The Discipline You Don’t See

Why what breaks you might be the start of what builds you.

I remember sitting back in my chair as Brian Keane recounted dragging a torn Achilles across 86 kilometers of Arctic ice. Not running. Not walking. Dragging.

It wasn’t just the story—it was how he told it. No drama. No bravado. Just presence. Just truth.

And it made me think about something I don’t reflect on enough:
How many times have I wanted to quit when no one was watching?

Not the public moments—those we know how to mask, how to polish, how to spin.

But the private ones.

The kind where you’re staring at a blinking cursor, or pacing through an argument you haven’t had the courage to start, or waking up in the middle of the night wondering how long you can keep carrying all of it.

Brian wasn’t talking about discipline in the highlight reel.
He was talking about the part no one sees.

And what struck me wasn’t just the pain he endured, but the fact that he knew, in that moment, the regret of quitting would hurt longer than the torn tendon ever could.

That kind of discipline doesn’t come from routine.
It comes from identity.

But there’s a part of this conversation I haven’t stopped thinking about since...

What if fear isn’t something to overcome—but something to use?

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• The ad-free full episode of my conversation with Brian Keane

• A Companion Reflection Guide to help you identify your own fear anchors and identity gaps

• A Digital Workbook that walks you through building sustainable discipline (not just motivation)

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