365 Days With Self-Discipline: 365 Life-Altering Thoughts on Self-Control, Mental Resilience, and Success

by Martin Meadows

How to Build Self-Discipline and Become More Successful (365 Powerful Thoughts From the World’s Brightest Minds) Its lack makes you unable to achieve your goals. Without it, you’ll struggle to lose weight, become fit, wake up early, work productively and save money. Not embracing it in your everyday life means that you’ll never realize your full potential. Ignoring it inevitably leads to regret and feeling sad about how more successful and incredible your life could have been if you had only decided to develop it. What is this powerful thing? Self-discipline. And if there’s one thing that self-discipline is not , it’s instant. It takes months (if not years) to develop powerful self-control that will protect you from impulsive decisions, laziness, procrastination, and inaction. You need to exhibit self-discipline day in, day out, 365 days in a year. What if you had a companion who would remind you daily to stay disciplined and persevere, even when the going gets tough? 365 Days With Self-Discipline is a practical, accessible guidebook for embracing more self-discipline in your everyday life. You’ll learn how to do this through 365 brief, daily insights from the world’s brightest minds , expanded and commented upon by bestselling personal development author Martin Meadows. This isn’t just an inspirational book; most of the entries deliver practical suggestions that you can immediately apply in your life to become more disciplined. Here are just some of the things you’ll - why living your life the hard way makes it easy (and other suggestions from a successful entrepreneur and longevity scientist); - how to overcome your initial resistance and procrastination based on the remark made by one of the most renowned Renaissance men; - why, according to an influential neurosurgeon, it’s key to see problems as hurdles instead of obstacles (and how to do that); - how to embrace an experimental mindset to overcome a fear of failure (a technique recommended by a successful entrepreneur and musician); - how to quit in a smart way , according to a world-famous marketing expert; - how to improve your productivity at work by implementing the advice from one of the most successful detective fiction writers; - how a trick used by screenwriters can help you figure out the first step needed to get closer to your goals ; - how to maintain self-discipline in the long-term by paying attention to what a bestselling non-fiction author calls necessary to survive and thrive; - how your most common thoughts can sabotage your efforts (and other valuable insights from one of the most respected Roman Stoics); and - how to overcome temporary discouragement and look at your problems from the proper perspective, as suggested by a well-known public speaker and author. If you’re ready to finally change your life and embrace self-discipline — not only for the next 365 days, but for the rest of your life — buy this book now and together, let’s work on your success!

Genres: Self Help, Nonfiction, Personal Development, Psychology, Productivity, Philosophy, Personal Growth

697 pages, Paperback

Published December 28, 2017

About the author

Martin Meadows is the pen name of an author who has dedicated his life to personal growth. He constantly reinvents himself by making drastic changes in his life. Over the years, he has: regularly fasted for over 40 hours, taught himself two foreign languages, lost over 30 pounds in 12 weeks, ran several businesses in various industries, took ice-cold showers and baths, lived on a small tropical island in a foreign country for several months, and wrote 400-page long novel's worth of short stories in one month.

Yet, self-torture is not his passion. Martin likes to test his boundaries to discover how far his comfort zone goes. His findings (based both on his personal experience and scientific studies) help him improve his life. If you're interested in pushing your limits and learning how to become the best version of yourself, you'll love Martin's works.

Reviews

[Leftbanker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wake up your inner drill sergeant who will scream you out of a sound sleep at 05:00 every morning so you can train for your marathon, develop a new app that will make you millions, and then have tantric sex for three minutes with the man/woman/trans/all three of your dreams.

Here is my self-help book:

Day #1
You make me sick, you weak-willed pathetic loser. Put down the bucket of fried chicken, turn off the Stephen Seagal movie, get your fat ass up off the sofa, change out of that filthy t-shirt and stained pajama bottoms, put on your running clothes, and follow me outside for a brisk 10-mile sprint.

When we get back, you can write your novel and learn a Mozart sonata on the piano. After that, we’re going to build homes for the poor. Wait, fuck that. Why don’t they buy this book, pull themselves up by their bootstraps, and build their own damn houses?

Day #2
Jenkins won’t be with us anymore. Why? Because I beat him to death with his own alarm clock for hitting the snooze button…twice!

