Are you fed up with “self - discipline”?

Many articles about self - improvement and growth always give you a shot of motivation at the beginning of the new year, repeating those clichés. At the end, they will patiently persuade you: Everyone understands the principles. Can't do it? That means you're not self - disciplined enough.

They will earnestly admonish you: In the new year, be more self - disciplined. Only self - discipline can set you free.

After reading, do you feel a bit ashamed, reflect on yourself, and resolve to make changes? Then... just like every previous year, it always ends up going nowhere?

In the final analysis, this kind of thinking is wrong.

This kind of talk seems reasonable, but in fact, what's the difference between it and “You can make money as long as you buy at a low price and sell at a high price” or “You can get a promotion and a raise as long as you work hard and follow the boss's instructions”?

They all belong to “correct nonsense”.

If a person is self - disciplined enough, does he still need to read these articles? And if a person is not self - disciplined enough, will reading these articles make him self - disciplined?

Unfortunately, the vast majority of people are not self - disciplined enough. Otherwise, we would have colonized the Milky Way long ago. This is the nature of the brain. It always seeks advantages and avoids disadvantages and tries to be lazy whenever possible. What the brain thinks about every day is how to achieve the most benefits with the least consumption.

I've always emphasized a saying: Learning goes against human nature because the process of learning is a process of constantly breaking old cognitions and rebuilding new ones.

However, there's another saying following it: A good way of learning must conform to human nature. Never try to “discipline” your brain. Instead, find ways to guide it, induce it, “deceive” it, and finally shape it. This is the efficient approach.

Similarly, if a way of self - growth depends on “self - discipline”, its value is actually limited—because for most people, apart from thinking “Wow, it's so amazing”, it has no real effect.

So, what's a better way? It must not be to rely on self - discipline. Instead, start from the “motivation - resistance” model. Use extremely minor and threshold - free actions to adjust your cognition, so that you can gain pleasure from it. Then, driven by this pleasure from within, keep and practice these actions constantly until they become your habits.

In short, it's not about shifting the responsibility to yourself but helping you to guide and shape your brain. This is a more effective and suitable way of learning and self - improvement for most people.

Specifically, I've summarized an effective exercise method called the “Edison Exercise Method”. I hope this minimalist and efficient toolbox can help you start a more productive year.

It doesn't require you to “force” yourself to practice. Instead, it starts from your needs. While helping you solve your daily needs, it inserts some minor adjustments to gradually help you adapt to and shift to a new way of working.

Let's take a look at this exercise method.

1. Eat a frog

Have you ever had this experience: You're doing something else, but some nagging thoughts keep flashing through your mind—maybe a task, a problem, or something you can't let go of. They always pop into your mind unexpectedly and are hard to completely get rid of.

For example: The project plan is due next week, but you still haven't finalized an important idea. You have an important speech the day after tomorrow, and you keep worrying that you're not well - prepared. Or it's the anniversary in half a month, but you still don't know what to buy. ...

These annoying problems lingering in your mind are called “frogs”. They may not be the most important or the most urgent, but they always make you feel restless.

How should we deal with this situation? One suggestion is: In your daily work, deal with them first. This is called “eating a frog”. If there's one most effective time - management method, this must be it.

We always tend to leave difficult tasks until later and then rush to finish them just before the deadline. But in fact, during this process, due to the “Zeigarnik effect”, these tasks will constantly affect and interfere with us, causing “attention residue” and occupying our cognitive resources.

So, the most effective method is to tell your brain: “I've taken care of it for now. Let's focus on other things.”

You don't necessarily have to solve it or even come up with a result. The most important thing is to let your brain know: “I've spent time and energy on it, and this 'task' is completed.”

In this way, you can effectively soothe your brain and release the occupied implicit cognition.

