David Goggins’ Cookie Jar Method For Overcoming Challenges
Ever feel overwhelmed by everything life throws at you?
David Goggins grew up in poverty with a mother struggling to make the end of the month.
However, no matter how bad his day was, young Goggins knew that the cookie jar would be waiting for him at home at the end of the day.
This cookie at the end of the day was enough for him to push through bad days.
Now, this “cookie jar” became a metaphor for him when things got tough.
This time, though, he would fill the cookie jar with reserves of hope and positivity for harder times.
Every time he faced a challenge, he pulled out hope from his cookie jar.
These small bits of positivity and hope can motivate you in times you feel tired or discouraged, just like a sweet cookie can do at the end of the day.
I have been using his cookie jar method to push through tough challenges in my life, most importantly during my first ultra marathon last year.
Here is how you can make the cookie jar method work for you in 3 simple steps.
Step 1 Create your cookie jar
Start by finding a physical object you want to use as your cookie jar.
This could literally be a jar in which you can throw tiny bits of paper, but you can also just take the Notes app from your phone or use your journal. Personally, I like to use my journal to make a list with achievements I am proud of and events when I bit through a challenge. The goal is to collect evidence that you are able to overcome anything life throws at you.
Fuel that internal flame with your power and potential.
Step 2 Fill your cookie jar
Now is the time to actually write down your achievements and fill the jar.
Think about the hardest times in life and how you dealt with them at that moment. These moments could be finishing your first 10K run, the presentation you crushed for a potential client, or battling a serious health event. It does not matter whether the achievement is minor or major, as long as you recognise your ability to succeed in times of adversity.
Write down around 20 achievements and events when you felt euphoric.
Step 3 Grab for a cookie whenever you need to
These are the moments for which you built your jar.
Every time life throws shit at you or you need additional motivation to push through a tough challenge, take a cookie out of your cookie jar. Feel the feelings of strength and optimism you felt after that accomplishment, and use it as fuel for your current motivation. During the last kilometres of the ultra marathon, the cookies in my cookie jar pushed me to the finish line.
Use past achievements as fuel for your current fire.
Conclusion
No matter how good life is at the moment, there will always be moments when life gets hard.
Creating your own cookie jar makes you resilient to future events and fills your self confidence with strength from evidence about your own power.
Take a moment and sit down this week.
Write down your biggest accomplishments.
Your future self will thank you.