Day #3
Repeat.

Honestly, there is absolutely nothing new in this book which should have come in a handy 3X5 card version. This has exactly the same bullshit as every other self-help scam. Save your money and go buy yourself a hamburger. My advice: forget about the guilt and enjoy it.

[Natalía Papadopoúlou · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has a short passage every day (so 365 of them) based on different quotes from famous and not so famous people around the notion of self-discipline. Found it challenging at the beginning to ponder different aspects of the same thing but grew quite impatient at the end. What I appreciated the most was the book references and quotes. Could be a nice book for people that only have limited time to read per day as each passage can be read in 1-2 minutes.

[Nikoletta · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's a book with 365 actually good quotes and less than necessary entries by the author on:
1. Loosing weight
2. Exercise
3. Building a business
4. Reading about how awesome the author is
5. Writing a book
6. Feeling bad about having any kind of mental health issue because clearly laziness is the only reason people are not disciplined
7. Staying positive but
8. Judging yourself about everything
9. Feeling like you're so much better than others because you're (going to be) disciplined.

If you're interested in any of those topics this is going to be perfect for you... Because these themes are repeated throughout the book to the point you don't need to read a good part of the entries. It is exactly the same as any other self help book and the same advice have probably already been given to you by a parent or school teacher. I learned basically nothing.

[saša · Rating 4 out of 5]

365 days with self discipline: 4/5

i really liked the advice, but the book sometimes felt unprofessional and repetitive. also, the author mentioned rock climbing about 100 times. i would definitely recommend it because it had generally really good advice and it did motivate me to start “living my life the hard way”. pretty good book overall.

[Cyrus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good daily reminders to help you become self disciplined

Nice daily meditations on building self discipline. Very practical advice along with reminders that reading isn’t enough, this book is a call to action so that you actually DO the work.

[Phil · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not for me, just a book full of quotes.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book giving a thought for each day as an encouragement or something to ponder. Found it an interesting read.

[Winnie | Her Digital Coffee · Rating 3 out of 5]

365 Days With Self-Discipline offers advice and tips that we can utilize to achieve our goals today. Whether it’s saving money, exercising, or productivity, Meadows offers simple yet effective advice that inspires us to take immediate action. We tend to overanalyze situations, including our goals, which often leads to self-doubt and delays. Meadows encourages readers to do something small each day because it’s the small things that eventually add up.

I enjoyed this book. 365 Days is a very simple read and touched on the point immediately. I liked that there were quotes for each day. Although there were some points that I didn’t resonate with, I still believe it’s a great self-help book that you can refer to whenever you need it.

[DarkHeraldMage · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting book and had some tidbits here and there that I highlighted and hope to make use of over the next year or so, but so much of the book is either (seemingly) common sense or often contradictory advice that just seems to go back and forth between pushing you to regularly do things that hurt or aren't comfortable, or to stick to what you know best and embrace the things you're good at. Every day was a quick little read so it's worth picking up if you want some good tips, but don't expect them all to be winners.

[Roddy Pimentel · Rating 2 out of 5]

I used it for an entire month as a daily inspiration and in that singular month I stopped seeing value in it.

[Zyra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book.

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Must Read for everyone interested in self-improvement

I first got the e-book 365 Days With Self-Discipline, but after a few days I decide this is a “must have” book for everyone interested in self-development, or for anyone who just want to build self-discipline and willpower, so I bought the paperback version, this book is now a part of my morning routine, self-disciple means everything when it comes to getting a successful life, so to stay on track I read 1 chapter a day.

The book is divided into 365 short chapters of a page or two, each chapter is starting with a quote which is explained with daily life examples, the book is very easy to read, and I love the simplicity, it is clear that Martin Meadows know his field, 365 Days With Self-Discipline has made a huge impact on my life, and I can’t recommend this book enough, the paper quality is very good, and with a lot of space for notes.

[Valerie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good quotes. Thoughts are repetitive.

[Sintija Valucka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ļoti, ļoti, ļoti patika. Nav jau tā, ka grāmatā būtu nedzirdētas atziņas un apgaismojošas idejas, bet viss bija tik skaisti un kompakti uzrakstīts. Bija liels prieks to visu vēlreiz izlasīt šādā veidā.

