Here is a quote about your habits that’s based on something everyone’s heard before, but with one brutal line added that most people don’t want to hear.

The original quote says:

If your habits don’t reflect your dreams and goals, change your habits.

Simple enough. Work harder. Be more disciplined. Align your actions with your aspirations. It’s the kind of advice coaches give all the time.

However, add one truth-telling line: OR change your dreams and goals.

That line forces you to face reality. Either your dreams are serious enough to change your habits, or your habits reveal what you actually want. You can’t have both. You have to choose.

College football coaches hear players say “I want to play in the NFL” while their actions said something completely different. Late to practice. Skipping film sessions. Half-effort in the weight room.

Many coaches aren’t buying it anymore. “Don’t lie to yourself. Do you really want to be a first-round draft pick and you’re doing this?”

Most people lie to themselves about their discipline and commitment level. They say they want greatness while being average is good enough. They talk about championships while cutting corners nobody sees. They claim big dreams while choosing small habits.

The gap between what they say and what they do is massive, and they pretend not to notice.

The additional line eliminates that self-deception. Your habits are the truth. Not your words. Not your intentions. Not what you say when someone asks about your goals.

Your habits are the mirror that doesn’t lie. And if your habits don’t match your dreams, one of them has to change.

You can’t have championship dreams with average habits. You can’t want to be great while acting like mediocrity is acceptable. Either elevate your habits to match your goals, or lower your expectations to match your effort. But stop lying to yourself about what you really want.

So ask yourself: do your habits reflect your dreams? If not, which one are you changing? Because keeping both while they contradict each other is just lying to yourself. And that’s the one lie you can’t afford to keep telling.

Source:  Urban Meyer’s interview with Lewis Howes.