Specifically, you can refer to the following steps:

1. Before going to bed the night before, make a list of things to do the next day. This not only helps you find the “frogs” but also benefits your sleep. A paper published in JEP General in 2018 revealed that making a to - do list for the next day before going to bed can help people fall asleep faster and significantly improve the quality of sleep. Moreover, the more specific and detailed the list is, the more obvious the improvement effect will be. The reason is very simple: A potential cause of sleep pressure is that the brain knows “we have unfinished business”, which will continuously keep the nervous system excited. Making a to - do list can effectively relieve this anxiety and cancel the high - level activation state of the brain.
2. Before starting work the next day, check the list, find the thing that bothers you the most, and set a time limit for it. This time limit can be determined according to the actual situation. It can be half an hour, one hour, or even two hours—depending on how important it is and how busy you are. The key point is: During this period, focus solely on the “frog” without being affected by other things, and write down your thinking process. For example, if your “frog” is “what to buy for the anniversary”, you might write on paper: possible options, the advantages and disadvantages of each option, which possibilities to rule out, and who else you can ask... Even if you make no progress, just writing it down can effectively relieve your anxiety.
3. Once the time limit is up, stop immediately and don't think about it anymore. Start doing other work. Numerous studies have shown that under clear time pressure, people can effectively reduce cognitive load. For example, a study by psychologist Sophie Leroy in 2009 showed that higher time pressure can help people focus more, leading to a higher evaluation of task completion and reducing attention residue on tasks. This is a practice I've been following. It can be said to be the simplest and most immediately effective technique.

2. Delay

What's the scariest time - killer? Chatting. Why do we often feel that “we haven't done much, but suddenly it's time to get off work”? Most of the time, the reason is that we're unconsciously occupied by various real - time and inefficient chats, which take up a large amount of our time. The reason is very simple. Recall your state. Isn't it like this: You're working, your phone flashes, you reply to a message, wait for the other person's reply, switch your attention back to work, your WeChat flashes again, you continue to reply, and then switch back to work. This cycle repeats... Have you found the problem? What really consumes your time is not “replying” or “chatting” but “switching”. You think you're working, and your time is indeed well - filled, but in fact, it's all spent on switching. Your working memory keeps repeating the “clearing - writing” process and is constantly forced to adjust to a new state. The time actually spent on working, thinking, and executing is extremely limited. I've also emphasized several times in previous articles that the biggest enemy of efficiency is not procrastination but distraction. What does distraction mean? Your brain will be forced to take in a bunch of fragmented information, your state will be fragmented, you'll bid farewell to the “flow state” forever. Even once you get used to this mode, you'll find it hard to be “focused” again because you can no longer “sit still”. How can we deal with this situation? Try to turn “synchronous” chats into “asynchronous” information processing. What does this mean? When you start working, turn off WeChat, mute your phone, and try to block out external distractions. Don't rush to reply to messages. Instead, focus on your work. Take a break and move around every hour. At this time, handle the previous messages all at once. Then, start a new cycle. And so on. To implement this way of working, you need to meet a few prerequisites. You might as well inform those who need to contact you closely, so that they can understand and respect your work habits:

1. Don't start fragmented conversations. Instead, write down all the information that needs me to handle in one message, making sure it's well - structured and logical, and then send it. For example: Hi, Joshua, there are a few questions I need to confirm: 1... 2... 3... Please reply before 4 pm. Just reply when you're available. Thanks! This is a very good work habit that can save a lot of time and energy for both parties and is worth implementing.
2. I will check all messages and reply to them completely at several fixed time points. It can be once every half an hour, once an hour, or you can schedule it at fixed times such as lunch, afternoon tea, or dinner, depending on the flexibility and freedom of your work. Generally speaking, since a person's peak attention span is limited, it's more appropriate to check once every 1 - 2 hours.
3. If you need to discuss a problem synchronously, please make an appointment in advance. Don't just come suddenly. For example, if you have a problem that can't be explained in a few words and need to discuss it with me, please make an appointment in advance. I can make arrangements in advance. When the time comes, I'll switch my attention to our discussion and eliminate other distractions. This will be more beneficial for both parties.
4. Unless there's something extremely important that requires an immediate reply, please don't call or send a voice message. Making a call or sending a voice message is a “self - centered” approach. It's convenient for yourself but troublesome for the other person. Unless it's really extremely important and urgent, try to use it sparingly and replace it with written messages or making an appointment.