[Amy Richison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good

This was a good book and I liked having something to read on a daily basis. I would recommend it.

[Ntombizakhona Mabaso · Rating 5 out of 5]

You can read a 'Day' or chapter per day.

You don't necessarily have to read it all in a day as it is quite repetitive, and redundant, you might get annoyed. You really should spread it out over a few days or weeks or even months. A ‘day’ a day is enough to be quite honest.

It basically tries to drill the message of self-discipline, delayed gratification, routine, health prioritisation and financial management into you.

It doesn't really feel like reading, it feels like you're having a conversation with a mentor, who answers the questions you probably already have the answers to, but you need them constantly and continuously redrilled into your very stubborn head, once again, the book is extremely repetitive.

If you’re in a mood to be told what you know you have to do, well, this is the book for you!

[Greg Lumpkin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent daily reading

I read this book one entry per day this past year, usually while eating breakfast before heading to work. I regularly shared quotes from it via social media, which some of my friends enjoyed and found inspirational. This book is an excellent choice for daily reading.

[Shirley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven’t had a whole year of reading this yet, but I like these page-size nuggets of motivational advice. Each has a quotation - which may be from a philosopher/business guru/historical figure/etc - followed by a page to read and ponder on. A bit more than just a quote per day.

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bite-sized motivations. Some were new, others newly- formulated. I enjoyed this.

[Kalyan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each page is a gem.

[jules]

who am i kidding lmao 365 days?? me?? really? DNF

[Md. Musfiqur Rahaman · Rating 5 out of 5]

365 Quotes and Topics explained in each page. Every page is valuable. Reading one page every day. Very efficient for building Book Reading habit.

[ukuklele · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buku ini telah menemani dan menyemangati saya sepanjang 2022 untuk tetap berjuang melakukan apa yang saya lakukan sehari-hari. Saya suka mendapatkan pep talk yang tampak meyakinkan bahwa apa yang dilakukan memang worth doing, dan kalaupun tidak, atau kurang, memantik untuk memikirkannya lagi dan memperbaikinya. Saya masih ingin mengiringkan hari-hari saya dengan buku-buku semacam ini (walau untuk 2023 ini nyatanya jeda sejenak beralih ke workbook :p).

Masukan-masukan dalam buku ini umumnya memang cocok atau mendukung usaha yang lagi saya tempuh, juga saya coba selaraskan dengan nilai-nilai dalam ajaran agama yang saya anut. Namun saya tidak selalu setuju. Kadang-kadang masukannya terasa terlalu berat, meragukan, atau tidak bersesuaian dengan pengalaman saya. Diperlukan kebijaksanaan dalam menanggapi masukan-masukan yang diberikan, bukan untuk ditelan mentah-mentah melainkan mesti disesuaikan dengan kondisi/situasi sendiri. Sekiranya masih timbul pikiran-pikiran negatif terhadap positivity yang diumbarkan buku ini, bisalah itu digarisbawahi untuk bahan praktik CBT :D

Entri favorit saya adalah "Day 203: On Maintaining Composure", isinya mengenai cara melatih sifat-sifat yang mendukung kedisiplinan diri atau bisa dibilang juga pengembangan akhlak/karakter seperti: calm, self-possessed, patient, polite.

Entri lainya yang mengena adalah "Day 116: On Taking the Low Road", yang menganjurkan untuk lebih mengutamakan intrinsic reward ketimbang yang extrinsic sebagai sumber motivasi. "Think how working on your goal--not merely reaching it--can improve you as a person." Berfokus pada proses perbaikan diri kendati hasilnya bukannya tidak penting. Contohnya, jika kita hanya berfokus pada extrinsic reward misalnya berupa kekayaan dengan mengabaikan aspek intrinsic maka boleh jadi kita bakal menghalalkan segala cara termasuk yang menzalimi orang lain atau menimbun penyakit pada diri sendiri. Kalau boleh saya terapkan juga dalam ranah spiritual, mungkin extrinsic reward itu berupa surga sedangkan yang intrinsic adalah menjadi jiwa yang tenang.

