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A mental store of past wins to draw on when you want to quit
Deliberately remembering the hard things you have already survived or achieved, then reaching for one of them mid-suffering as proof that you can keep going. The image comes from David Goggins, who wrote it up in his books as a tool for the moments when you want to quit. Some people keep the list in their head, others on paper. It costs nothing and works best when the entries are specific.
People on record
Sorted by strength of stance
Does it: documented as part of their own routine. Recommends: explicitly advises other people to do it. Discusses: covered it substantively without clear personal adoption; this can include criticism or disagreement.
- David GogginsRecommends
Retired Navy SEAL · Can't Hurt Me
One of the tools he says he and his partner Jennifer spent years writing down for readers, alongside the accountability mirror and callusing the mind. He adds that the tools are the part that fits in a book and the daily obsession is not.
Source: Huberman Lab: David Goggins: How to Build Immense Inner Strength
Aimed at the same thing
Other entries filed under stress or focus.
- Protocol$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Deliberate cold exposure
Cold showers or ice baths used deliberately, usually a few minutes at a time
On record from 25 of 62 tracked people: 19 do it, 6 have discussed it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Non-sleep deep rest (NSDR)
10-20 minute guided body-scan rest, sometimes called yoga nidra
On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it, 1 has discussed it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Physiological sigh
Two inhales through the nose, one long exhale; heart rate drops within seconds
On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it, 1 recommends it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Shipping creative work
Publishing on a schedule rather than waiting for the work to feel ready
On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it, 1 recommends it - Protocol$$$Expensive: Several hundred dollars and up.
Transcendental Meditation
Silent mantra repetition, about 20 minutes twice a day, taught in a paid course
On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 2 do it - ProtocolFREE, no cost
Vision setting
Write down a specific picture of who you are becoming, then filter decisions through it
On record from 2 of 62 tracked people: 2 do it
Protocol entry · notes paraphrased from cited sources, quoted excerpts copied from the transcript they link to. Not medical advice. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or reviewed by anyone listed. How this works.