Like Watching Paint Dry
“Discipline is choosing what you want most vs. what you want now.” -Craig Groeschel
Mohnish Pabrai is an Indian-American investor who runs a billion-dollar hedge fund. He crushed the Indian stock market and has had investments go up by a multiple of 100 [100x]. He says he has “cloned” Warren Buffett’s strategy of value investing and has used this strategy to raise over a billion USD in assets under management. His famous line is, “If you want to be a successful investor, you should be able to watch paint dry on a wall.” Everyone wants to think making mountains of money is this sexy, elaborate process when in reality it is about sticking to a boring plan and being patient. This is an exact correlation with health. Abs are sexy in the same way millions of dollars are sexy. You do not get millions of dollars or abs handed to you. To achieve them, you need to go out into the world and earn them!
The good news is it is not as complicated or as hard as we try to think it is. If you use Pabrai’s perspective on wealth and apply it to health, it becomes like watching paint dry. Andy Galpin says the single most important thing a client needs for their health journey is a plan. He states it does not need to even be that great of a plan - they just need one and stick to it. The principal factor will always be consistency. This is why last week I wrote about two strategies you can use to maintain consistency. Once you have the plan and the habits to execute your plan, you just need to sit back and watch the paint dry. It is like watering your garden of herbs and tomatoes. If you give the garden the correct inputs over time, you get beautiful outputs.
Becoming healthy does not need to be this miraculous, sexy plot. Focus on why you want to become healthy, then decide your game plan on how you are going to become healthy, execute consistently, and then wait. The more intrinsic your reasoning to become healthy, the more likely you will comply with your plan. The correlation is the same in finance. If your end goal is money and material possessions, you are less likely to build a business and build your wealth than if you are working for a larger purpose or to give your family a better, fulfilling life. Find purpose in life through health and desire to maintain your vitality as you age. Health is malleable and will change depending on the inputs you give your body. Live to be old and strong and squeeze every ounce out of life. Find a ‘why,’ execute your game plan consistently, and watch the paint dry!