It’s really early in the morning but I wanted to write this while I had the inspiration. This is a concept I have been flirting with for a while; it’s the idea that everything goes in cycles. The cycle has two parts - the upswing and the downswing. Think less yin and yang, as this cycle is not exactly about balance, but think more along the lines of a clock.

Let’s visualize what I’m talking about with the clock metaphor...divide the clock in half - so we should have a top half and a bottom half. Three and nine are the neutral areas (as this is the point that divides the two sides) and the twelve and six are the apex of their respective sides. We’ll call the top half the upswing and the bottom half the downswing. Upswings happen when we are feeling our best - when we are most motivated, when we are in state, when we are most confident, and is the time when things come to us easily. The downswing however, is the time when we are feeling lazy, down on ourselves, or depressed and unmotivated. This is the time when getting things done are at its most difficult. We lack discipline during this stage and we start breaking the good habits we tried to develop during our upswings.We never fully embrace a habit until it has been through both swings at least once.

Just like a clock, the time will inevitably be six o’clock at some point, just as it will be twelve o’clock at some point also. Some things are bound to repeat itself in the future, whether we want it to or not. We need to understand that some time in the future, we will catch a cold, but at the same time, we will also encounter amazing things. We will have times of extroversion, where we are social butterflies, but the time will come when we become extremely introverted, wanting to lock ourselves up into our own rooms. It’s during these downswings, when we are least motivated and lack any discipline, that we need to continue instilling the habits we want to develop. We need to remember that soon, we will be on an upswing, so we need to connect our two halves.

When we change our habits, we need to change them during our downswing - the time when we feel too lazy to continue developing the good habit. It’s easy to workout when we are motivated to change, but what if we’re feeling lazy that day? What if we are on our downswing? This is where we NEED to work out so it becomes a permanent habit. When we are at our lowest point in motivation, we need to realize that this is the moment we need to instill the habit we are trying to learn. Success in anything is about grinding through the our LOWEST downswings, with the upswings in mind. Meaning, we continue putting in the work during our downswings, so we can be even better during our upswings. It’s the equivalent of training harder than the actual event as to be successful. It’s the idea of putting a weight on our bats and taking a few swings, so that when we are up to bat, the bat feels lighter. We take the heavy weights, the tough crap, during our hardest/lower periods, so that when things start going our way, we are that much better.

You might be struggling with girls now, and have doubts in your head about your abilities. Realize that you might be on a downswing, so start putting in the work even if you are scared in order reap the benefits when things “click”, and you go on your inevitable upswing. When things are going your way, keep in mind that this momentum will stop, and you might get less and less positive results. Prepare for the downswing mentally, and remember to grind through it and you will develop the resolve and discipline necessary to be successful in any field. Remember that picking up girls is just as much about growth as it is about having sex with people you like.

You might not have girls now, but if you continue developing and putting in the work that you need to, you will inevitably get girls. This sort of connects with the abundance mindset, and understanding that girls will come even though you do not “have” any right now. Next time you are nervous approaching a girl, feeling apprehensive and doubting yourself, remember the swings, and put in the work at your lowest, so that you’ll be good when you’re at your highest.