
  • 00:22:56
    balance right you have to have balance
  • 00:22:58
    and if you get out of balance in one
  • 00:23:00
    direction or the other and the classic
  • 00:23:02
    example because I'll have some people
  • 00:23:03
    that say you know I'm just not spending
  • 00:23:05
    enough time with my family and I'm
  • 00:23:06
    working too much and so I'm just gonna
  • 00:23:08
    focus on my family okay
  • 00:23:09
    well let's let's follow that to the end
  • 00:23:11
    what happens is you focus on your family
  • 00:23:13
    and now you're not performing well at
  • 00:23:15
    your job and now maybe you're not
  • 00:23:17
    getting promoted and you're not making
  • 00:23:18
    more money or maybe you're even getting
  • 00:23:19
    fired or you're not doing as well
  • 00:23:20
    financially so you can't provide the the
  • 00:23:22
    financial security for your family which
  • 00:23:25
    is actually gonna cause more stress and
  • 00:23:26
    will impact negatively your family so if
  • 00:23:30
    you focus too much on your family you're
  • 00:23:32
    actually doing them a disservice and I
  • 00:23:35
    know that's that's hard to understand
  • 00:23:36
    the same thing in the other direction
  • 00:23:38
    hey I'm gonna take care of my family my
  • 00:23:41
    family is my number one priority so I
  • 00:23:42
    got to get forget them financially
  • 00:23:43
    secure so I'm gonna focus on my work and
  • 00:23:45
    focus on my work and focus on my work
  • 00:23:46
    and we know what happens there so what
  • 00:23:49
    you have to do is balance and if you get
  • 00:23:51
    drawn too much to where you're working
  • 00:23:53
    all the time and you disregard your
  • 00:23:54
    family you're gonna lose your family and
  • 00:23:56
    then if you go the other direction
  • 00:23:57
    you're focused on your job too much or
  • 00:23:59
    you focus on your family too much you're
  • 00:24:01
    gonna lose your job and by the way
  • 00:24:02
    you're gonna end up losing your family
  • 00:24:03
    anyways so you've got to find the
  • 00:24:05
    balance you've got you've got a look at
  • 00:24:07
    that every single day you gotta know
  • 00:24:09
    when to shut off your phone and you know
  • 00:24:11
    that's hard one for all of us because
  • 00:24:12
    we're all expecting the big call become
  • 00:24:14
    in of course is gonna come during dinner
  • 00:24:16
    with my family so I have to look at my
  • 00:24:18
    phone right now
  • 00:24:18
    no there's no one that's calling you
  • 00:24:22
    that you need to talk to you in the next
  • 00:24:23
    45 minutes while you're sitting with
  • 00:24:24
    your family it's not gonna happen go
  • 00:24:27
    recharge your phone
  • 00:24:34
    our our time is running short here so I
  • 00:24:38
    want to see if you can give people a
  • 00:24:45
    sensory perspective of what it's like to
  • 00:24:48
    live with this much discipline to have
  • 00:24:51
    to be structured to get up early to work
  • 00:24:54
    your ass off in in in between what does
  • 00:24:58
    it feel like what does it taste smell
  • 00:25:00
    sound like to have this kind of
  • 00:25:05
    discipline tastes like steak number one
  • 00:25:10
    I'll tell a quick story this is this is
  • 00:25:13
    a little bit of a wake up call and I was
  • 00:25:17
    I was on social media and I posted a
  • 00:25:21
    picture of like my morning write a
  • 00:25:23
    couple pictures of my morning and I like
  • 00:25:26
    worked out in the morning and then I
  • 00:25:28
    went surfing and I think I trained
  • 00:25:30
    jiu-jitsu and I posted these pictures
  • 00:25:32
    right and you know I said hey cool you
  • 00:25:36
    know good good morning or something like
  • 00:25:38
    that and I was reading some of the
  • 00:25:40
    replies and and someone wrote must be
  • 00:25:45
    nice
  • 00:25:47
    and I was like dang you know that that
  • 00:25:51
    cuz you know I didn't have a lot of
  • 00:25:53
    money growing up and I was in the
  • 00:25:54
    military for 20 years you have a lot of
  • 00:25:55
    money growing up you're not running
  • 00:25:56
    around doing whatever you want and I
  • 00:25:58
    thought to myself I'm kind of a jerk
  • 00:26:00
    kind of a jerk because Here I am posting
  • 00:26:05
    these pictures I'm working out in the
  • 00:26:07
    morning and I'm going surfing and I'm
  • 00:26:08
    trying to jiu-jitsu with my friends and
  • 00:26:10
    there's some guy out there that's
  • 00:26:11
    probably been up at 6 o'clock in the
  • 00:26:13
    morning I don't care what his job is but
  • 00:26:15
    he doesn't like it I can tell that
  • 00:26:18
    and he's saying to me must be nice and
  • 00:26:23
    and I actually thought to myself you
  • 00:26:25
    know I'm I'm gonna back off from from
  • 00:26:28
    posting those kind of pictures right
  • 00:26:29
    because I'm rubbing into someone's face
  • 00:26:31
    and I'm not I'm not intending to do that
  • 00:26:33
    at all and you know the afternoon or
  • 00:26:38
    whatever came around and I went and kind
  • 00:26:39
    of looked at some of the responses again
  • 00:26:40
    and someone else had responded to that
  • 00:26:45
    guy
  • 00:26:45
    and he wrote discipline equals freedom
  • 00:26:50
    and I said to myself yeah that's what it
  • 00:26:57
    is and when you see me and I'm surfing
  • 00:27:02
    or I'm hanging out with my family or I'm
  • 00:27:04
    training jiu-jitsu or I'm traveling and
  • 00:27:07
    having a good time and enjoying my life
  • 00:27:10
    you're seeing the freedom part and what
  • 00:27:14
    you have to remember and what everyone
  • 00:27:15
    here should remember everyone here wants
  • 00:27:17
    to enjoy their life to the maximum but
  • 00:27:21
    if you want that kind of freedom it all
  • 00:27:23
    starts with a discipline and I leave you
  • 00:27:26
    with that thank you thank you very much
  • 00:27:30
    dr. Willie thanks everybody speciated
  • 00:27:38
    you
Tags
  • Jocko Willink
  • Navy SEAL
  • Leadership
  • Discipline
  • Freedom
  • Time Management
  • Humility
  • Balance
  • Military Experience
  • Productivity