This idea came to me when reading this Trizle article. I suggest you read it first. Besides just being plain cool, it’s very useful.

A subject related to Trizle’s article, but not exactly the same, is something I’ve been studying for a long time, searching for peak performance.

We have the tendency to grow when we face stimuli. However, what happens when we reach the top? There’s nothing challenging us. So we don’t train our capabilities. We let them die.

Now, the thing is, we can create imaginary stimuli to challenge ourselves.

Let’s say you’re the best at what you do.

However, there was a time when you were just “one of the others”.

When you were not superior to anyone, when you were just the plain same and had to fight for your piece of the game.

When you had to give your all.

Imagine that, starting today, it’s going to be like that all over again.

Imagine suddenly a new competitor hidden until now shows up, that’s as good as you.

Imagine that you’re not superior anymore. That someone, somehow, has managed to attain your level and is now threatening your position.

How will you react?

You’ll probably try your hardest again. You won’t let your growth die anymore, and you’ll force yourself to become better and better.

Or imagine that for some reason your business, your capabilities can disappear just like this.

You snap your fingers and they’re gone. Imagine all the securities you have are actually not secure at all, and can vanish.

How will you fight to maintain your security?

This is something I’ve noticed in people who succeed. When there are no external stimuli, they create them.

This is valid not just for competition, but for anything.

You were motivated to read a new book. Now you’re done with it and you’re not motivated anymore.

Can you, just like that, imagine you’re motivated again, feel exactly the same things, feel that heat inside, that happiness, that motivation?

You can. It’s a matter of effort.

You can do anything you want to. Stimuli present or not.

Try it!

Many times in life we have to do things we just hate. How do we solve that problem?

There is a simple and effective tool to do it. Just associate that task to what you love to do. What do I mean by this?

Imagine you want to have a luxury home. However, the financial plan you developed to have that home involves you work for 5 years in a job that is not really your cup of tea.

In order to be truly motivated, in order to get up each day and love your life, and doing that job, you just have to think of the home.

Whenever you have a fantastic goal, a goal that truly drives you and motivates you to be excellent, the only thing you need to turn hateful tasks into great tasks, is simply to remember your goal.

If you don’t like the job, in this case, but you realize that every single step in that job is a step into having that new home, you will be truly motivated.

It’s nothing too complicated. It’s just realizing what truly helps you and contributes to your success and what doesn’t.

So, instead of just thinking about what immediately gives you pleasure, think about what contributes to that pleasure. You’ll see a lot more things in life seem better.

I’m going to convey to you an idea that might be counter-intuitive, but that is extremely effective. Your limits don’t define you, they empower you.

Anyone can act with the same limits. If I have the same budget as my competitor, I can pretty much do the same thing as him. However, if I have a smaller budget and I do the same, then I’m better.

It’s like the efficiency formula. Your efficiency is what you produce based on what you had. So, if you produce the same thing as before, but now you have a smaller starting point, you’re more efficient.

There are two elements that affect our performance: Our resources and our ability to use them.

If you have a great car and you’re a bad driver, you’ll do a mediocre lap. If you have a bad car and you’re a great driver, the same thing. There’s a balance between resources and your ability.

Most people try and change their resources. “We need more money”. “We need more time”.

Instead of changing your resources, change your ability. Force yourself to work under worse conditions than before, so when you return to the normal conditions they seem easier.

Anyone can be great when conditions are favorable. It’s when conditions are bad that truly talented people surface.

So, try this little secret. Try doing things in stricter conditions than usual, and you’ll be better than usual. Try doing your job in half the time. Try learning all the concepts of a book the first time you read it. Try playing the same videogame, but with a more limited character or a worse car.

Your ability is proportional to the resources. If you’re good with normal resources, if you become good with bad resources you’ll automatically become great with normal resources.

So, remember. Your limits don’t limit you. They empower you. Use them to your benefit.