Eliminate Comfort and Unlock your Hidden Energy (the Kebnekaise effect)

When you think you’ve given everything, you have 99% left.¹

First scenario: the alarm rings, you wake from your coma, and you drag yourself out of bed. Second scenario: “FIRE! FIRE! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!” — you jump out of bed and run down the stairs. In one situation you have no energy — in the other you jump like a gazelle.

The only difference is your state of mind — and this energy can be released by shaping your environment.

We went from high energy to complete collapse in a matter of seconds — by sitting down in a bus.

In 2012, me and my wife (to be) hiked up the tallest mountain in Sweden (Kebnekaise).

The first day was torturous — our shoulders ached, my “old knee” hurt, and we had to stop every 20 minutes. My backpack weighed a ton, and so did hers.

After a day or so, we found our Zen. We walked with energy and drive, and we rarely stopped. My knee no longer hurt and our bodies felt great — we were in the best shape of our lives. We reached the peak and made our way back in about five days. Back at the outpost, we loaded our backpacks in the bus, took our seats, and then BAM— our entire bodies started to ache.

We went from feeling like we could conquer the world to complete collapse, and we did so in a heartbeat. The only thing that changed was the state of our minds — and it made all the difference.

We felt perfect when comfort was inaccessible — we collapsed when it no longer was.

Soldiers performed worse when they knew they’d get to rest.

I experienced the same phenomenon in the military.

We would train the way you’d expect: run in heavy gear, reload our weapons a thousand times, and combat exercises. Sometimes we’d do so in the field, and sometimes we’d do it closer to base.

We knew we’d get off duty at 1700 when we were near the base. We all longed for the end, checked the time as often as we could, and performed poorly because of it. Things ached more, our energy was easily drained, and our equipment felt heavy. Things were different when we went into the field. Our energy levels were high and we performed — even when we went through hells far worse than back at the base.

The reason: we knew this was it. Comfort was on vacation, and out of reach. When resting wasn’t possible, our minds gave us the energy we needed.

When we didn’t expect comfort, it unlocked our potential.

You have the energy — unlock it by shaping your environment.

We get the energy to do what we must— not what we should.

We experience this on a daily basis: we collapse during weekends, but miraculously shape up on Mondays. We can deliberately choose our musts, but it’s easier when that choice isn’t up to us.

This is why the environment matters. At the gym, the only thing you can do is exercise — at the office or the library, the only thing you can do is work. You can’t lie on the sofa, you can’t watch TV, and you can’t look in the fridge. Not due to your willpower, but because those things simply aren’t available. Resting is impossible, and working is the only option. And once your mind accepts this, it will give you the energy you need.

Your environment controls your energy because it makes the limitation real and not only up to you. If the bed isn’t nearby, then it’s reality — not only your decisions — that prevents you from lying in it. Luckily, much of your environment is within your control.

To unlock your hidden energy, create an environment where rest is impossible.

Footnotes

¹Our lieutenant used to say this to my platoon during military service. Another one was “A soldier doesn’t freeze — he shakes from happiness.”