“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.” — James Clear, author of Atomic Habits
That line cuts because it’s true.
There’s a Scripture that cuts even deeper:
“Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” James 4:17 (KJV)
That’s a hard one to swallow.
Because most of us know what to do.
I know I need to burn more calories than I consume.
I know I need to cut back on carbs.
Now I know I need to watch my salt too.
And for a while, I was doing really well.
Fear is a powerful motivator. The doctor’s warning “get your numbers down or you’re going on pills” was the kick I needed. I changed my diet. I moved more. I paid attention.
Then life happened.
Work.
Writing more.
Christmas.
Not all at once. Quietly. Incrementally.
One day of not walking.
One fried meal.
A cookie here. Another there.
None of those things, on their own, caused the problem.
It was the repetition.
The compounding.
The slow drift away from what I already knew to be good.
If you’ve ever driven a car, you know running on a flat tyre is not the ideal way to get to work. You can do it for a little while, but stay on the rim too long and you’ll cause serious damage.
The same is true of our bodies.
You can have all the fruit in the house.
But you still have to choose to eat it.
You can own a treadmill so you can walk even when it’s cold or raining.
But you have to stop letting it become an unofficial clothes hanger.
Scripture tells us plainly:
“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.” – Proverbs 3:5 (KJV)
And yet that’s exactly what we do.
We lean on willpower.
We lean on good intentions.
We lean on motivation.
When what we actually need is environment.
If I want to eat the apple, it can’t stay in the fruit basket across the room. It has to come out and sit on my desk — in reach, in sight, unavoidable.
If I want to drink more water, I need to fill the glass and keep it beside me.
If I need to move, I may need to set an alarm.
Or ask a friend to text me.
Or ask someone to call and prompt me to get up and walk.
That’s not weakness.
That’s wisdom.
There will always be something that feels more important than taking care of ourselves. We will advocate fiercely for others while quietly placing ourselves at the bottom of the list.
But discipline isn’t about knowing.
It’s about practice.
And practice requires systems.
Don’t lean on willpower.
Create the environment for you to win.
Live Fearless.
