“Never throughout history has a man who lived a life of ease left a name worth remembering.” -Theodore Roosevelt
The Bull Moose
Why do some people seem to crush life while others wallow in the status quo? What sets them apart? Is it talent? Maybe they are just lucky. Or is the difference simply the result of choices and action? The life of Theodore Roosevelt shows that determination and consistent upward action, or ‘up action’, is a key ingredient of success.
Theodore Roosevelt, one of the most iconic U.S. Presidents, is known primarily for his love of the great outdoors. As commander of the “Rough Riders”, he and his men endured tough war-time conditions in the Cuban tropics, taking heavy losses and returning as heroes. During his presidency, Roosevelt camped in the California wilderness with John Muir for four days, discussing how to preserve the gorgeous mountains and forests.
But Theodore Roosevelt was not always a rough riding mountaineer. In his early childhood, he suffered from debilitating asthma. He could not play outside and was physically frail in comparison to other boys his age.
How then, did Roosevelt become the quintessential outdoorsman?
The answer: he made the decision to become physically strong, and then took determined action.
At age twelve, Theodore began lifting weights and practicing gymnastics every day. Over the course of a few years Roosevelt became strong; strong enough to climb mountains, lead men into battle, run his extensive political campaign, and ultimately become one of the most energetic U.S. Presidents.
It started with a decision, and the compounded effect of deliberate and consistent action.
Comfort
President Roosevelt rejected the fleeting comfort of inaction. As humans, our natural tendency is to gravitate towards lower-level actions. Roosevelt proved that we have the power to change that.
At any given point in time, a person’s mind is in one of two conditions: an active state or a passive state.
Playing a sport is active. Mentally, all of your attention is on the game. Similarly, you are in an active state when preparing for a presentation at work.
An example of passivity is sitting on the couch binging a show. Life is happening to you; you are not asserting anything. The show is directing your thoughts.
At work, if you are always deferring to a peer for decision-making, you are in a passive state. You are primarily reactive in that case.
Often, it is a fight to move from a passive state to an active state. The comfortable option (both mentally and physically) typically rests on the passive side of the scale. Once on that side, it is tough to climb back to the active side. Short bursts of motivation can boost us to action, but often it is short lived. In that case I find that I slide even further down the comfort side of the scale once my energy subsides.
Grit
Comfortable ‘action’ is typically just the disguise of passivity. It is a distraction from up action. When Theodore Roosevelt took action to improve his physical fitness, it took mental toughness.
Mental toughness is exactly this; putting future benefit before immediate comfort.
Roosevelt endured pain and discomfort as he began exercising. In doing so, he deferred immediate comfort for future strength and health.
You learn when you are in the state of action. Conversely, you atrophy when you are in a passive state. Either you are learning and increasing, or you are atrophying and decreasing.
Physical Science
Why do humans naturally gravitate towards easier actions?
In physical science, Isaac Newton’s First Law of Motion refers to the behavior of a body in an inertial frame of reference. But the first law also applies in the case of human mental toughness.
An object remains at rest or continues in constant motion unless acted upon by an outside force.
On a macro-scale, it is undeniable that humans are creatures of habits. We tie our shoes in the same way every day. Professional athletes stick to their workout schedule religiously. High-performing executives follow strict business and personal routines. Those habits continue consistently unless acted upon by an outside force, such as a vacation or a global pandemic. Even in those cases, depending on the strength of the habit (motion), the routine will stay intact. (Two of the best books written on habits are Atomic Habits by James Clear and The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg.)
On a micro-scale, the same is true. After watching one TV show, it is easy to stay on the couch and watch just one more. After you mow the lawn, it is easy and natural to continue being productive and knock out another outdoor chore. Following a good workout in the morning, the first few hours of my work tend to be highly productive.
Action breeds action. Hard work breeds hard work. Deep thought breeds more deep thoughts. Inaction breeds inaction. Procrastination breeds procrastination. Laziness breeds more laziness.
Ultimately, the choice with the most instant benefit is the most comfortable. But instant comfort usually comes at the expense of future comfort. Make the tough decision to keep the future in mind. Those who consistently make decisions that delay gratification are happier, healthier, smarter, and wealthier [1].
What is your vector? What does the future of you, your project, your company, or your work look like?
Will you get there by doing the small, comfortable, dopamine-producing little (in)actions?
“The most effective way to do it, is to do it.” -Amelia Earhart
Swing the balance of your actions. As we move towards having every single action vectored toward the goal, our momentum accelerates. When the vectors of your actions are pointed sporadically, you lose momentum towards your goals.
Decide and Act
First, decide who you want to be. Roosevelt could have been plagued by asthma for the rest of his life if he hadn’t decided to become physically stronger.
Next, “eat the frog” [2]. Execute on the most impactful task first. What is the one thing that will make the biggest impact for the future [3]. Build a system that is designed to make getting the tough, impactful tasks done.
Think: one year from now, what decision will I wish I had made? Which decision will have the highest impact? Most likely, it will be the decision in favor of Up Action.
References
[1] https://jamesclear.com/delayed-gratification
[2] https://medium.com/@alltopstartups/eat-the-frogs…
[3] https://www.amazon.com/ONE-Thing-Surprisingly-Extraordinary-Results/dp/1885167776
