Our habits are what make us.
I’ve talked about this before, and I’ll keep talking about it.
It’s just so damn important to internalize it.
Your life truly is the culmination of all your habits to this point.
So play like the casino.
Look, casinos know how much money they’ll make over a long period of time. There really isn’t any doubt about it.
Sure they might have some down days, but over time, statistics play out and they win more than they loose. A lot more.
How does this relate to habits?
Let’s look at two personalities, first we have…
The Gambler
The gambler is interested in living in the now. They make decisions on what feels good in the moment and feel that they’re special. They know the casino wins over a long period of time, but that’s ok, they just need to be lucky tonight. If a law of nature applies 95% of the time, the gambler is counting on being in that 5% when it really matters.
Sure enough from time to time they have a big night and it keeps them going back for more. Yeah they’ve lost more times than they’ve won but what a rush it is when they win!!
I’ve been the gambler before. Back in my partying days Fridays and Saturdays were spent out drinking. Before going out there’s always some excitement. Is this going to be one of those epic nights, you know the one’s that you’ll remember forever?
95% of the time, they weren’t. I’d be out too late, getting too drunk, and making a damn fool out of myself trying to make it a night to remember. Rather most of those were nights to forget.
The next morning I’d wake up feeling foolish and very hung-over. Why was I playing against the casino? Because those few epic nights had me chasing outliers.
Gamblers are waiting for get rich quick moments. They believe that they are outliers, that they can be in the 5% more often than not. Why put in all the years of hard work when you can just beat the system?
Most people are like this. They shy away from hard work, discomfort and delayed gratification. When the opportunity arises for pleasure in the moment, they pursue it but they never truly get anywhere because habit formation takes continuous effort over time.
Now lets look at the second personality…
The Casino
The casino has a strategy and is playing the long game. They know sometimes they may loose, but over a long enough period of time they’ll win, guaranteed.
Casino personalities aren’t phased by temporary setbacks. They trust in their habits and don’t throw it all away when they have a couple down days. They know these days are temporary and they stick with the game plan.
The casino doesn’t pursue the rush of winning big. They look at results in terms of months and years, not single nights. Night to night results don’t matter, but results you get on a consistent basis matter.
That’s how habit formation works.
Good things take time and when you expect instant results you’re wasting precious time.
I personally have spent a good portion of my 20’s in the gambler category. I thought that I could outsmart the system so instead of putting my head down and grinding out the hard work, I looked for opportunities to beat the system. And you know what, sometimes it worked and I had one of those “big nights” that keeps the gambler coming back.
I used to quit things when they got hard. I’d talk myself out of pursuing my dreams because it wasn’t the “perfect setup”.
Well I’m done with that.
I finally reached a level of maturity where I could be real with myself and honestly say I’ve wasted a lot of fucking time thinking I was too smart to work hard. I’ve done a lot of self-reflection and realize that my way out is by becoming the “casino”. I’m focused on habit formation and stepping out of my comfort zone in pursuit of my dreams.
I’m focused on the process, not the results.
I encourage you to look at your life, start to evaluate the good habits from the bad and really understand that rooting out your bad habits and planting good ones is the key to truly changing your life.
Good luck out there!