Level Two Integrity: GIT-R-DUN, by Doug Grady

One of the most valuable aspects of taking on and completing the 30-day challenge is becoming aware of your tendencies- realizing where and how you tend to get stopped. Let me share with you one of mine. I tend to have an “all or nothing” mentality. If I can’t do something full on, why bother? In March of 2010 I experienced a hip injury while training for a half marathon. I allowed this to become an excuse for not exercising altogether. Not to mention I did nothing to get my injury treated. This led to 4 months of a sedentary lifestyle and a downward spiral in other areas of my life. Now think about, are there ways to exercise even if you have a hip injury? Of course there are. Recognizing this tendency has enabled me to adopt a new belief:

When it comes to exercise and other daily commitments- doing something is almost always better than doing nothing.

All of us have been stopped at one time or another. Level two integrity helps make you unstoppable.

"GIT-R-DUN!" -Larry the Cable Guy

Level two integrity, the “GIT-R-DUN” level (I also refer to this as the “DO IT ANYWAY” level (read Do It Anyway) succeeds where level one fails. While level one is primarily driven by the desire to gain external pleasure and avoid external pain (see Level One Integrity), level two is internally driven. During your 30-day challenge you will likely experience days when you simply don’t want to honor your daily commitment. On days like these you must find a way to GIT-R-DUN. You honor your word because you said you would. Whether you want to or not, feel like it or not, whether you think it will do any good or not, all these questions are really irrelevant here. You GIT-R-DUN. Even if you would rather pay the fee, take the cold shower, or fire your AP. The only question is:

Are you going to honor your word? Are you going to do what you said you were going to do?

During a 30-day commitment to write 20 minutes a day there were times I literally sat at the computer running late for a dinner engagement typing while the seconds ticked away approaching 20 minutes. I would type, look at the clock, type, look at the clock… During a 30-day commitment to make 20 prospecting calls per day there were days when I simply went through the motions of making the dials just to check it off the list. Inevitably these would be days when I would reach someone previously unreachable or book an elusive meeting. I actually had a couple of personal bests in the gym on days I did not feel like exercising.

"I hate working out. I do it because this is my job. I hate working out so much that when I get in the ring I take it out on my opponent." -Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson

Never underestimate the power of getting it done when you don’t feel like it. It is here in the often tedious, mundane, monotonous act of completion that significant momentum is gained. There may be days like this when you simply put in the time- you complete the tired, lethargic, irritating work. Feel the frustration, feel the pain, hear the excuse and do it anyway. The win here is that YOU GOT-R-DUN! You fulfilled your commitment. No one said it had to be pretty or pleasant. There is HUGE power in the fulfillment versus the lack of. Be sure to notice and track how you feel after you do it anyway- even when you did not feel like it, did not want to, and thought about not doing it. Some of these daily commitments may even turn into breakthrough days for you.

So find a way to GIT-R-DUN.

It is extremely difficult to maintain L2 integrity over an extended period of time. There is a constant struggle here between feelings (“I don’t feel like it”) and commitment (“I’ll do it anyway”). Relying purely on will power (“I have to because I said I would”) can be exhausting and unhealthy in the long run. This is where L3 comes in. This will be the topic of my next post.

Please, share and leave a comment!