3. Intuition

I've mentioned in many articles that heuristics are the inherent cognitive “shortcuts” of human beings, which can cause many cognitive biases. For example, we tend to start from vivid and impressive cases to support our arguments. This is called the “availability heuristic”. Another example is that we tend to focus on significant individual cases and thus wrongly infer the overall trend. This is called the “representativeness heuristic”. These are all its negative consequences and the result of our brain “taking shortcuts”. However, in daily life, many times, skillfully using heuristics to make decisions can save us a lot of energy. After all, if we have to rationally build models and weigh the pros and cons for every problem, it would be too tiring. But using heuristics doesn't mean blindly applying them. What's the effective approach? It's to set a few simple rules for yourself in advance. When faced with a corresponding situation, directly apply these rules to guide your behavior. This is called “intuitive decision - making”. So, what are the skills for setting heuristic rules? Psychologist Alice Boyes gave a few examples that can give you some inspiration:

1. The value of my time is ___________ Calculate how much your time is worth and fill in the blank, such as “50 yuan per hour” or “400 yuan per day”. Then, when faced with something that requires time, think about: How much benefit can this thing bring me? If I don't do it myself but hire someone else to solve it, how much will it cost? If the benefit is less than the value, don't do it. If the cost is lower than the value, try to hire someone else to do it. This heuristic rule can very effectively help you filter out many trivial and meaningless small things. You'll find that many things that bother you are actually insignificant after such calculation and substitution.
2. Whenever I'm in the mood and have the time, I will ____________ Many people will tell you to measure the importance of tasks and set priorities, but actually, we clearly know what's important and what's not. So, a more effective approach is not to analyze and label each task tediously. Instead, set a rule for yourself: Whenever I'm free and in the mood, I'll do the most important thing. Please fill in the most important thing you can think of in the blank. This answer can of course change frequently. For example, a while ago, my answer was “writing articles”, and recently, it's “teaching writing courses”. I don't need to specifically arrange time. Just setting such a rule can make me clear about what I need to focus on and what I need to push forward.
3. When I'm in the mood to finish something, I'll finish it. This is a very ingenious rule but also very effective. What does it mean? There's a saying “Everything has a beginning, but few have an end.” We're always used to starting something but don't like to “finish” it. Therefore, our to - do lists must be full of things “without results”. So, this rule can free you from the heavy burden of time analysis and task management. You don't need to arrange them all meticulously. Just leave them there. When you suddenly think of them and are in the mood to do them, just finish them. We're not experts or robots. There's no need to be too harsh on ourselves.

4. Switch

This is a little trick I've been using for many years.

 

What does it mean? In short, use some small, ritual - like habits to establish a “conditioned reflex” and tell your brain: “I'm going to enter a certain state.”

 

Take the simplest example:

 

 I always make a cup of black tea around 2 pm, take a couple of sips, and then start working with all my might. At this time, this cup of black tea is a “routine switch”. Even if I'm not in a good state one day, I can still let my brain adapt to the “all - out” state through this habit.

 

Another example: I'm easily distracted. So, when I need to focus for a long time, I go to a coffee shop and order an Americano.

 

This is also a “routine switch”. It tells my brain: “It's time to start focusing. Please temporarily block out external distractions and internal distractions.”

 

The key point is to establish a strong association between a certain action and a certain situation. Over time, when you perform this action again, your brain will naturally recall the relevant situation and thus enter the state you need. The key points are as follows:

1. Set an action as your routine switch. The action must be simple, easy to do, and have no threshold. It can be making a cup of tea or coffee, a specific movement (such as chest expansion or stretching), writing on paper, or taking a 10 - minute walk... As long as you can act whenever needed, it's okay.
2. Develop the habit of entering the desired situation after this action. Like the previous examples:

At the beginning, you may need to make a little effort to immerse yourself in a certain state, such as “going all out” or “focusing”. But once you repeat it regularly, it will become your habit.

