Today’s episode goes out to all my fellow solopreneurs out there. It’s a bit of a rant, a bit of tough love, and a reminder to take your exercise practice seriously.

And I’ll add this: even if you don’t consider yourself a solopreneur or small business owner it all still applies. You are your own business even if you work for a large company. Your client just happens to be the company you work for. The better you serve your company (i.e. your manager, supervisor, or boss) the more likely they are to keep paying you for your services or products.

That said, on with the show.

You think your business fails because of market conditions, timing, or bad luck.

Perhaps.

Even if those are contributing factors, can you change those circumstances? No. They are what they are. What’s another alternative that’s entirely within your power to change?

Your business may be failing because you haven’t trained your mind to make the excellent choice whatever the market conditions, timing, or the quality of your luck.

And the best context for training your mind? Your body.

Hey there. It’s me, Kore. And you’re listening to Exercising Self-Control: From Fitness To Flourishing.

The Illusion of Control

Here’s what most people get wrong: they think they control their body. You want to move your arm, you move it. You want to stand, you stand. It feels like control.

It’s an illusion.

Your body is as much beyond your control as the economy. The Stoics knew this over 2,000 years ago. What is in your control? One thing only: your intention.

This is the Dichotomy of Control and it changes your perception of everything. You think it may limit you. It’s the key to your freedom.

Why Exercise Is Your Secret Weapon

As a solopreneur you face decisions all day. Should you check email or focus on deep work? Should you take on the new client or pass? Should you ship the product or refine it more?

The quality of those decisions depends entirely on the quality of your thinking. And the quality of your thinking depends on the health of your brain.

Movement and physical exertion are vital for brain health. To think better, you must move better.

When you exercise consistently, you’re not just conditioning your body. You’re strengthening your brain. You’re improving how you direct your attention, your focus, your ability to reason. You’re literally making yourself a better decision-maker.

The Practice To Train Making Better Choices

Exercise is the ideal arena to master virtuous self-control because:

* It’s always available. You don’t need to wait for the right moment. Your body is at hand, so to speak.

* The feedback is immediate and honest. You can’t lie to yourself. Either you did the workout or you didn’t. Either you made the choice or you didn’t.

* It’s simple enough to focus on. Your entire life is too complicated to master all at once. But a consistent exercise practice? That’s manageable. That’s where you start.

* It generalizes everywhere. The self-control you build in your fitness practice transfers to your business decisions, your relationships, your finances. You’re training your ruling centre, your faculty of choice.

The Two Kinds of Choice

Never make the mistake of confusing thinking about doing something with actually doing it.

I call this Thinking Choice versus Enacted Choice.

You can think about getting up at 5:30 in the morning. That’s easy. But until your feet hit the floor at 5:30 in the morning, you haven’t made the choice. The physical follow-through is the choice.

This is why exercise is so powerful for solopreneurs. It’s where you practice Enacted Choice. Every rep, every run, every session is you choosing excellence in the moment. No excuses. No rationalizations. Just you, making the harder choice.

And when you master that? When you can choose the more difficult thing consistently in the gym? You bring that same strength to your business.

Photo by Alexandra Tran on Unsplash

The Real Goal Isn’t Fitness

Here’s the thing: It doesn’t matter if you get shredded. It doesn’t matter if you run a marathon or lift a certain weight.

What matters is this: Can you make the excellent choice when it takes more effort?

* Can you choose to exercise when you’re tired?

* Can you choose the apple when you want the donut?

* Can you choose to go to bed on time when you want to scroll on your phone?

Because if you can’t master those choices in the one arena where the options are simplest and the feedback is clearest, how are you going to master the choices that actually build your business?

Health, like wealth and reputation, is what the Stoics called a “preferred indifferent.” It’s the material of reality with which you exercise your virtue. The real work isn’t getting healthy. The real work is strengthening your character through the practice of making virtuous choices.

Start Small; Start Now

You don’t need a perfect program. You don’t need the best gym or the fanciest equipment. You need consistency.

Pick something you can actually do. Something you’ll stick with. Something that challenges you but doesn’t overwhelm you.

Then do it. Every day. Not because you think you should. But because you’ve decided that mastering your own mind is non-negotiable for building the business and life you want.

Because here’s what I know: the solopreneurs who win aren’t the ones with the best ideas; they’re the ones with the strongest minds. The ones who can choose excellence when nobody’s watching. The ones who’ve trained themselves to think clearly under pressure. The ones who can make a plan and follow through.

Your training starts best with your body. Where it ends is up to you.

That’s it for today. Catch you next time.

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