In partnership with

"Success doesn’t depend on how you feel today. It depends on the system you built yesterday."

Today’s Ladder:

Willpower Is Overrated

What if the reason you keep falling off track…

…has nothing to do with your motivation?

And everything to do with your lack of systems?

For years, I tried to push my way to success through sheer willpower…

• Wake up earlier.

• Work longer.

• Push harder.

It worked. 

For a while.

Then life happened.

• Distractions piled up.

• Energy dipped.

• Motivation ran out.

And without motivation, my good habits fell apart.

That is when I realized:

Willpower is a sprint.
Systems are the marathon.

Once I stopped relying on how I felt in the moment and started building systems, the trajectory of my career changed.

Career Commandment #8 says: “Systems beat willpower.”

Because you stop negotiating with yourself.

Systems Don’t Have Bad Days

A good system makes the right choice the easy choice:

• A recurring calendar block instead of “hoping” I find time.

• A pre-meeting checklist instead of trusting my memory.

• A set agenda for the day/week so I can focus on execution, not constant planning.

With systems in place, progress became automatic.

The less I relied on willpower, the more consistent I became.

I stopped wasting energy deciding what to do and started using that energy to actually do it.

Systems protect progress.

They keep you moving when motivation is low and life gets messy.

If you want consistent results, stop trusting your mood and start trusting your systems.

Takeaway:

Systems Do the Heavy Lifting

My old boss was one of those people who never seemed rushed.

Projects got done. Deadlines were met.

And she rarely stayed late.

One day I asked her how she managed it all.

She smiled and said, “I don’t rely on willpower. I rely on systems.”

I didn’t fully get it at the time.
But I watched her.

Every task had a checklist.
Every project had a repeatable process.
Every week had a rhythm.

While I was surviving on sheer willpower and last-minute pushes, she was growing her career with calm consistency.

That’s when Career Commandment #8 clicked for me:

Systems beat willpower.

Willpower fades. Systems keep going.

If you’re tired of starting strong and burning out fast, start building systems for the career you want…

Not just the one you’re trying to get through.

Get the rest of the 10 Career Commandments here.

ICYMI: Links to recent issues

🧠 Career Commandment #1: Clarity Precedes Power

🙋🏻‍♀️ How to Show Up and Win Before You Feel Ready

💱 The Power of Saying Less: Why Fewer Words Can Make You More Influential

To your success,

Dr. Lex ✍️

Founder, Career Ladder | Career MBA

Big investors are buying this “unlisted” stock

When the founder who sold his last company to Zillow for $120M starts a new venture, people notice. That’s why the same VCs who backed Uber, Venmo, and eBay also invested in Pacaso.

Disrupting the real estate industry once again, Pacaso’s streamlined platform offers co-ownership of premier properties, revamping the $1.3T vacation home market.

And it works. By handing keys to 2,000+ happy homeowners, Pacaso has already made $110M+ in gross profits in their operating history.

Now, after 41% YoY gross profit growth last year alone, they recently reserved the Nasdaq ticker PCSO.

Invest for $2.90/Share

_{Paid advertisement for Pacaso’s Regulation A offering. Read the offering circular at invest.pacaso.com. Reserving a ticker symbol is not a guarantee that the company will go public. Listing on the NASDAQ is subject to approvals.}