 You no longer need to remind yourself or act deliberately. This action itself can trigger your brain to prepare for the following situation. A similar example is: After writing down the to - do list for the next day, I go to bed. As long as you keep giving yourself this kind of hint, even if you can't fall asleep at first, gradually, you can achieve the effect of going to bed on time and improving staying - up - late and insomnia problems.

3. Try to avoid this action at times other than when you're in this situation.

 For example, since I'm used to “drinking black tea and then going all out”, I try not to drink tea when I don't need to work all out.

The reason is very simple: Neuronal connections are paired. You've established a connection between “drinking tea” and “going all out”. Activating either node will activate the other.

But if you insert a third node at this time, the original connection will be weakened and shifted to a new connection. Try setting up a few such “routine switches”, and you'll find that you have much more control over your life.

5. Ongoing return

I've mentioned in many articles that our brain always likes immediate feedback and short - term benefits. This is the driving force behind all its behaviors. But sometimes, slightly overcoming this mode can make our lives more free. Of course, I don't mean things like learning skills or memorizing words. That's a bit of a cliché. You need to think about: What can I do to make my work a little easier next week? In this way, you turn short - term rewards into continuous and easily obtainable rewards, which can minimize our resistance to action. In essence, it conforms to the brain's underlying drive to pursue stability and effort - saving and uses this to optimize our work mode.

 

 Specifically, you can consider three approaches:

 

1. Templateization

Regarding your daily work, it might be a good idea to think about these questions:

What things will not change? What things need to be changed? How can I solidify it?

This is a "template".

For example, I will ask the team members to have a corresponding requirement template when submitting requirements to development and design teams. Each time a requirement is issued, it only needs to be clearly written according to the template.

This can not only save time but also ensure the standardization of requirements and maximize the communication effectiveness between both parties.

2. Processization

Regarding the tasks that have already been completed, it might be a good idea to think about these questions:

What are the steps for me to do this thing? Which links can be optimized? What steps can I follow when doing it next time?

I will ask the team: Every time a task is completed, do a simple review and write down the process. If it is an old process, think about how it can be optimized.

This achievement is the valuable experience of the team. It can not only guide the team's practice but also be transferable and reusable, and can become part of the methodology.

Many of the methodologies I share with everyone actually come from this.

3. Checklistization

For a repetitive project, it might be a good idea to make a checklist, clearly write down the areas that need attention, and check them one by one.

The simplest examples:

When communicating with customers, what areas need attention? What information needs to be asked? Write them down as a checklist. When testing a product prototype, what operations need to be done? What details need to be noted? What standards need to be met? Write them down as a checklist.

And so on.

Collect these checklists. These will all be your valuable knowledge assets.

 

6，Neutral Thinking

Finally, let’s briefly discuss "Neutral Thinking."

What does it mean? Many people often struggle with overthinking, self-criticism, and regret—especially introverts, who tend to experience this more intensely.

Do you often find yourself thinking: "Why did I perform so poorly?" "Do others resent me?" "If only I had done X instead of Y..." "If I could redo it, I would..."

While this mindset has some value, dwelling on it creates prolonged stress and anxiety. We become trapped in self-judgment, leaving little energy to tackle new challenges.

The solution? Practice reflecting on yourself with a neutral lens.

In other words: analyze, but don’t criticize.

Try using this framework for self-reflection:
"In the situation of ___________, I chose to ___________. Next time, I could try ___________."

Over time, you’ll notice a shift: You’ll break free from self-imposed shackles and learn to accept your imperfect self.

Most of our struggles originate internally.

Thus, the key to resolution lies within, too.

These six principles form the complete "Edison Training Method."

 

It may not transform you overnight or turn you into a productivity machine, but each step offers tangible benefits and motivation. You won’t need to force discipline—instead, you’ll refine these habits organically.

 

That’s the essence of genuine self-improvement.