Fractal Mind: Train Your Brain To Become Your Biggest Ally

I crossed a whole ocean and was never out of breath…until my last day. With Hawaii in sight, I could only take a few measly strokes before having to stop and gasp for air.

I had rowed the last 24 hours non-stop, and I was exhausted to my bones. Sweltering tropical heat was sapping my energy, but I couldn’t take a break, or I’d arrive in Hawaii after dark – a highly risky maneuver in a rowing boat. And there wasn’t anywhere to rest anyway: the cabin was even hotter than being on deck, where my sun-baked thermometers read 120 degrees F.

This was the moment all my training had led up to. From 14 years experience in endurance racing, I’ve learned that the messages we repeat to ourselves matter. In fact, they’re almost all that matters.

I began to say aloud: “My body is hot but I am fine. I am rowing to the finish.”

At first it was a whisper. But slowly, over the course of one long, painful hour, it grew into a full shout. I heaved on the oars while bursting, “I am rowing to the finish!”

Repeating the phrase once or twice didn’t do much. Just like one or two strokes on my oars barely moved my boat.

But repeating both together, again and again, created wild results: I began to cool down! I raced ahead, met my escort boat, and arrived in harbor just before sunset after rowing 36 hours straight.

In sports and in life, we’re often told to “finish strong.” On the final day of my row, I finally understood just how that’s done: consistency – showing up every day, and then again when it hurts the most. And what I call the “fractal mind” – using simple hacks to work WITH your mind, like repeating affirming messages and positive actions – is how you convert consistency into unstoppable momentum, so you can finish strong in anything you do.