The 5 am club

The 3 Values of Heroic Habit-Makers

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Value #1:
Victory demands consistency and persistency.
Value #2:
 
Following through on what is started determines the size of the
personal respect that will be generated.
Value #3:
The way you practice in private is precisely the way you’ll perform
once you’re in public.
The 1 General Theory of Self-Discipline Spartans
To regularly do that which is hard but important when it feels most
uncomfortable is how warriors are born.
The billionaire closed his eyes and repeated this phrase: “I don’t wish for
an easy life because there is no growth of my powers there. Give me a
challenging life—one that brings out the finest in me. For this makes an iron
will. And an unconquerable character.
“This shawl is my gift to you two,” the industrialist went on. “Please do
study the five scientific truths and the three values along with the one general
theory that make up 
The 5-3-1 Creed of The Willpower Warrior
. It will serve
you brilliantly as you encode habits that endure.”
Within a few moments, an auto rickshaw sped up from an empty parking
area off in the distance. Out came a smiling young man dressed smartly in a
dark gray jacket, perfectly pressed trousers and polished brown shoes.
“Namaste, Arjun,” said the billionaire as he clasped his hands together.
“Hey, Boss,” was the warm reply of this assistant. Though his words were
casual, the way he articulated them demonstrated immense respect for his
employer.
“You two know the story behind the Taj Mahal?” the billionaire asked as
the aide stood off to the side, looking ready to offer any help Mr. Riley
required.
“Please tell us,” the entrepreneur requested. She carried a single legal
notepad with a simple black rollerball pen. All the billionaire’s early talk of
how the misuse of technology leads to the destruction of creativity and an
extreme reduction in productivity was having a major impact on her. Today,
she wore a bangle engraved with the words “Dreams don’t come true while
you’re sleeping.”
“Sure—it’s a rad story,” gushed the billionaire, retreating to more of his
California surfer slang.
“Like you two sweethearts, the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan who
masterminded this marvel was very much in love. As a symbol of his

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devotion to and adoration of his wife, Mumtaz, after her death in 1631, he
committed himself to the construction of a monument the likes of which the
world had never seen. One so extravagantly sensational, staggeringly
inspirational and structurally exceptional that all onlookers would understand
the depth of this man’s affection as they experienced all its splendor.”
“It does something to my heart when I look at it,” murmured the artist,
staring at the marble facade that glimmered in front of him. He squinted as the
early morning rays struck his eyes. He was looking more fit, calm, confident
and poised than the entrepreneur had ever observed.
“Me too,” agreed the billionaire with a note of melancholy in his voice.
“Seeing the Taj Mahal isn’t just an excursion of the intellect. It’s also a
resurrection of the spirit. It wakes even the numbest person up to what we, as
human creatures, are capable of producing. But to continue, once the
maharaja set his bold intention, his workers started the process of translating
that lofty vision into a definite reality. Because, as you both now know,
ambition without implementation is a ridiculous delusion
. You two are now
much more fluent in the insight that anything legendary requires generous
amounts of industry, artistry and persistency. Mastery isn’t a sudden event. It
really is a ceaseless 
process
that may take years of painstaking craftsmanship,
practice, sacrifice and suffering before the finished project intensifies to a
level that moves the world.
“This is yet another GCA—a Gargantuan Competitive Advantage,”
continued Mr. Riley. “To remain loyal to your noble ideal not only during the
weeks after you thought up the dream but over the long months and perhaps
extended years in the parched desert of creative implementation while you
endure rejection, exhaustion, the stones of jealous peers, the skepticism of
your loved ones, being diverted by other attractive opportunities and finding
your way through the isolated winters of self-doubt. This is what separates the
also-rans from the icons. Anyone can be great for a minute. The sport of icons
is sustaining genius-grade performance over a lifetime. And that takes
unusual grit and patience uncommon in these superficial times. The kind that
the majority of society today has sadly failed to develop. Know what I
mean?”
The billionaire was animated, energetic and completely jacked up. He
threw an arm into the air and flashed the universal victory sign with two
fingers. It seemed he did so just to protect his inspiration. And to insulate the
fire that had been activated within his heart.
“Many decades ago, Albert E.N. Gray delivered an address for
salespeople in the insurance industry. He called it 
The Common Denominator
of Success,
and it distilled what the author had identified over thirty years of