Ada juga "Day 146: On Decision Avoidance", "If you're hesitant about whether you want to pursue a certain goal or not, figure out a low-investment way to get started". Ini saya kaitkan dengan kegalauan: terus belajar menulis novel atau enggak. Penerapannya bisa dengan cara yang berisiko rendah, misal alokasi waktu atau target menulis yang sedikit-sedikit saja per hari/minggu.

Saya akui memang kemajuan saya sangat perlahan sampai hampir-hampir enggak kelihatan. Saya pikir yang terutama itu adalah perubahan di dalam. Keadaan mungkin akan begitu-begitu saja kalau bukan bertambah buruk (at least, degeneratively), tapi sikap diri terhadap apa pun yang bakal menimpa hingga ajal nanti mesti bertambah baik dalam arti: lebih sabar, tegar, tawakal, mampu mensyukuri apa pun--sekecil apa pun, termasuk hal-hal yang dianggap tak mengenakkan.

" The moment you decide that you're already strong enough and nothing can break your spirit is the moment you start losing mental resilience." ("Day 365: On Sweeping the Floor")

[Devanshi Mehta · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you already want to be more self-disciplined and just need a little push or guidance in the right direction every single day, then yes, this book will be very helpful to you. But I don't see many people with that requirement. It was a drag to read as I know every page is something about one concept in different ways. A lot of chapters were just the author boasting about his actions and talking about how much progress he is making in rock climbing. Most of the things mentioned in the book are just common sense with a related famous quote. You don't need either. You can program your phone to send you a motivational quote related to self-discipline every morning. You don't need the examples and explanations the author gave for each quote because I am sure you can figure out the meaning of the quotes by yourself and the author's real-life experience probably won't be helpful or relatable as an example. I read books to experience a new world, to make me feel, and to help me grow and learn. This is not the book that is for someone with my tastes. It requires you to read 1 to 2 pages per day for a year. I tend to read about 20 to 250 pages in one seating. I like to binge-read and enjoy the experience. I cannot handle a book that will last an entire year. This book required me to read for 5 minutes and then get up immediately to grab another book. At last, I finished it by forcing myself to read a few chapters every day. I cannot say that it helped me much but I was also not trying hard enough to get much out of it so it is my fault as well. I wished the book was more succinct and to the point. If it were, I would probably read it every time I needed a boost of self-esteem as a mantra (a very long one).

TLDR - Don't buy this book. Buy atomic habits instead. That book was life-changing. I still use the concepts I learned in that book and it has been a while. I bought a hardcopy so I can keep it in my nightstand and read it when I am struggling to develop another habit.

[Julia · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book reminds me of a story about an American businessman who met a fisherman in Brazil and deigned to give him an advice on how to grow his business to ...have more free time and more happiness. Which was precisely what the fisherman already had. This book is full of unsolicited advice like that. Nothing was "life-altering". I already live like that. I was oscillating between yawning and laughing out loud at the stupidity of what was recommended.

This book confirmed once again that nobody in the world looks down on other people as much as Americans, and nobody in the world can write a book where the most used words are "I, me, my, mine." That was a revolting experience.

I naively thought I could learn at least something new. Didn't happen. I guess if Americans buy such books with obvious things offered as some kind of "life-altering" wisdom, then I can become a writer too: "Look! To achieve stuff, you should do something" Wow! Life-altering! Eye-opening! Who would have thought!! (also it gives little hope for the survival of the species if that passes as "thoughts on" anything).

It's incredible that people need books for that. The scientists are right, humanity does become more stupid each passing year.

Maybe because I learned stoicism and Buddhism and I live in a country with almost nonexistent consumerist culture and no spoilt egocenteric population, - so unlike the Unites States who suck the resources of the entire planet and then have to have books in place to teach themselves self-control at McDonalds, - I could not relate to anything said in the book. So two stars are for a good laugh I had at what white rich people think self-control is.

I am finished with self-help books, and books wrote by Americans for that matter: they are always so unoriginal, dumb, banal, and somehow demeaning to human intelligence and common sense. How dumb the author think people are that they even need stupid advice like this? Well, I am not among those people.

I very much do not recommend this book.

