3x3: On Your Best Hours, Motivation & Discipline, and Fearing Ignorance

Hi, it’s Tom.

This week, we’re going to discuss:

• Why our best hours define our results.

• Why discipline alone isn’t enough.

• Why people fear ignorance.

Let’s dive in.

1. Your Best Hours = Your Best Work

If I looked at your schedule now, would I know what you care about most?

People usually assume 3 hours of work gives 3 hours of results. But in reality, WHEN you do the work matters more than HOW LONG you work.

Here’s what I’ve noticed:

• I’m 2x more productive between 6 AM and 9 AM than any other time.

• My sleep is twice as effective between 9 PM and midnight than later in the night.

• I am 4x more creative in the morning than in the afternoon.

That’s why I structure my days around when I perform best. My priorities aren’t about how much time I dedicate to each task but about how efficient I am WHEN I do it.

Your most important work shouldn’t be squeezed in when you’re already drained. It should be prioritized for when you’re at your peak.

Track your energy levels for a week, identify your peak and down hours, and build your schedule around them.

Then ask yourself: If I only looked at what I do in my best hours, would it reflect what I truly care about? PS: Since social life is key to happiness, this “ideal schedule” gets (thrown out the window) flexible for friends and family.

2. Motivation and Discipline Work Together

You already know discipline beats motivation. You’ve heard it a thousand times and you’ll probably hear it another thousand (sometimes by me).

But the best results happen when motivation builds on top of discipline.

Discipline keeps you moving. Motivation makes you push further.

Let’s take an example. I’m currently training for a marathon (no, we can’t not mention it, sorry).

If I only relied on my motivation, I’d quit after a week or would only train when the conditions are perfect (so I’d never train).

If I only relied on discipline, I’d follow the plan blindly, and I would probably not enjoy it that much, regardless of how loudly people on the internet scream to “FALL IN LOVE WITH THE PROCESS”.

So I’ve decided to combine both. Motivation + Discipline. This way, not only do I follow the training plan, I enjoy every run because they are all occasions to go the extra mile. I can sprint the last stretch, add an extra 10 minutes at the end, go a bit faster than planned, etc. I push myself beyond what’s required because I feel like it*.*

Motivation shouldn’t simply be the reason you start. It should also be the fuel that takes you beyond what’s expected and make you fall in love with the process.

Question: Where in your life has discipline kept you going, but motivation could push you further and help you enjoy more?

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3. The Fear of Not Knowing

Most people don’t stop learning because they know enough. They stop learning because admitting they don’t know enough is uncomfortable.

They read one book, take one course, or get decent at a skill and think, “I’ve got it figured out.” Not because they do, but because uncertainty feels worse than ignorance.

They prefer to feel smart (when they’re dumb) than to be smart (while feeling dumb).

Do this little thought experiment with me:

Imagine if Cristiano Ronaldo said, “I’ve trained enough. I don’t need to train anymore.”

Sounds absurd, right? Yet this is exactly how most people treat knowledge. They reach a comfortable level and stop.

But real growth requires uncertainty. It forces you to think, to adapt, and to challenge what you assume to be true. That’s uncomfortable for some.

But if you’re here, it’s not because you want comfort, it’s because you want to grow. So let’s keep learning, so we can keep growing.

Where in your life do you assume you know everything when deep down, you don’t? What would change if you admitted it and started to learn more?

One Final Thought

Your best hours should be for your best work.

Motivation and Discipline are not enemies, they’re best friends.

The more uncertainty and discomfort you accept, the more you grow.

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