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study as the greatest key to fortune in one’s business, family, health, financial
and spiritual lives.”
“What was it?” inquired the entrepreneur with acute interest as she sipped
her now tepid coffee.
“Well,” offered the billionaire, “from my recollection of the pamphlet that
was made from the talk and then widely circulated to top sales professionals,
he said, ‘I had been brought up on the popular belief that the secret of success
is hard work but I had seen so many people work hard without succeeding
that I became convinced hard work was not the real secret.’”
“So, what was it?” implored the artist impatiently.
“Dude, I’m getting to it,” the magnate replied playfully. “So, Albert Gray
said, ‘This common denominator of success is so big, so powerful . . .”
“And it is?” interjected the entrepreneur, equally unable to wait for the
answer.
“Gray explained that ‘the common denominator of success—the secret of
success of every man and woman who has ever been successful—lies in the
fact that 
they
formed the habit of doing things that failures don’t like to do
.’”
“Simple. And profound,” observed the artist as he ran one hand down one
dreadlock. He, too, sipped some now cold coffee.
“Top producers make it a habit to do the high-value activities that average
ones don’t feel like doing—even when they, too, don’t feel like doing them,”
the billionaire continued. “And by practicing the desired behavior over and
over, their self-mastery and personal discipline grows. And the new routine
becomes automated.”
The artist nodded, then stroked his goatee. He was thinking about his art.
“I truly have been limiting myself because of my insecurities,” he thought,
once again. “I’m so worried about what others will say about my work that
I’m not creating enough. And Mr. Riley’s right. I’m not being patient and
building the self-control that doing difficult but valuable things brings. I sort
of just do what I want, anytime I want. Some days I have some drive, and
other times I sleep all day. Sometimes I’m lazy. Some days I work hard. I’m
like a cork bobbing in the water, with no steady direction. No real structure.
No real discipline. I play video games a lot, sometimes for many hours. And I
have this habit of rushing to create paintings that sell fast when I need some
money instead of slowing down and concentrating all my skill on the one
opus that will define the extent of my expertise. And turn my whole field on
its head by its genius.”

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“So,” the billionaire expounded, returning to his story about the making of
the Taj Mahal. “For twenty-two years—not twenty-two days and not twenty-
two months—twenty-two 
years
, over twenty thousand workers toiled in the
scorching Indian sun. Block of marble by block of marble carried from
immense distances by over one thousand elephants, the army of craftsmen
steadily erected the structure you’re seeing. They faced architectural
roadblocks, environmental extremes and unexpected tragedies along the
journey. Yet, they were focused, fearless and relentless, dazzlingly committed
to doing whatever it took to get the emperor’s gorgeous dream done.”
“Really incredible, you know,” said the artist, as he surveyed the
landmark. A butterfly sailed by. A few raindrops sprinkled on his face. And,
believe it or not, more doves soared high above the billionaire’s head.
“What’s with all the doves, rainbows and butterflies that seem to surround
you a lot of the time?” pressed the entrepreneur as she adjusted the t-shirt she
was wearing. It had a quote from Oscar Wilde on it that seemed to fit the
newfound awareness of the businesswoman. It read, “Be yourself. Everyone
else is already taken.”
“We all have the magic. Most of us don’t know how to use it,” was the
baron’s brief and mysterious reply.
“So, getting back to the Taj Mahal, after two decades, this mausoleum was
complete,” he remarked in a hushed tone. “And humankind was given one of
the greatest products of poetic audacity it has ever received.”
“I’m beyond inspired,” confided the entrepreneur. “Thank you so much
for bringing us here to Agra. I’m ever so grateful.”
“The emperor must have really cared for his wife,” mused the artist,
delivering a penetrating reveal of the wonderfully obvious. He then looked
intently at the entrepreneur. Her radiance went far beyond the basic beauty of
starlets, models and women of high glamour. Hers was a quieter, more
profound loveliness, the kind that makes sunrises special and moonbeams
enchanting. He thought to himself that this woman’s magnetism comes from a
place deeper than merely an attractive face. It was a charm born of struggle,
an electricity emanating from hurt, an energy emitting through a formidable
intellect and a prettiness formed by her robust resolve to step into a person of
true power, wisdom and love.
“The Taj Mahal is such a direct metaphor for you cats to consider on the
subject of staying with the commitment to a new habit through whatever
hardships show up. And remaining sincere to your ideals not only in the
seasons of comfort but especially when it all gets terrifically difficult. And
that’s why this morning’s coaching is so exceedingly important. What you’re

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about to learn will help you