[Ujala · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would have given two stars but I choose to give three because of the discipline with which the writers have finished the project. It could have been anyone's idea to curate a book which motivates one to be more disciplined with one chapter for each day of the year. Martin did it first and fast and had come up with quite decent content.

This was a non leap year and I kept a tally of the number of chapters I was finishing and the days that have been passing through. I certainly am more disciplined than I was, when I started the book. However, I can't really tell how much credit I can give to the book. Despite making my best efforts I would often lose reading on days and had to compensate by reading 2-3 chapters on the next day. (Sometimes 5-6 in this year).

So reading 1 chapter everyday can require as much discipline as it would have taken to write the book in approx a year. Although it's just a 3-5 min exercise of reading a chapter, one would wonder why one is unable to commit well in the absence of reminders and drama like Duolingo does. It was a fun exercise to test my discipline which the book suggests one should do often.

Not all days are as good and some lessons do feel a bit repetitive. Some days are really enlightening and give interesting insights to the tough life!

Finally a book can do only as much. As Marcus Aurelius says, "One should consolidate their learning by practicing" (A quote not mentioned in the book.) I feel I can contribute some other better quotes for the book, but then the scope of improvement is everywhere and they have already done it!

Mild spoiler- The book has book recommendations too.

[Krystel · Rating 1 out of 5]

I think that even if I read this book spread over a full year, I'd still not enjoy it. There are a few good tips and ideas in here, but the book gets quite repetitive and there's some contradictions in the viewpoints. For example, on one hand the author states that treating yourself to a "cheat meal" once is a slippery slope to failure, but regularly "taking at least a weekend away" to go on a break from your responsibilities is supposedly A-OK and keeps things sustainable.

Besides that there's quite some hammering on "health" which really just feels like fatphobia and toxic diet culture in the form of "if you're disciplined, that means you're not fat and lazy and disrespecting yourself". Not a direct quote, but most definitely the message conveyed.

And last but not least, I can imagine that it's tough to write a book that's applicable to most people. But a lot of examples in the book definitely come from a place of privilege. With tips along the lines of "instead of buying a new car every two years, you should save that money", and "regularly take weekends away". There have been quite a few times where I'd re-read a passage and ask myself "....In THIS economy?".

tl;dr Some decent tips, but I'm sure there are enough other books that do the same in a less grating way. Nice if you want a collection of quotes.

[Natalie Dark · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did become a better person/ more disciplined while and after reading this book. Do recomend it.

Now for the criticisms:
1) He repeats himself a lot ( but I guess finding 365 motivation tips is difficult) ;
2) He used "ALPHA MALE" as an adjective *vomit emoji*;
3) On some he is just bragging, not being helpful or motivational - just pure bragging.
4) 99% of his financial tips are like those "financial bro podcast" type. Where you know they are not rich just live from their parents money...

Lastly, have you ever had a date where the guy just keeps talking about his 1 hobbie that he made his whole personality, and keeps bringing ou up in weird ways just so he can keep talking about it and doesn't let you talk? It's this guy, with ✨rock climbing✨... But this book had some really good advices like day 9, 26,30, 47, 93, 155, 175, 194,255, 287, 325... Amongst many others

[Anna-Mariya Petrova · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about being a better version of yours every day. It gives you tips and advice, but not only that. This book gives you comfort and can be your guide in real life situations. It's not a fiction book. You know, the ones some of us read on a daily basis. This is a different kind of book that gives you the power to change your life, but only if you have the volition to do so. The way this is written is so comprehensible and can actually help you do something with your life. It is a long journey. An every day kind of work. Many struggles along the way. Every day is different. But mostly every time I felt the need to open it, it never disappointed. It's like it new what I needed to hear whether I'd like what I read or not. Shortly, I can call this the book of change, hard work and also my life a real work in progress.

[Gus · Rating 3 out of 5]

I tried to read this a page a day since it is written by each day. but i couldnt wait and started to read ahead. i lost interest in this book just because of how it is written. not in my top five favorite books by martin. i enjoy the short read around 50 pages or so books instead of this 365 pages. of course a lot of the days is quotes and very short reads. i just couldnt stay with it. defiantly didn't help me with life altering events or self discipline. 3 stars just cause i did enjoyed some of whats in the book.